Does anyone actually listen to these things? I think they're so pointless.

Every rap album these days has an intro for some reason, along with skits which aren't one bit funny or interesting. I just don't get it.

There aren't many rock CD's with intros or skits.

Argh.

Just venting.

= J

Identity and personality.

Marketing reasons primarily.

Based on most of the shitty action and comedy movies that have come out in the past few years, most rappers seem to think they are accomplished actors as well.

I've always thought of it as filler; an effort to increase the track numbers so that it looks like you're getting 14 or 15 tracks instead of the actual count of 9 or 10.

Tenacious D, on the rock side.....now they know how to do skits on an album. Pure gold!

cdollaz, you ARE the man, LOL!

Yeah, these intros and skits are just a way to get people to part with cash for.....KUUUUHHHH.....rap "music".

By the way, you should be buying my new CD instead, LOL.

No, no I shouldn't be.

= J

I don't know...intros/outros are kinda cool sometimes, but the skits I could go without. MOST of them are just terrible.

Most of it started with Dre's Chronic album with the skit DEEEEEEZ NUT's which was gold but everyone cant be as funny.

It started with De La Soul's "3 Feet High and Rising," 3 years before Dr. Dre's album came out.

They can't come up with original background music and if they sample any more it costs them. So they have to fill up the cd with something even b.s.,since they figure if the public is stupid to buy this stuff they'll buy anything.

The Offspring's intros/interludes are equally entertaining.

I read an article somewhere that an artist said it was to get people to buy the whole album instead of itunes-ing a few of the good songs. In my case, they failed. Skits/intros make me go straight to something like itunes before I would buy the entire album.

Interludes are cool, skits are not.

Exactly. When I see a CD with 20 tracks, but 6 are skits, I skip the CD.

= J

Everyone wants to audition for a movie, you know.

Still, that's fourteen tracks of music. Not bad.

It's funny. I'm so accustomed to it after growing up listening to pretty much nothing but rap, that when I want to know what CD is in a player/changer, I'll automatically go to track 2 because 99% of the time on a rap album the first track would be some generic skit that I never listened to.

I'm not a big fan of skits either but if you're looking for rap albums with quality interludes listen to underground hip hop like Jedi Mind Tricks or Cunninlynguists.

I've long asked the same question concerning long intros on Metal albums. They sound and look cool in concert but on CD it's annoying.

Yeah, it really is. Hopefully, the artists will at least make the intro a seperate track so I can just skip it.

As annoying as the skits are, they're still not as bad as hidden tracks... the ones where the last track on the CD is 10 minutes long: 3 minutes for the 'official' last song, 4 minutes of silence, and 3 minutes for the hidden track. It's bad enough they don't give the songs separate tracks but the long silent break is total crap.

DRG, I completely agree with you! "Hidden tracks" are bullshit...as are DVD "Easter Eggs", now that I think about it!

If it's not as funny as "Chinese Restaurant" then they should leave it off.

Was that The Fugees?

Was never impressed by it. Thought it was a waste of time myself. Sounded so mechanical ... like a bunch of high schoolers making a rap album ... which was pretty close to the truth. I mean, those guys were maybe barely out of their teens at that time.