In which The Curmudgeons examine the last great era for hip-hop, namely the years between 1999 and 2008. After the catastrophe that was the murders of Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls, hip-hop could have imploded and or lost its footing--or even its respect as a genre. Instead, the movement throughout the 1990s, in which the hardcore went mainstream, carried over in the new century. In fact, hip-hop as a popular music genre exploded, becoming more successful than ever. In the process, genuine pop superstars like Eminem, DMX, Jay-Z, OutKast and Kanye West rose to glory. We discuss those artists and much more on this episode.    Listen to all the great music of this last stand for hip-hop by accessing our special Spotify playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/79etpkKGK52DHWnj0xsPU8?si=725307acab964915   Here's a handy navigation companion to this episode:   (00:52 - 04:24) - Arturo Andrade sets the parameters for our discussion of real hip-hop's last stand   (05:27 - 16:45) - The Parallel Universe, featuring reviews of new albums by Benjamin Booker and Squid   (17:45 - 01:32:31) - We discuss Eminem, DMX, Jay-Z, Kanye West, OutKast and more   (01:34:05 - 02:30:06) - We blaze through a lightning round of 54 top hip-hop singles from this era   Join our Curmudgeonly Community today! facebook.com/groups/curmudgeonrock   Hosted on Podbean! curmudgeonrock.podbean.com   Subscribe to our show on these platforms: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-curmudgeon-rock-report/id1551808911   https://open.spotify.com/show/4q7bHKIROH98o0vJbXLamB?si=5ffbdc04d6d44ecb   https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/5fea16f1-664e-40b7-932e-5fb748cffb1d/the-   Co-produced and co-hosted by The Curmudgeons - Arturo Andrade and Christopher O'Connor