Hip Hop And Its Influence On American Culture

Since its conception, hip hop has been a very necessary and influential art form in the way that it gives a voice to people who would normally not have one. The fact that it was often the sole voice for a marginalized community meant that the genre has often shouldered the “burden of being a genuine political force.” Hip hop’s role in addressing the concerns of urban Black Americans has led people to refer to it as “CNN for Black people.” However, in recent times, the commercialization of the genre (and growing popularity with white audiences) has generated a lot of criticism from many who feel that the essence of hip hop is being destroyed and it does not have as much of a meaningful effect on dispossessed Black youth as it used to have.

The rest of the chapter talks about the similarity of minstrel images in 1990s hip-hop, as evidenced by the defining characteristics of greed, violence, hyper sexuality and pathos in “gangsta rap” (a sub-genre of hip-hop further defined in chapter two). Ogbar balances this landscape with challenges to what he calls “neo-minstrelsy” from both inside and outside the hip-hop community, including discussions of the Spike Lee movie, Bamboozled, underground conscious hip-hop groups such as The Roots and Little Brother, and the activist “Stop Coonin’ Movement”, to name a few. Throughout the book, Ogbar explains how rappers strive for authenticity by “keepin’ it real”. And that is defined by how they rap, walk, talk, and make their

Moreover, Jay-Z explains how poetry hides beneath the surface of hip hop songs, making it a form of art. However, many individuals are unaware of the poetry due to them focusing on the beat and punch lines of songs or quickly labeling rap as provocative rather than hearing the message behind the lyrics. Jay-Z states an individual cannot half-listen to a

The connection that is drawn between the formerly economically challenged rapper and the child whose parent works two jobs, and can’t pay his child’s college tuition is paramount in making this point. The illusion of the American dream is set through many hip-hop songs. The picture of the evolution of the rags to riches story is set by many rappers in current hip-hop culture, this picture is the basic premise

Geoffrey Bennett’s article Hip Hop: A Roadblock or Pathway to Black Empowerment illustrates the influence hip hop and rap music has had on not only the music industry but mainstream culture, African Americans to be specific. Geoffrey Bennett, a senior English Major from Voorhees, New Jersey goes over many aspects of how hip hop came to be “the forefront of American attention.” He starts from its early history in the 1980s as an African American exclusive music genre to what is now a worldwide phenomenon. He reviews the affect it has had on the lifestyle of many people and the ways it’s changed the way people

Nelson George states that “Gangsta rap is direct by- product of crack explosion. Unless you grasp that connection nothing else that happened in the hip hop’s journey to national scapegoat will make sense. This is not a chicken-or-the-egg riddle —first came rocks, then gangsta rap” (136). To prove his point he examines the connection between drug culture of the inner city areas and the hip hop music. The money collected from illegal drug deals spent on recordings of gangsta rap music. George says “Suspicion of women, loyalty to the crew, adoption of a stone face in confronting the world, hatred of authority—all major themes of gangsta rap-owe their presence of lyrics and impact on audiences to the large number of African-American men incarcerated in the ‘90s” (138). I agree with his statement that gangsta rap is a directed by- product of crack explosion, because social and racial issues for instance drug dealing influencing the lyrics of music and this explosion of heroin and crack in communities gave birth to gangsta rap.

There is little question that he came from the streets, but this had been a growing comparison among the correlation of hip hop and the crack generation. “Not only did black teenagers in similar situations relate to what Eazy was talking about, but white suburban kids fantasized about being in his situation” (Eriewine).

Breaking through in the heart of the Bronx, Hip Hop was designed to empower and teach the youth, while providing them an outlet for creative expression. Developed on five essential pillars, all working towards: giving African Americans knowledge that they didn’t have access to, inspiring them to read and acquire true knowledge of self, and to understand the role that self has in America in relation to the actual worth of self. Since the inception of Hip Hop, the genre has evolved through the times while transcending new depths aligned with its original pillars.

In this article, the speaker must be an expert in politics, ethnicity and the music industry. There is a linkage between the above fields hence the speaker must have had a superlative background on these issues. The audience targeted by this literature were seemingly music enthusiasts to be educated on understanding what Hip-Hop entails and hoped to achieve this as it was established. The subject was Hip-Hop as a music genre that was largely developed by African American men to express their plight on injustice and oppression. The principal issue was how Hip-Hop has been used as a form of resistance and need for deliverance of the African Americans.

The origins of hip hop started in the late 70’s as a pastime that brought all the impoverished people of the projects together to have fun through. But decades later in the 90’s, people began to rap about many subjects ranging from the crack epidemic, hard life in the ghetto, or just having fun, but the underlying motive of rappers in this era was to reflect on their rough lifestyle through clever lyrics. The motive wasn’t for money, but recognition for their unique wordplay among the rap community. However, that all changed when record companies saw a financial opportunity in rappers, and rappers saw a financial opportunity through music. Due to the commercialization of hip hop, authenticity is rare to find in the mainstream

Growing up in run-down neighborhood can have various effects on an individual. Getting involved in illegal activities, albeit easy and rewarding at the time, can lead an individual to a jeopardizing ongoing cycle. Illustrated in both Slick Rick and Black Stars “Children’s Story,” a young man has been led down a wrong path, where each of their lives were dominated by illegal acts. This was consuming to the individuals, and ultimately lead to tragic outcomes. Black Stars rendition of “Children’s Story” was an extension of Slick Rick’s original composition. Black Star expanded the track to incorporate the embezzlement often found within the music industry. Slick Rick and Black Star emphasize the fatal aftermath that often supersedes the preoccupied performance of thieving.

Hip-hop culture began to develop in the south Bronx area of New York City during the 1970s. It had a significant influence in the music industry. Hip-hop music generally includes rapping, but other elements such as sampling and beatboxing also play important roles. Rapping, as a key part in the hip-hop music, takes different forms, which including signifying, dozen, toast and jazz poetry. Initially, hip-hop music was a voice of people living in low-income areas, reflecting social, economic and political phenomenon in their life [1]. As time moves on, hip-hop music reached its “golden age”, where it became a mainstream music, featuring diversity, quality, innovation and influence [2]. Gangsta rap, one of the most significant innovations in

Hip-Hop is a cultural movement that emerged from the dilapidated South Bronx, New York in the early 1970’s. The area’s mostly African American and Puerto Rican residents originated this uniquely American musical genre and culture that over the past four decades has developed into a global sensation impacting the formation of youth culture around the world. The South Bronx was a whirlpool of political, social, and economic upheaval in the years leading up to the inception of Hip-Hop. The early part of the 1970’s found many African American and Hispanic communities desperately seeking relief from the poverty, drug, and crime epidemics engulfing the gang dominated neighborhoods. Hip-Hop proved to be successful as both a creative outlet for

From the beats to the lyrics, the current generation of youth is engrossed in hip-hop culture, tending to idolize the artist behind the songs. Since the 1970s, hip-hop has influenced American culture tremendously. In the past, hip-hop held a central focus around inequality, empowerment and overcoming hardships. Today, hip-hop talks more about sex, money, a male dominant social standing, and drugs. Hip-hop, from then to now, has drifted to the darker side of the social spectrum. The majority of today’s youth were subconsciously thrust into a time when the darkness of hip-hop was nearing its climax. Young African American males

Music helps define character and allows self expression in a more unique matter. For instance, folk music, this type of music originates in traditional popular culture and is typically of unknown authorship. Most rap artists nowadays write about drugs and making money but others are just using it as a reflection of what’s going on around them. There is a rap artist named J Cole who particularly raps about real life problems and what’s going on around him in the city where he’s from. To people who don’t live in the ghetto or a poverty struck area, living in the “hood” isn’t as bad as it seems, but for people that live there, it’s terrifying real. J Cole takes elements of what’s going on around him, what he grew up around and personal experiences he’s faced. In addition there is a song called Immortal by J Cole which was released on his new album 4 Your Eyez Only. In the song, Jermaine (J Cole) “examines the gravity