Who would of thought that Hip Hop would take us this far? What started out as a hobby for a few kids in the Bronx, has gone on to grow into an economic powerhouse. We’ve seen the paradigm shift from one of unity, uplifting messages, and revolution, to one dominated by money, drugs, and violence. Hip Hop has always been the outlet and voice for all things Black. However, over the years, we’ve seen Hip Hop be used as a tool to spread propaganda and messages of violence, drugs, and overall destruction.
As we investigate the cultural phenomenon known as Hip Hop, we have to also take into account the audience influenced by the genre as a whole. Hip Hop came about as a way for inner city youth to express themselves and divulge information about the harsh realities of growing up underprivileged. Thus, violence has always been embedded in Hip Hop. This remains the case because those who indulge in the genre are often unfortunately surrounded by violence. Since violence encompasses their surroundings, it only makes sense that the music reflects this. As both violence and Hip Hop continue to grow, we are left to question whether music influences violence or is violence influenced by music.
In the article I Don’t Hate the Game, I Question the Players Rev. Al Sharpton spoke about the influence of violence and Hip Hop Beef. He stated, "Hip-Hop beefs are about as old as Hip Hop itself.” Recently, the tone, intensity, and seriousness of these conflicts have created an environment that is entirely too permissive of violence. Hip-Hop artists engage in verbal jousting on wax, which leads to tension off wax, which more likely than not culminates in some form of physicality whether between the artists themselves or members of their respective entourage.
Rev. Al Sharpton’s article sheds light on both the victims and suspects who were impacted by violence in Hip-Hop. He highlighted Hip-Hop artists who gravitated towards different forms of violence as a result of Hip-Hop beef and the victims being the black communities gaining a mindset which was created as a result from the violence spoken and experienced in Hip-Hop. We can also see the development of the victims and suspects in Amanda Moras and Guillermo Rebollo-Gil’s article, Black Women and Black Men in Hip Hop Music: Misogyny, Violence and the Negotiation of (White-Owned) Space. In the article it states, “often, the treatment of black women in Hip Hop is brought up only to highlight the alleged moral depravity of the artists or the wantonness of so-called Black ghetto culture rather than as a critical and necessary discussion of patriarchy and violence. It is used as yet another tool by which white American critics and politicians further stigmatize the black male as violent and/or criminal.”
To conclude, Hip-Hop is a culture that has been fortified by an overwhelming support system, the fans. Hip Hop has proven to not only be a commercial success, but also a cultural accomplishment for members of the Black community. Hip Hop culture has influenced American culture which in turn influences World culture. As supporters of Hip Hop, we must do more to hold our artists and leaders to a higher standard in regards to the messages and images they depict. With money, violence, and sex being heavily promoted within Hip-Hop music and culture, the community must decide whether to be a victim of the outcome, or a suspect of the cause.
Work Cited:
Sharpton, R. A. (2005, April 9). 'I Don't Hate The Game, I Question The Players'. Billboard. p. 12. REBOLLO-GIL, G., & MORAS, A. (2012).
Black Women and Black Men in Hip Hop Music: Misogyny, Violence and the Negotiation of (White-Owned) Space. Journal Of Popular Culture, 45(1), 118-132
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