Dead? Nowhere near. In the mainstream we've got guys like Kanye West, Mos Def and Outkast, and some lesser known artists like Tyler, The Creator, Del Tha Funky Homosapien and Idris Elba are also great quality, to name but a few. You could argue that old-school is dead with the ongoing onslaught of gangsta rap and guys like Flava Flav being ruined by modern media, but hey, some older artists still do the odd bit of recording (see De La Soul) and even Rakim, the king of lyrics, has made a comeback.
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