In what is sure to cause a heated discourse, one of rock music's bonafide legends Roger Daltrey (of The Who) has taken aim at the genre. Sitting down with Rolling Stone to discuss his new album As Long As I Have You, Daltrey was asked about Kanye West, who happened to drop Ye on the same day. At first, Daltrey seemed to indicate that he wasn't entirely familiar with West's work, but proceeded to call his music "kind of meaningless to me." While few are looking to Daltrey for a credible hip-hop opinion, he does provide somewhat of a breakdown behind his reasoning, limited in scope as it may be.
"I like some of the rhythms of rap. But [it] hasn’t gone anywhere from the first record [that] ever came out with those kind of rhythms, has it?," he says. When asked whether or not he feels hip-hop is evolving, Daltrey remains steadfast in his opinion. "Has hip-hop evolved? I don’t think it has at all. I do think Eminem is still one of the most creative people in that whole arena. He’s fabulous. I love him."
It's sad to hear such comments coming from such a respected musician and songwriter. Hopefully, the man can re-evaluate his perspective, and come to understand that hip-hop has obviously evolved throughout the years; compare a flow from the 80s to something from today. Night and day. One thing is for sure. Roger Daltrey won't be following in Paul McCartney's footsteps and recording with Kanye West anytime soon.
