Dive into a world of creativity!
Rappers - Blog Posts
Kendrick vs Drake is giving November 5th for locals. Everyone is coming out of the woodworks for some reason or another
Sex Sells! Exploring the Music Industry.
NO. 1
From “Chapter Two: Hip Hop, Context, and Black Girlhood.” Counterpoints, vol. 399, 2012, pp. 16–31. ‘‘The hegemony where domination is maintained through contemporary democratic societies not through the use of force, but through winning the consent of the people.’’ How many times has Gen Z heard from educators, politicians, and parents alike that the rap genre today should be discouraged as the lyrics are filled with violence, exploitation, criminality, and sexual themes? The music industry understands that the culture of black and brown people perpetuates the idea of fighting against such domineering systems but, unfortunately uses those ideas against that very people. Major music artists such as Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, Jermaine Dupri, and Percy ‘Master P’ Millers share a large majority of profits with major record labels, but the industry as a whole is ‘white controlled’. And if any rapper wants to be successful socially and financially, they will change their image and structure their performance, lyrics, and music videos to cater towards the ‘White imagination.’
NO. 2
But then there is the other side of the fence that believes that people are going to gravitate toward what they feel motivates them, inspires them, and utterly captivates them no matter the judgment that is unleashed. Regular people cannot change how the music industry operates, so it makes more sense for these rappers to make steady profits from these mega companies. Plus, it is not the responsibility of these rappers to enforce a cleaner message for children and young adults. New female rappers like Ice Spice, Megan the Stallion, Nicki Minaj, Doja Cat, and others are breaking the ‘glass ceiling’, and are widely successful and popular for their music. They are bringing more attention to the rap game and are paving the way for the next generation of female rappers, proving that they can be just as successful as their male counterparts, if not more. Their success is encouraging more women to pursue rap/hip-hop.
NO. 3
Most female rappers of the time today could not be where they are without honoring those who contributed to hip-hop and rap: young Black and Latino youth. From “Under Construction’: Identifying Foundations of Hip-Hop Feminism and Exploring Bridges between Black Second-Wave and Hip-Hop Feminisms, ‘‘In the late 1970s and 1980s, hip-hop was. in part, a response to the class exclusivity of the New York disco scene and the growing gang culture of inner-city New York. Initially, the culture was created as a social and recreational space for the working-class and poor folk who had been pushed to the fringe of society and forgotten. Gradually, hip-hop emerged in the recreational space but also in which to voice contempt for the living conditions of the economically and racially marginalized. From its inception, hip-hop has represented resistance to contemporary political and economic oppression that makes social marginalization possible.’’
NO. 4
As a woman of color and anthropologist, I completely understand both sides of the controversy of rap. As much as female rappers are breaking the rap game, so to speak, their lyrics perpetuate negative stereotypes of the Black community and hostile misogyny toward women. It is not the first time, nor will it be the last, for society’s judgments towards rap and the people who create it will be called into question, but there should at least be a conversation about it so that we can all have a better experience. Society itself holds a double-edged sword when it comes to this, as this music is appreciated by suburban white males, wanting to identify with a culture that is not there behind closed doors while belittling the culture and artists in the limelight. No matter the judgment and hypocrisy, these artists success speaks for themselves.
#KNIEVEL VIDEO - John Dough (@fugginamazin) ft @retrokash http://youtu.be/THEI7URNXlQ