I kept trying to find a book or text that resonated with me to help explain my feelings about how modern hip hop/rap culture has been commodified and changed by the media and its showcasing. I found this small book and began reading it, I really enjoyed it. It has a foreword by David Toop, and DJ Fingers the writer who studied the MA sound arts at LCC when writing this book, it was his Masters’s Dissertation. It’s been really good to reflect and read about how he believes rap and hip hop have been taken away from their original context, knowledge of self, and spiritual connection to others. Here are some quotes.
For too long we have been force fed a mongrelisation of what the record industry wants the youth to believe is Hip-Hop (and for a lack of a beer word “Rap”), which in turn has our young men thinking that it’s cool to be a Pimp or a Drug dealer and our young women thinking they should portray themselves as Hoes.
We’ve been shown and fed through media what we think rap and hip hop should be, the representations of young black people as either hoes or pimps.
Expose the corporate media as the chief instigators of turning a pure art form into a hybrid of its’ former self.
Couldn’t agree more, the media has a monopoly over what they showcase and I disagree with the representations.
And so, with Hip-Hop apparently in crisis, its no wonder such a devoted practitioner should come to consider some of the issues facing his muse at this particular crossroads
I also liked this, as it helped further push the idea that Hip-hop is in a crisis.
The first edition of rap attacked was published in 1984, coinciding with the sudden, quite unexpected rise of Hip-Hop into mainstream awareness. Immediately there was controversy, with the Beastie Boys and Run-DMC blamed for pretty much everting that was wrong with society at that point.
I had read the first rap attack by David Toop, it’s interesting to see how certain artists were blamed for issues in society at the time.
How exactly did it grow from an almost secret street corner activity, played out in school gymnasiums, run-down harlem clubs and south bronx parks, to a massively successful international lifestyle movement, headed up by ultra rich entrepreneur celebrities like Jayz-z and 50 Cent?
The rise of hip-hop in such a small amount of time is impressive, it has given a rise to huge artists such as these two.
To an extent, it was escapist, aspirational and combative, because that was the landscape, but it was also highly innovative, inventive and original but it was also highly innovative, inventive and original and its energy was infectious.
This side of rap and hip hop is what interested me, escapism, aspirational and combative, fighting with art and creativity against the wrongdoings of society. Having a voice in a way you feel might be noticed.
Hip-hop in its early days reflected both the idea of striving for something better, along with the reality of what held its practitioners back from the public image of what was expected from American society: a full education, a decent job, a safe neighbourhood, and a fulfilled life.
It’s interesting to see that hip-hop at the time was standing out away from the norms of society. It stood against what the American dream was.
Throughout televisions history. Black/latinos have struggled both with blatant and subtle stereotyping.
Its no doubt that Latinos/blacks have had a terrible stereotype shown throughout history on public media, only pushing the negative stereotypes of these people.
Not only have this gangster image come to dominate hip hop as a genre but also arguably conned youth subculture into taking on this persona.
It’s true to say this, the modern rap music industry and culture are centred around this. there are exceptions but only slightly. This image sells sadly.
Afrika Bambaataa;s youth movement, the universal Zulu nation profoundly influenced the original hip hop culture of the mid 1970s. During this period, hip hop lyrics were essentially positive compared to the first commercialised gangster rap lyrics from the group NWA.
I never knew about Afrika Bambaataa and what he did, that hip hop and rap were used in this way originally.
Well within the hip hop generation there is a lot that have to wake up form the spell of kings, the spell of sleep… We got to get people back to that fifth element of Hip-Hop. Get them back to the knowledge. Too many are caught up on the partying…they are not dealing with all the elements of Hip-Hop. We got to let them know that it’s a culture
Lost within the negative ideals of hip-hop culture is what a lot of artists still are to this day dealing with.
Importance of non violent competitive artistic expression. These resourceful rudiments, if understood and practiced correctly, can further teach the importance of self-development, family and community.
Something I never considered either, I can relate to though. Hip-Hop has taught me self-development, family, community, hard work, discipline and other aspects.
The visionary pioneer Africa Bambaataa percoeved the misguided youth as having the potential to alter their circumstances and conditions – not through an external desire for material things, but in Ana internal self-development that would redefine their present and ultimately their future.
Material desires do not push mental health well-being or success in life, but internal reflections do, working on ones self can develop their present and future.
Hip-Hop’s main intent can be the reminding of man’s purpose and potential for his/her self. And a recognition that we are all connected, not by material things like iPods and flat screen TV’s but by an unseens consciousness that can only be realised internally.
Again, hip-hop is there to remind us of man’s purpose and our potential, whether artistically or through expression.
Illustrate how rap music which was once a subversive empowering form of self expression, has morphed into a mainstream commodity.
Mainstream rap has just become something which people have commodified its not the raw self-expression anymore
It should be noted that in today’s world Hip-Hop’s rap participants have been taken out of their original cultural context and have become representative of something previously unanticipated. This is more apparent in the misplaced value for materialism over human spiritiuality.
Materialism over human spirituality is a very powerful thing to say, I couldn’t agree more. The cultural context has been flipped.
With that said, since Hip-Hop’s commercialisation, the sounds, concepts and techniques that can be heard in today’s club contact have essentially become aligned with those of disco, is themes most often celebrating unattainable wealth, narcissism and hedonism.
Disco and hip-hop used to be enemies, when disco was rising up during the late 70s / early 80s Disco DJs would never play hip hop and now hip hop style of mixing and blending has become what modern Hip hop DJs use.
Dr Amos Wilson argues the image of the black male as a criminal is worth billions of dollars. According to Wilson, if you employ the image of the black adolescent as a criminal, you will fill movie theatres – and mostly with black people. Dr Wilson goes further to imply that corporate America does not wish to let these negative images disappear because of their commercial viability.
It’s interesting this, perhaps I don’t always agree but I think that our modern society or at least the media side of it does love the idea of ethnic minorities being criminals. It sells, the evidence is right in the popularity of this.
NWA were not solely responsible for the eminence of gangster rap. The gangster rap genre was widely featured in specialist rap music programs such as yo! MTV Raps (1988-1995) – which eventually became the barometer for how the music would be consumed more widely. Both Yo! MTV Raps and B.E.T’s rival show ‘Rap City’ were driven by audience ratings and advertising revenues, which reduced the importance of the art of the culture, replacing it with a whatever sells commercial pragmatism.
MTV Raps and these other rap shows also pushed this idea of gangster rap and pushed away other aspects of hip-hop culture.
However, in modern culture Hip-Hop has, in my view, been misappropriated into an art form, which is preoccupied by celebrity lifestyle, wealth and unconventional routes to status. This metamorphosis has been aggravated greatly by the mainstream media, which I contend has misappropriated Hip-Hop.
I always felt this, for me, it was never about status but to express myself. Now people get into this just for status and material gain.
In spite of this, the blame for what is or isn’t appropriate should not be placed with the media or any other such body, but the blame should be put on ourselves.
I liked that it ended with this, despite the conclusion blaming the media I think it is on us to change this.
I am really inspired after reading this, I think this will impact my lyrics a lot.
