But believe it or not, the front end of the equation -- the mind -- is probably hip-hop's universal subject. Sex surely sells, but even the most hedonistic rappers find time to check their heads: Witness the Beastie Boys' weird transformation from nudniks to peaceniks, or the late Notorious B.I.G.'s cautionary tales of the high-rollin' lifestyle.

In 2000, several releases will attempt to reclaim hip-hop as a thinking person's art form. Hip-hop, once a ghetto phenomenon, has moved into all the nation's neighborhoods. Even its most underground figures -- the brainy rhyme schemers who typically loathe the spotlight -- are finding they can cultivate wider audiences without compromising their integrity. The coming-out party really kicked in last year, when the reigning underground troupe the Roots, broke through with a million-selling album, ``Things Fall Apart.'' Other thoughtful artists, including Black Star's Mos Def, A Tribe Called Quest's Q-Tip and Organized Konfusion's Pharoahe Monch, released records that staked some common ground between contemplation and celebration.

In the coming months, releases by Bay Area-linked acts such as Blackalicious, Jurassic 5 and Del the Funky Homosapien will continue the trend. ``Focus your mind,'' Del advises on ``Signature Slogans,'' a track on ``Both Sides of the Brain,'' his first solo release since 1993. In recent years Del, an East Bay native whose initial claim to fame was that he is Ice Cube's cousin, has -- focused his own mind on his group the Hieroglyphics and their various projects.

In the mid-'90s, his major-label deal with Elektra Records ended in disillusionment; like many of his fellow meditative MCs, he has found he's more at home in the indie world. ``Both Sides . . .'' will come out on the Hieroglyphics' Oakland- based Hiero Imperium label.

Blackalicious is part of the UC Davis crew that broke DJ Shadow and the verbal-leapfrog duo Latyrx. The group, Chief Xcel (Xavier Mosley) and Gift of Gab (Tim Parker), will release its first full-length album, ``Nia,'' next month. It's an introspective marvel that doesn't spare the funk, with songs bent on ``Making Progress'' and going ``Beyonder.'' They're bookended by the mood-establishing tracks ``Searching'' and ``Finding.'' Blackalicious appeared with its Quannum-label colleagues on last year's joyous ``Quannum Spectrum'' compilation. Another locally produced 1999 collection, ``The Funky Precedent,'' featured a lineup of like-minded Left Coast artists, including the highly regarded Jurassic 5. That group's U.S. debut album, ``Quality Control,'' comes out on the major label Interscope in April. Also coming in April is an unprecedented launch, a series of hip-hop novels featuring morality tales from the street. The books will be published by (S) Affiliated, with accompanying CDs featuring tracks from the leading hip-hop label, Def Jam.

Actor Wesley Snipes, one of the founders of (S) Affiliated, has reserved a first-look deal with the series for his Amen Ra Films. By no stretch of the imagination do these few developments signal the imminent decline of the vapid pop attitudes of the past year. Kid Rock and the Cash Money Millionaires will go away, just not anytime soon. But the tide always turns in pop music. There is always room for silly songs

--the no-brainers that capture our collective attention. But the audience for music that requires a little brain power never goes away, either.

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POP MUSIC

Notable new releases scheduled for early 2000 (all dates subject to change):

-- D'Angelo, ``Voodoo,'' January 25

-- Shelby Lynne, ``I Am Shelby Lynne,'' January 25

-- Tina Turner, ``Twenty Four-Seven,'' February 1

-- Femi Anikulapo-Kuti, ``Shoki Shoki,'' February 1

-- Run-D.M.C., ``Crown Royal,'' February 8

-- William Orbit, ``Pieces in a Modern Style,'' February 15

-- Air, ``Virgin Suicides,'' February 15

-- Oasis, ``Standing on the Shoulder of Giants,'' February 29

-- Deathray (ex-members of Cake), ``Deathray,'' February 29

-- Steely Dan, ``Two Against Nature,'' February 29

-- Blackalicious, ``Nia,'' February

-- Del the Funky Homosapien, ``Both Sides of the Brain,'' March 7

-- Joe Satriani, ``Engines of Creation,'' March 14

-- Lou Reed, TBA, March

-- Built to Spill, TBA, March

-- Jurassic 5, ``Quality Control,'' April

-- A*Teens, ``The ABBA Generation,'' April

-- Pearl Jam, TBA, April