To a degree. Original artists were hoping for the music, artform, and culture of hip-hop to become mainstream... However, I'm not quite sure that anyone saw this crap coming. I think that Inya said it best when he referenced real hip hop artists (Common, De La, MOS DEF, Talib, Tribe, and many that came before them) as originators, while the rest Soulja Boy and the like are simply raping the genre for cash. Speaking of which, give that track "The Rape Over" by Mos Def a listen, and you'll see exactly what's going on. I think that the reason why no one really saw this coming is that back when hip hop originated, most of the "suckas" who weren't coming with the "real" were quickly dismissed (battling in a cypher, at a party, on stage etc.), and taken out of the game until their skills were up to par. Some became "one hit wonders" (Vanilla Ice/MC Hammer, etc.). That way, should "wackness" ever make it to the mainstream, it didn't really perpetuate itself. Now labels are signing this garbage (because its catchy/infectious), so more garbage is being made. Fortunately for true hip-hop fans, this is nothing more than a storm that we must weather, and it too shall pass. We've seen rap (a part of hip-hop) go from hardcore, to gangsta, to heavily materialistic... This is just another phase. But until it ends, I'll be bumping some Chili Peppers