What Does the Return of Divine Styler Mean?

This week, the oracle of hip-hop, Divine Styler, issues Def Mask, his first album in fourteen years. After a such a long and lamented absence from hip-hop, one that inspired conspiracy theories and rumors of his death (as well as the crucial In Search of... Divine Styler fanzine), his return is important and begs the question: What Does the Return of Divine Styler Mean?

1. We can go back measuring the passing of time by "years since Ronald Reagan's death."
2. He's probably finished working on Pac's record in Cuba.
3. We will have to find someone else to be Editor-In-Chief of Pitchfork dot com.
4. We finally have something to talk about with our older friends who haven't listened to new hip-hop since 1999.
5. We have an hour and eighteen minutes of fresh joy in this shithole of a world.
6. Going by the Divine Styler/Sleater-Kinney "hiatus-math" calculator, we are probably about eleven months out from a full-fledged Fugazi reunion.