Glad you brought up the topic of Prince/The Artist, who I believe is the greatest musical genius who has made music in at least the last two decades. True, he has grown as an "artist" over his career, but he has made some concessions to make some crossover hits, or at least expand his audience base. HOw else can you explain his occasional attempts at making rap music?<P>But HIPHOP is different. Why? Listen to the the Intro to Things Fall Apart. Hiphop is not seen as an artform, and is actually degraded, pimped if you will, by "the industry". Can you blame them? We, as the hip hop nation, have a history of abandoning our heroes. Kool Herc? He'll get props, but not the $$$ that he so rightly deserves. Big Daddy Kane? Kool Moe Dee? Whodini? Doug E Fresh? We even disregard KRS-1 and Chuck D!?! 10 years ago all this would be blasphemy. This list of disposable heroes can go on and on, but my point is WE HAVE NO RESPECT FOR OUR HISTORY. <P>Which brings me to Q-tip's "Vivrant". He knows that he is facing a point in his career where most "hip hop fans" usually tend to abandon their heroes, and move on to the next thing. He knows that "Beats, Rhymes, and LIfe" and "love movement" were met with a lukewarm response by the fans. At his age, he still wants to feel the need to be a success, and if this is his "9 to 5" for his life, he's gotta think longevity in the game. And dammit, he needs to find a way to put food on the table!! To the chagrin of us diehard Tribe fans, we feel he's abandoning us, but if this is his CAREER, then its either expand your audience or perish.<P>I would put him in the same category of LL Cool J or Busta Rhymes. You cannot stay underground forever. I cringe when I hear this song, but truth be told, if it comes on in a club, I'm shaking dat money maker.