Who Was The MVP of 1998

[5 Grand]

Dmx ruled 98

The album sales don't lie ..5 million plus

Two albums in one year

HARD KNOCK LIFE SOLD 5.8 MIL THAT YEAR IF IT'S BASED ON SALES. IF YOU'RE DISCUSSING QULAITY OF MUSIC THEN AQUEMINI IS THE BEST ALBUM THAT YEAR

Both 'It's Dark and Hell is Hot' and Vol 2 have sold over 5 mil. Vol 2 has sold closer to 5.3 Million than 5.8, and has only sold a few hundred thousand more copies than IDAHIH.

Add 'Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood' selling 670,000 its 1st week to end the year, it's gotta go to X

Dont get me wrong, it's close and Jay hard more international appeal with his singles, but X had the streets on lock. Jay had to make radio friendly music to move the numbers X did with "Get at Me Dog", "Ruff Ryders Anthem" and "Slippin"

If ya'll are talking about record sales its gotta go to either Will Smith or Lauryn Hill

Big Willie Style is the first solo studio album by American rapper Will Smith. Recorded with a range of producers, including Poke & Tone and former collaborator DJ Jazzy Jeff, it was released on November 25, 1997 by Columbia Records...By July 2000, Big Willie Style had been certified nine times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, indicating US sales of over nine million units.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Willie_Style

The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is the debut solo album by American recording artist Lauryn Hill, released on August 25, 1998, by Ruffhouse Records and Columbia Records...The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 422,624 copies in its first week, which broke a record for first-week sales by a female artist...n the United States, the album sold one million copies in less than a month and 2.4 million copies by December.. On December 17, 2001, it was certified 8x platinum by the RIAA.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Miseducation_of_Lauryn_Hill

Clearly Will Smith and Lauryn Hill outsold DMX and Jay Z.

Now don't change your argument. You guys were talking record sales and how Jay Z and DMX sold 5X Plat so they've gotta be the MVP of 1998. If that's your argument then You're wrong and it should go to either Will Smith or Lauryn Hill.

 

[PanchoYoSancho]

Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation and Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a classic, but she did more singing than rapping on that album.

 

[5 Grand]

Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation and Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a classic, but she did more singing than rapping on that album.

Nosign.

First of all, Will Smith came out before MC Hammer.

I'm not saying that Will Smith is my favorite MC but you guys are talking about record sales like Will Smith and Lauryn Hill don't exist.

 

[Tommy bilfiger]

Dmx ruled 98

The album sales don't lie ..5 million plus

Two albums in one year

HARD KNOCK LIFE SOLD 5.8 MIL THAT YEAR IF IT'S BASED ON SALES. IF YOU'RE DISCUSSING QULAITY OF MUSIC THEN AQUEMINI IS THE BEST ALBUM THAT YEAR

You're exposing yourself.Fuck record sales on the streets it was dmx or master p it's that simple you tryin to force jigga in the conversation like a dickriding groupie and the streets definitely wasn't talkin bout no aquemini foh duke

Vol 2 didn't even drop til September that year.You wasn't old enough to be commenting on that era that's why you mentioning sales take a seat homeboy

 

[PanchoYoSancho]

Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation and Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a classic, but she did more singing than rapping on that album.

Nosign.



First of all, Will Smith came out before MC Hammer.

I'm not saying that Will Smith is my favorite MC but you guys are talking about record sales like Will Smith and Lauryn Hill don't exist.

That's why I said Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation, not MC Hammer was the Will Smith of his generation. Will Smith solo career cant be taken serious in this conversation. His signature song was "Gettin Jiggy Wit It". He's in MC Hammer/Vanilla Ice territory. You cant be this naive, 5G. It's obvious why he's not in the discussion. I can understand putting L-Boogie. She was raw when she wanted to be, but she only rapped on half the songs on the album, and most of those were just single verses. Lauryn's always been more of a singer than a rapper.

Sales aint the be all end all in the conversation, but they matter when you're breaking down who had a bigger impact between similar CREDIBLE artists.

 

[Soloman_The_Wise]

Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation and Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a classic, but she did more singing than rapping on that album.

Nosign.

First of all, Will Smith came out before MC Hammer.

I'm not saying that Will Smith is my favorite MC but you guys are talking about record sales like Will Smith and Lauryn Hill don't exist.

So you listened to WIll smith right???

 

[5 Grand]

Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation and Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a classic, but she did more singing than rapping on that album.

Nosign.



First of all, Will Smith came out before MC Hammer.

I'm not saying that Will Smith is my favorite MC but you guys are talking about record sales like Will Smith and Lauryn Hill don't exist.

That's why I said Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation, not MC Hammer was the Will Smith of his generation. Will Smith solo career cant be taken serious in this conversation. His signature song was "Gettin Jiggy Wit It". He's in MC Hammer/Vanilla Ice territory. You cant be this naive, 5G. It's obvious why he's not in the discussion. I can understand putting L-Boogie. She was raw when she wanted to be, but she only rapped on half the songs on the album, and most of those were just single verses. Lauryn's always been more of a singer than a rapper.

Sales aint the be all end all in the conversation, but they matter when you're breaking down who had a bigger impact between similar CREDIBLE artists.

Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation and Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a classic, but she did more singing than rapping on that album.

Nosign.

First of all, Will Smith came out before MC Hammer.

I'm not saying that Will Smith is my favorite MC but you guys are talking about record sales like Will Smith and Lauryn Hill don't exist.

So you listened to WIll smith right???

Actually, Will Smith A/K/A Fresh Prince was a legitimate, respectable MC when he first came out. His first two albums were solid. He was the same generation as KRS, Rakim, Big Daddy Kane and LL Cool J and truth be told, from 86-91 if you were making a mixtape or a playlist you'd have to put a few songs by Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince (Live at Union Square, Rock The House, Brand New Funk, Summertime).

My point is, Will Smith A/K/A/ Fresh Prince shouldn't be lumped in the same category as MC Hammer or Vanilla Ice. Hammer and Vanilla Ice were terrible MCs and never got any props amongst true Hip Hop heads. Will Smith A/K/A/ Fresh Prince made decent music and you could play Getting Jiggy With It at a cookout right now and people would be jamming...and he sold 9X platinum.

And before you say, "Nas wrote Getting Jiggy With It", Ice Cube wrote Boys in the Hood but that doesn't make it any less classic.

 

[Revolver Ocelot]

Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation and Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a classic, but she did more singing than rapping on that album.

Nosign.



First of all, Will Smith came out before MC Hammer.

I'm not saying that Will Smith is my favorite MC but you guys are talking about record sales like Will Smith and Lauryn Hill don't exist.

That's why I said Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation, not MC Hammer was the Will Smith of his generation. Will Smith solo career cant be taken serious in this conversation. His signature song was "Gettin Jiggy Wit It". He's in MC Hammer/Vanilla Ice territory. You cant be this naive, 5G. It's obvious why he's not in the discussion. I can understand putting L-Boogie. She was raw when she wanted to be, but she only rapped on half the songs on the album, and most of those were just single verses. Lauryn's always been more of a singer than a rapper.

Sales aint the be all end all in the conversation, but they matter when you're breaking down who had a bigger impact between similar CREDIBLE artists.

Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation and Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a classic, but she did more singing than rapping on that album.

Nosign.

First of all, Will Smith came out before MC Hammer.

I'm not saying that Will Smith is my favorite MC but you guys are talking about record sales like Will Smith and Lauryn Hill don't exist.

So you listened to WIll smith right???

Actually, Will Smith A/K/A Fresh Prince was a legitimate, respectable MC when he first came out. His first two albums were solid. He was the same generation as KRS, Rakim, Big Daddy Kane and LL Cool J and truth be told, from 86-91 if you were making a mixtape or a playlist you'd have to put a few songs by Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince (Live at Union Square, Rock The House, Brand New Funk, Summertime).

My point is, Will Smith A/K/A/ Fresh Prince shouldn't be lumped in the same category as MC Hammer or Vanilla Ice. Hammer and Vanilla Ice were terrible MCs and never got any props amongst true Hip Hop heads. Will Smith A/K/A/ Fresh Prince made decent music and you could play Getting Jiggy With It at a cookout right now and people would be jamming...and he sold 9X platinum.

And before you say, "Nas wrote Getting Jiggy With It", Ice Cube wrote Boys in the Hood but that doesn't make it any less classic.

Nas didn't write Get Jiggy With It.

In April 2014 on the social networking site Reddit, Nas finally put the rumor to rest:

"Alright, let's clear this up once and for all. I hung out with Will in the studio. And watched him write it. It was a fun studio session, and I said a line or two or three to him. It wasn't that serious. Will Smith wrote that song. But seriously, I watched him have fun making that record on his own, and Will is a true MC."[6]

 

[5 Grand]

Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation and Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a classic, but she did more singing than rapping on that album.

Nosign.



First of all, Will Smith came out before MC Hammer.

I'm not saying that Will Smith is my favorite MC but you guys are talking about record sales like Will Smith and Lauryn Hill don't exist.

That's why I said Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation, not MC Hammer was the Will Smith of his generation. Will Smith solo career cant be taken serious in this conversation. His signature song was "Gettin Jiggy Wit It". He's in MC Hammer/Vanilla Ice territory. You cant be this naive, 5G. It's obvious why he's not in the discussion. I can understand putting L-Boogie. She was raw when she wanted to be, but she only rapped on half the songs on the album, and most of those were just single verses. Lauryn's always been more of a singer than a rapper.

Sales aint the be all end all in the conversation, but they matter when you're breaking down who had a bigger impact between similar CREDIBLE artists.

Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation and Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a classic, but she did more singing than rapping on that album.

Nosign.

First of all, Will Smith came out before MC Hammer.

I'm not saying that Will Smith is my favorite MC but you guys are talking about record sales like Will Smith and Lauryn Hill don't exist.

So you listened to WIll smith right???

Actually, Will Smith A/K/A Fresh Prince was a legitimate, respectable MC when he first came out. His first two albums were solid. He was the same generation as KRS, Rakim, Big Daddy Kane and LL Cool J and truth be told, from 86-91 if you were making a mixtape or a playlist you'd have to put a few songs by Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince (Live at Union Square, Rock The House, Brand New Funk, Summertime).

My point is, Will Smith A/K/A/ Fresh Prince shouldn't be lumped in the same category as MC Hammer or Vanilla Ice. Hammer and Vanilla Ice were terrible MCs and never got any props amongst true Hip Hop heads. Will Smith A/K/A/ Fresh Prince made decent music and you could play Getting Jiggy With It at a cookout right now and people would be jamming...and he sold 9X platinum.

And before you say, "Nas wrote Getting Jiggy With It", Ice Cube wrote Boys in the Hood but that doesn't make it any less classic.

Nas didn't write Get Jiggy With It.

In April 2014 on the social networking site Reddit, Nas finally put the rumor to rest:

"Alright, let's clear this up once and for all. I hung out with Will in the studio. And watched him write it. It was a fun studio session, and I said a line or two or three to him. It wasn't that serious. Will Smith wrote that song. But seriously, I watched him have fun making that record on his own, and Will is a true MC."[6]

Well that just supports my argument.

If we're talking strictly record sales Will Smith outsold everybody.

 

[Built 4 cuban linx]

Not gonna lie, that Will Smith album was dope. I was like 10 years old tho.

 

[PanchoYoSancho]

I thought Nas was rumored to write "Miami"? Regardless, I made it clear I was talking about Will's solo career. Will is a Pop artist. Im not knocking him, but that's what he is.

You're right that he's got more talent than Hammer and Ice combined, but he went all out Pop when he left Jazzy Jeff. "Gettin Jiggy With It" is a pop song off a Pop album. No different than Hammer and Ice who sold 10 and 7 million records respectively off a pop song. Will Smith made entertaining music, but it was never taken serious amongst real Hip Hop heads. When you get more play on Top 40 Pop radio than actual Hip Hop stations, you're a Pop artist.

Flo Rida and Pitbull are the modern day Hammer and Ice.

 

[HustleThaDon]

X easily

 

[5 Grand]

I thought Nas was rumored to write "Miami"? Regardless, I made it clear I was talking about Will's solo career. Will is a Pop artist. Im not knocking him, but that's what he is.

You're right that he's got more talent than Hammer and Ice combined, but he went all out Pop when he left Jazzy Jeff. "Gettin Jiggy With It" is a pop song off a Pop album. No different than Hammer and Ice who sold 10 and 7 million records respectively off a pop song. Will Smith made entertaining music, but it was never taken serious amongst real Hip Hop heads. When you get more play on Top 40 Pop radio than actual Hip Hop stations, you're a Pop artist.

Flo Rida and Pitbull are the modern day Hammer and Ice.

Nosign again.

Jazzy Jeff produced a few songs on that album. They were still together but for reasons I won't get into he used his government name, Will Smith instead of the group name Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince.

And the four singles from that album; Gettin Jiggy With It, Miami, Just The Two Of Us and Men In Black weren't any more or less commercial than what Puff Daddy and Ma$e were doing in 1998.

Big Willie Style wasn't any more or less commercial than Harlem World but it sold twice as much.

Don't make me post youtube videos of what Puff Daddy and Ma$e were doing during the exact same year.

 

[PanchoYoSancho]

Who's giving Puff and Mase passes for what they did? Theyre in a similar boat. Hell, the video for "Gettin Jiggy With It" looked like a sequel to "Feel So Good" or "Mo Money, Mo Problems" Same outfits and everything.

But you wrong about Will Smith not being more commercial than they were. Will's music catered to pop radio. Mase is one thing, but Puff was a habitual line stepper. He balanced Mafioso rap with Pop appeal. Will Smith never made a song like "Victory" or "Its All About the Benjamins". And those were two of the biggest songs off 'No Way Out'.

And despite all those sales, Puff was never taken serious as an MC either for obvious reasons.

 

[5th Letter]

Will Smith was in that Black Eyed Peas/Flo Rida/Pitbull lane back in 97/98.

 

[5 Grand]

Who's giving Puff and Mase passes for what they did? Theyre in a similar boat. Hell, the video for "Gettin Jiggy With It" looked like a sequel to "Feel So Good" or "Mo Money, Mo Problems" Same outfits and everything.

But you wrong about Will Smith not being more commercial than they were. Will's music catered to pop radio. Mase is one thing, but Puff was a habitual line stepper. He balanced Mafioso rap with Pop appeal. Will Smith never made a song like "Victory" or "Its All About the Benjamins". And those were two of the biggest songs off 'No Way Out'.

And despite all those sales, Puff was never taken serious as an MC either for obvious reasons.

So wait a sec, when we did the "MVP of 1997" thread Puff was one of the choices but now that we're doing the MVP of 1998 and Will Smith gets a nomination all of a sudden he's in the, "same boat as Puff and Ma$e"

Obviously you've never heard DJ Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince's Live @ Union Square routine. Its the absolute best live routine I've ever heard, better than any DMX performance.


As far as Will Smith never doing a song like Victory or The Benjamins, have you ever heard Summertime?

 

[PanchoYoSancho]

1. I said similar boat, not same. There's a difference and I made it clear what the differences were.

2. You keep bringing up Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince. We're talking about 1998 and 'Big Willie Style', not the late 80s/early 90s and 'Summertime'. This ain't a lifetime achievement award. Will doesn't get a pass for going Pop cause of his resume as a decent commercial friendly MC prior to that. .

3. You bring up Jazzy Jeff producing songs off the album, yet none of those songs were released as singles. They weren't pop enough.

4. In what world was "Summertime" like "Victory"?

5. He exploded as a movie star and 'Big Willie Style' was the perfect way to capitalize on that. On the intro to the album, Will basically admitted his music wasn't "real rap"...

 

[5 Grand]

1. I said similar boat, not same. There's a difference and I made it clear what the differences were.

2. You keep bringing up Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince. We're talking about 1998 and 'Big Willie Style', not the late 80s/early 90s and 'Summertime'. This ain't a lifetime achievement award. Will doesn't get a pass for going Pop cause of his resume as a decent commercial friendly MC prior to that. .

3. You bring up Jazzy Jeff producing songs off the album, yet none of those songs were released as singles. They weren't pop enough.

4. In what world was "Summertime" like "Victory"?

5. He exploded as a movie star and 'Big Willie Style' was the perfect way to capitalize on that. On the intro to the album, Will basically admitted his music wasn't "real rap"...

Your favorite rapper wishes he was a successful movie star like Will Smith.

This debate is senseless. You guys were talking about how DMX and Jay Z sold 5X Platinum and therefore they are the MVPs of 1998. The bottom line is that Will Smith and Lauryn Hill both outsold Jay Z and DMX so if we're talking record sales it should go to Will Smith and/or Lauryn Hill.

You can make all the excuses you want but numbers don't lie. Anybody that remembers 1998 remembers Men In Black, Miami, Getting Jiggy With It and Just The Two Of Us getting played on the radio. Hot 97 had those songs on heavy rotation. You'd have to be tone def to dislike those songs. And I don't give a fuck if they're not Gangsta rappers or if wiggers from the suburbs didn't idolize them like they idolized DMX, its a moot point.

And Lauryn Hill was getting heavy rotation on Hot 97 too.

 

[Soloman_The_Wise]

Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation and Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a classic, but she did more singing than rapping on that album.

Nosign.



First of all, Will Smith came out before MC Hammer.

I'm not saying that Will Smith is my favorite MC but you guys are talking about record sales like Will Smith and Lauryn Hill don't exist.

That's why I said Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation, not MC Hammer was the Will Smith of his generation. Will Smith solo career cant be taken serious in this conversation. His signature song was "Gettin Jiggy Wit It". He's in MC Hammer/Vanilla Ice territory. You cant be this naive, 5G. It's obvious why he's not in the discussion. I can understand putting L-Boogie. She was raw when she wanted to be, but she only rapped on half the songs on the album, and most of those were just single verses. Lauryn's always been more of a singer than a rapper.

Sales aint the be all end all in the conversation, but they matter when you're breaking down who had a bigger impact between similar CREDIBLE artists.

Will Smith was the MC Hammer of his generation and Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a classic, but she did more singing than rapping on that album.

Nosign.

First of all, Will Smith came out before MC Hammer.

I'm not saying that Will Smith is my favorite MC but you guys are talking about record sales like Will Smith and Lauryn Hill don't exist.

So you listened to WIll smith right???

Actually, Will Smith A/K/A Fresh Prince was a legitimate, respectable MC when he first came out. His first two albums were solid. He was the same generation as KRS, Rakim, Big Daddy Kane and LL Cool J and truth be told, from 86-91 if you were making a mixtape or a playlist you'd have to put a few songs by Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince (Live at Union Square, Rock The House, Brand New Funk, Summertime).

My point is, Will Smith A/K/A/ Fresh Prince shouldn't be lumped in the same category as MC Hammer or Vanilla Ice. Hammer and Vanilla Ice were terrible MCs and never got any props amongst true Hip Hop heads. Will Smith A/K/A/ Fresh Prince made decent music and you could play Getting Jiggy With It at a cookout right now and people would be jamming...and he sold 9X platinum.

And before you say, "Nas wrote Getting Jiggy With It", Ice Cube wrote Boys in the Hood but that doesn't make it any less classic.

Again this a extremely Eastsided perspective. Hammer employed family members of mine Hammer laid the foundation for independent grind and Hammer is definitely in the Same HipHop Lane and era as the Fresh Prince saying anything different is being disingenuous ...

 

[water ur seeds]

Yo how can people say Will Smith was like Vanilla Ice??? lol Vanilla Ice had IMO no dope songs and was a complete gimmick...

I wouldn’t say Will's most well known tune is 'Getting Jiggy Wit It’ either, probably the most well known song and as far as Im concerned EVERYONE likes is 'Summertime’ or even 'Cruisin'...

I agree with @5grand, Will is official hip hop, his days as the Fresh Prince with Jeff were dope and make him way more official then Vanilla Ice, or MC Hammer for that matter, even though Hammer was a cool dude...

Will and Jeff rocking house parties, battling and putting in work make them official IMO… And Jeff is quite possibly the best hip hop DJ of all time for me, atleast top 5...

For me even Will's BWS & Willennium albums although very commercial and friendly, were still dope, as a kid of 11 or 12 I used have BWS playing daily, even if he had help in writing them two albums I dont care…

Admittedly I never checked for Will after Willennium, but up until then Im not afraid to say I thought he was dope!!! haha

Will Smith - So Fresh ft. Slick Rick, Biz Markie