Allday Reckons “a lot of Aussie Hip Hop is trash”

In a recent interview Adelaide-born rapper Allday told Paper Magazine “a lot of Australian hip-hop is trash…It’s not current. It’s a sham. I feel like to be in hip-hop, one of the things you need to be is effortlessly cool. The best hip-hop artists ever have been icons of culture and fashion as well”.

To some extent, Allday has a point. Most of the Australian hip-hop that the American readership of Paper Magazine is exposed to could be considered ‘trash’. I am talking about Iggy Azalea (not even T.I. could continue the task of defending her and a small part of me respects Allday for not even trying) and at a stretch Hilltop Hoods (the group probably known for a poorly-timed Cosby reference more than anything else). But these are the artists Allday should not be talking about. He is in a position to know the Australian hip-hop scene and its upcoming talents better than most and to dispel some of the surrounding negativity that has grown in Iggy’s wake. Unfortunately, by using blanket statements Allday instead chose to treat the culture that he emerged from as monolithic and mundane.

To be honest, I don’t really understand what he wants – an Australian hip-hop scene that is more authentic but is also more closely aligned with the one in the US? Overlooking the apparent oxymoron, I think the separation has been a good thing as it has resulted in a varied hip-hop scene. Some artists take cues from America such as Midas.Gold who appears to have some Future vibes happening while others, such as Tkay Maidza, have the freedom to forge their own lanes (and Tkay has a fan in Killer Mike which is more than I can say for Allday).

“a lot of Australian hip-hop is trash…It’s not current. It’s a sham. I feel like to be in hip-hop, one of the things you need to be is effortlessly cool. The best hip-hop artists ever have been icons of culture and fashion as well”.

Allday has also managed to wade into one the bigger debates in hip-hop and once again I find myself on the opposite side of the fence. Artists such as Kanye West and A$AP Mob have ensured that fashion plays an increasingly important role in the culture of hip-hop. However, while I do worship at the altar of Yeezus I wish I had been alive to experience the days in which hip-hop beef resulted in tracks like Hit Em Up and not Facts.