I understand where you're coming from. However I never once said that being authentic (which yes is what i mean by the soul. funny how it's just something that's understood without having to be explained) is the end all be all to being successful as a artist. With that being said if you're in the rap industry with being anything other than authentic you just won't last. I can't name one person who has great success in this game that followed fads. Fads come and go, the way you touch someone through your music lives forever and you will never be able to let it go. The skill and notoriety that you speak of comes from one thing and one thing only, it's something that one of the best fighters of all time constantly chants, and that is "Hardwork and Dedication". Which brings me to another point. Many have made short term success via hardwork and dedication such as your Soulja Boy's and New Boy'z etc. Now another point I would like to make is that the rappers in that category are not what we shall consider "lyricist". They were able to put together good songs and put people on a fad. If you want longevity in this game, you must touch people in their hearts and/or be tremendous in your business ventures. Who's still around from the 90's? Businessmen and lyricist (Nas, Jay Z, Dr. Dre). Sure there's a plethora doing things in their own market to this day (KRS-One, Afrikan Bambatta, Wu-Tang, etc). And if you're a rapper just looking for popularity, you should've got more pussy in high school. Just my personal opinion.
P.S. As far as my future "regret" of me putting Kendrick's name next to Pac's. Kendrick is the closest thing we've ever seen to a Pac. He's a better lyricist then Pac in all honesty. However I understand that Pac had a energy and a SOUL that just hasn't been matched by anyone thus far. I believe that Kendrick will be around for a long time simply because he only get's better and more raw with each body of work he puts out (starting with when he first changed his name and put out "Kendrick Lamar EP to the arguable best mainstream rap album in 5 years, "GKMC") But hey of course you could be right and I could be wrong, and vice versa, only time and the universe can tell that. And if so, as one of the kingpin of the game told us "In order to survive, gotta learn to live with regrets" - Jay Z
Inda Skies