I am really disappointed with the hip-hop enthusiasts on Audiogon

I'm a big band swing player.   The night Tupac Shakur was shot, one of the other trumpet players in my band proclaimed that someone struck a blow for good music...

I find Outkast very enjoyable to listen to.
I dare anyone to listen to: "Happy Valentine’s Day" or "Behold A Lady" and not catch yourself singing it the next day. Anyone listen to "Flip Flop Rock" and not tap your foot or start dancing? Listen to "The Way You Move" and tell me that is not good. "So Fresh, So Clean", "Rosa Parks", "Aquemini", "Ms. Jackson", "B.O.B." all are very, very good. Just saying’...

Herndonb - I’ll second you on Outkast’s Mrs. Jackson. Digable Planets is worth checking out too. I’m really not that much of rap or hip hop fan and don’t know Blowfly but I do think an argument can be made for Gil Scott Heron as well as The Last Poets being hugely important in the origins and development of rap/hip hop.

I put on phones and checked out Mrs. Jackson based on the double recommendation above.  Good music on the chorus, but I don't think I'll be giving it a second listen--so much better stuff to listen to out there (not necessarily current stuff).  Gratuitously nasty lyric in places which I don't care for (not happy with Zappa when he did that, either.  At times it was funny and/or to the point, but often just juvenile and unnecessary). Overall, more listenable for me than a lot I've heard.  That's saying a lot.

I always thought of myself as being a generation removed from Rap. I don’t listen to or have any desire to listen to most rock, any metal, or country. But I respect those that do, and don’t find it necessary to denigrate music I don’t enjoy. Doing so says a lot more, imo, about the person doing the denigrating, than it does the music. It’s a big world with lots of variety - deal with it.