Backstage Pass

In order for hip-hop culture to continue to flourish, it needs to revert to its independent roots and bust out of the stereotypes that corporate culture pushes it into, speakers at the CMJ Music Marathon's "Hip-Hop Under Fire" panel said Saturday.

"The industry is messed up right now," said rapper Rampage. "They're going into a depression."

Rapper Chuck D likens the current state of hip-hop to a lavish Thanksgiving dinner. There would be plenty of food for everyone if they all acted orderly, but with so many people just looking out for themselves, so much gets wasted.

"We've got to break out of that," the Public Enemy rapper said. "It's this scavenger effect of guys just going for broke. There's chaos at the table."

Part of that chaos is an ongoing mistreatment of women, a movement of rappers pretending to be dumber than they are, and a rise in rap beefs, a war of increasingly violent words.

Angela Yee, who manages GZA and is a DJ on Sirius Satellite Radio, said beefs are becoming more popular, even among artists who don't really have anything to fight about. "Obviously, a lot of it is for show," she said. "Some have agreements behind the scenes. They know it helps sell records."

However, Derrick Parker, the former NYPD officer who spearheaded the department's effort to gather information about hip-hop artists, said that police officials continue to take beefs seriously. Parker, who recently worked with police on the Oct. 17 shooting of Fabolous, said the department continues to gather information because "there are still some criminal acts associated to hip-hop and they need to keep abreast of what's going on."

Chuck D said hip-hoppers need to stop feeding the stereotypes. "I'm sick of smart -- -- acting stupid," he said. "Your father's a doctor, son. Stop it."