Remember when Cam’Ron and Jim Jones relentlessly poked fun at Jay-Z a few years back.
One of their jabs of choice was calling Hov old. Mind you, Cam and Jim were already 30-year-olds at the time. “You talkin’ bout you a ’80s baby. You 37 years old. You was born in 1968,” Cam mocked on “You Gotta Love It” featuring Max B. Actually, it’s ‘69, Cam. But who cares? For years we’ve been saying rap’s a young man’s sport. Rappers in their 20s even often vowed to stop spitting once they turned 30.
But here we are years later, and Jay-Z, arguably the biggest rapper in the game, is 40 years young. Last fall, the release of Hov’s Blueprint 3 made him the first 40-year-old rapper to go platinum. But Hov’s not alone. Drake is the only 20-something rapper listed in the Top 10 Highest Selling Rap Albums of 2009. See below.
EMINEM – Relapse : 1,533,184
BLACK EYED PEAS – The E.N.D. : 1,440,895
JAY-Z – The Blueprint 3 : 1,337,192
RICK ROSS – Deeper Than Rap : 401,103
JADAKISS – The Last Kiss : 342,132
FABOLOUS – Loso’s Way : 276,419
DRAKE – So Far Gone : 257,579
LONELY ISLAND – Incredibad : 246,526
FLO RIDA – R.O.O.T.S. : 241,030
50 Cent – Before I Self Destruct : 227,027
MTV’s annual Hottest MC in the Game list featured nothing but 30-plus rappers aside from Drizzy and Wayne. T.I., one of the game’s biggest stars, turns 30 later this year. Luda, Kanye and Jeezy are already 30. Outside of Young Money and Soulja Boy, it just feels like every relevant rapper is 30-plus or pushing it. Sure, I’m exaggerating, but the ratio of 30 year-old relevant rappers is seemingly higher than the ratio of rappers in their 20s. So, how is rap still a young man’s game?
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