There has been quite a bit of disdain lately about Old Heads, rappers in the 80s and their place in Hip Hop history. Every now and again I will see some comments appear on my social media feed saying Old Heads are instantly dismissive of anything not from the golden era, they’re arrogant and live in the past, everything they listen to is dated and can’t compare with the lyricism and production values of now… yadda yadda yadda.

Some people have even boldly stated they hate Old Heads – whoooaaaah. There’s no need for that kinda talk.

I’m not going to deny some of the things that have been said does have an element of truth, but not always. My fave decade of Hip Hop is the 80s and that is never going to change, the music from that era has such an important significance to me. Growing up and entering my teens listening to Doug E Fresh, Big Daddy Kane, Ultramagnetic MCs, Kool Moe Dee, BDP, Eric B & Rakim, Tuff Crew, EPMD, MC Lyte, Three Times Dope, Lakim Shabazz, Queen Latifah, Ice T, Public Enemy, N.W.A, Run D.M.C, LL Cool J, London Posse, Kool G Rap & Polo, Demon Boyz, Hijack, Monie Love, Cookie Crew and so much more, was absolutely amazing. They were my essential soundtrack to block out an unhappy home life and I would spend every minute that I could listening to them, trying to get hold of their records, going to shows, attending DMC world championships and some of the regional heats. I have so many brilliant memories whilst collecting as much vinyl and cassette tapes as I could.

At school, there weren’t that many kids who were into Hip Hop at the time, and when you did come across someone who also loved it, we bonded instantly. My main group of friends I hung out with were listening to Dead Kennedys, Pixies and The Cure and dressed like Goths. I wore hoodies, baggy jeans and was also into Acid House and used to put smiley faces on everything. Despite our musical differences, there was one group we did all agree that we loved – Curiousity Killed The Cat. We all had the biggest crushes on the lead singer Ben Volpeliere-Pierrot, I also had a huge crush on DMC world champion Cash Money.

When the term ‘Old Head’ gets thrown around it will usually be accompanied with an insult that we’re in the 40+ age group. What the hell is wrong with that? Growing old is something to be grateful for, it certainly doesn’t make me feel bad that I grew up with a huge love for MCing, DJing, breaking, graffiti and beatboxing. I was fascinated by it then, and I still am.

I will always be grateful for having the opportunity to grow up with an exciting culture, meeting some of my fave artists at their shows as they performed at small venues before they became well known, and seeing the music evolve (or devolve depending on how you see it) over time. This is also applicable to other music genres such as house (and all its sub genres for better or worse), jungle / drum & bass, techno and garage. I’ve had an absolute blast over the years.

If you say you love Hip Hop then let’s show respect for each other. It is possible to not like the same artists as everyone else and appreciate their contribution to the genre without being accused of being a hater.

Without the originators, pioneers, risk takers, inventors and the architects we wouldn’t have the foundational pillars. Without strong foundations you can’t build upon them without everything crashing down.

So yes, I’m an Old Head with a penchant for the golden era and I’m not ashamed of that but I don’t restrict myself. We’ve had so many losses in the Hip Hop community that we really need to make the most of our time here, to embrace what we have and keep the essence of Hip Hop alive. Growing older is not a given and we should never take living for granted, we never know when our time is up, so instead of showing negativity and hate, let’s continue to share our love for the culture – no matter our age or the decade that we prefer to listen to.

Good music is good music no matter the year it was released.

I have been compiling a playlist of my fave Hip Hop tracks from 1979 – 2024. I am regularly finding tracks I had forgotten, or am recommended ones I haven’t heard before. This is one of the many things I love about Hip Hop – we are always discovering, learning and sharing.