HHID: 8 Years & Runnin'

Today marks the eighth anniversary of HHID.  As always, I'm surprised that the blog has lasted this long, can't believe I have actual readers, thank you, click on the Amazon links, blah blah blah.

More importantly, I believe, is the fact that this post exists, if only to prove to you two that I'm still around and I do have plans to come back.  My hiatus has taken a bit longer than I had planned, mostly because it is so goddamned easy to not write.  It probably doesn't help that I still haven't worked my way through most of the rap albums that dropped in 2014, or the few that have trickled out this year (Joey Bada$$, I'm looking at you).

As such, I give up.  The vast majority of this site is made up of reviews of older albums to see if they stand the test of time anyway, so it makes more sense for me to focus on those for the time being.  I'm not quitting new albums entirely, of course: when Jay, 'Ye, or, God forbid, the Wu drop something, I'll probably be around to pick it up.  Just not necessarily right away.  I have a project to finish.

Speaking of that project, in 2015 I plan on eventually laying out the terms in a way that will hopefully explain just why Lil' Wayne isn't a part of it, among others.  Not everyone in the sidebar will see their stories continue on the blog: however, a lot of them will possibly see some interest sparked in their respective back catalogs, which is all I can ask.

For now, I feel like taking a trip out West.  To California, specifically: I'm still not writing about Macklemore.  The last few albums I've taken some notes on (notes which you will read soon, hopefully) have all come from artists who claim the Golden State as the place where they keep their shit.  So I think I'll stick around in that general area for a while, and in the process, boost the West Coast numbers of the site, which, yes, I realize is predominantly New York-based.  What can I say: I have a type.  

What does this mean for you two who may feel inclined to submit Reader Reviews?  As always, you can write about whatever you want (as long as I approved it in the first place - otherwise, you could be wasting your time).  But if you want to get in on this Cali renaissance, you can drop off some submissions for West Coast rappers and groups, and I may run them sooner.  So far, I have exactly two Reader Reviews that fit this description, and I could use more.  I don't know how long I plan on staying in this one spot, or if this will be followed by similar feats in other parts of the country and/or world, but if you want in, send me an e-mail to the address in the sidebar with your proposals and we'll talk.

In the meantime, to keep myself from getting bored, I've been bouncing around some other ideas for features, some of which I've tried before and some of which would be new (to the blog, not the universe).  One thing I want to try is posting songs that I think are worthwhile, via YouTube or other services, and letting you two discuss it in the comments.  Some of them will be well-known, and a few might be question marks (I haven't figured all of this out yet), but I think it'll help spark up some conversation as to which tracks should belong on the hypothetical Hip Hop Hall Of Fame Mixtape.  I plan on starting that up soon.

Other than that, I'll be getting back to the twice-a-week format (Tuesdays and Fridays) shortly.  So now I need to go find some shit to write about.

-Max