Hip Hop Culture Analysis

White rap artist like Mac Miller, Hoodie Allen, Action Bronson, Macklemore and G-Eazy have all been able to secure a foothold within the industry thanks to the many doors which Eminem opened for them. While many opportunities have been given to white rappers, and while it is true that they are becoming more popular as more white artist enter the mainstream world, there is still no doubt that white rappers are almost always at a disadvantage. Ever since the industry acknowledged in 1991 that white, suburban teenagers consume 80 percent of all hip-hop, mainstream rap culture’s emphasis on characteristics appealing to white men has resulted in the gentrification of the genre. In order to make money, hip-hop shifted from its earlier focus, mainly political and social commentary to its more current form, emphasizing sexuality and violence, because that stimulates white listeners. This sexuality and violence was exactly what Eminem was able to capture, but is what many white rappers are struggling to capture today. The hip-hop industry has been forced to adapt to the tastes of a wealthy, white population of fans that adore its music by creating music characterized by carefully enunciated flow, catchy beats, and relatable stories. As a consequence of this shift in the way current rap and hip-hop has been presented, white

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.

Masculinity in the Hip-Hop culture has been redefined repetitively as the genre grows in popularity. Created in the late 70’s, Hip-Hop was started as an outlet for residents of urban communities to express them and have fun through the music. As Hip-Hop grew into the 80’s and 90’ the genre also evolved as the artist began to voice what was going on in their day to day lives and in their communities; Hip -hop became a form of storytelling. Being that a lot of Hip-Hop artist had street, and gang related backgrounds, their music would reflect their past lives that were violent and controversial. Despite their brave and unapologetic storytelling, the era of ‘gangster rap’ set the standard of what it meant to be masculine in the

Molefi Asante is the author of It’s Bigger than Hip-Hop: The Rise of the Post Hip-Hop Generation. In this article, Asante predicts that the post-hip-hop generation will embrace social justice issues including women’s rights, gay’s rights, and the anti-war movement. To challenge these stereotypes, Asante speaks to the personification of the African-American ghetto and the need to stop glorifying black suffering. For Asante, the post-hip-hop generation no longer expects hip-hop to mobilize disenfranchised youth. Asante states, “The post-hip-hop generation shouldn’t wait for mainstream musicians to say what needs to be said…No movement is about beats and rhythms…. it must be bigger than hip-hop.” Because hip-hop is controlled by corporations, Asante says hip-hop will never be the focus of political change. Asante argues that “old white men” have dictated hip-hop, and by extension the actions of black youth, since 1991. “Allowing white executives, not from the hip-hop culture, to control and dictate the culture is tragic because the music, and ultimately the culture, as we can see today, has not only lost its edge, but its sense of rebellion and black movement- the very principles upon which it was founded.” Asante calls for the rise of “artivism,” a new social movement that uses art to improve community police relations, failing schools and the criminal justice system. Asante encourages the post-hip-hop generation to unite with Latino/Immigration Rights and Black Civil Rights

Hip-Hop Culture and race have had a complicated relationship in the past two decades. It has been commonly referred to as “black music” and a reflection of black culture. However, recent studies done by the Mediamark Research Inc. showed that 60% of rap music buyers are white. With the emergence of white, Latino, Asian, and other rappers with diverse backgrounds on the Hip Hop scene it is important recognize the changing color of the genre and the stereotype it holds as “black music”. Black culture has also been subject to appropriation because of the popularization of Hip-hop music. However, much of the discourse on the topic confuses cultural appropriation and cultural appreciation, and states that hip-hop music is strictly for African Americans or that it doesn’t belong to anyone at all. Hip-Hop is a black art form that transcends cultural boundaries and can be appreciated through the lenses of different cultures as long as those who enjoy it acknowledge its roots. The genre’s growing number of non-black rappers is not due to the appropriation of the genre by other cultures but as an expansion of it due to it’s growing popularity across the world.

The article “ Hip-Hop Demeans women” written by Tricia Rose, talks about hip hop on sexism and women. She argues the changes of women’s position in the Hip Hop music which reflect it to the American black people’s culture. Rose breaks the total article into three sections, R.E.S.[.E.C.T-But Not the Kind Aretha Franklin Had in Mind, Explicit Isn’t Always Exploitative, “Free the Girl”:Hip Hop’s Betrayal of Black Women.

In seventh grade, I stumbled my way upon the Detroit based rapper Eminem. I was at 150 listens on his track The Real Slim Shady before I knew it. I then found my way into Kanye West, which exploded my interest into the genre. I have listened to all of the considered essential hip hop “classic” and modern day albums. I noticed in these “classic” albums very distinct change in subject matter and style that each of the different areas of rappers on where they originate from. Some people believe that the hip-hop culture is at a decline with the lose of this uniqueness and individuality shown in each of these areas. I too even thought that the hip-hop culture was at a decline until I was researching my topic, but instead this individuality and uniqueness in the rapper’s different stories that they tell in their raps. The genre has expanded throughout the world and continued to evolve while sticking to these roots of individuality and uniqueness.

Throughout the article Walidah uses pop cultural references to highlight the separation of males and females, identifying females involvement in hip-hops overall existence as little to none. Primarily Walidah articulates the output of masculinity

Hip hop and rap as a musical genre is a very controversial subject for nearly everyone. Its influences are powerful, both positive and negative. There are many positive influences of hip hop, and a few examples are the breaking down of cultural barriers, the economic impact, and political awareness of pressing and urgent issues. Though there are many positive influences, there are many negative influences as well. Some of the more heated debates of the negative influences of hip hop are that it glorifies violence, and the fact that the music sexualizes women and degrades them as well. Attached to the negative outlook on hip hop, there are also many stereotypes assumed by society towards this type of culture

Since Old School’s Hip Hop conception, the genre has gone way beyond what the genre’s originators could have imagined. Each period since the founding of Hip Hop has added to the evolution of the culture and have altered it into something that is more than just a hobby, but a mindset and a part of life that cannot be separated from many different cultures globally. In 1977, popular Hip Hop MCs and Djs lived in poverty in New York and in 2016 artist like Sean Combs, Dr. Dre, and Jay-Z are worth $2.07 billion combined (Greenburg, 2016). A genre and culture that stemmed in a way of healing and release in the black and latino community in New York is now an international commodity and has proven that Hip Hop is not going anywhere. Several of Hip Hop’s characteristics have guided the evolution in these past 40 years, like the value of being family-oriented, authentic and the content of the lyrics, have made Hip Hop into a genre that has a large enough variety to have something for every any audience that enjoys music.

He tells the reader that hip-hop has grown from a musical genre to a style of dress, dialect, language, aesthetic, and a way of living. Aldrige says that over the past three decades hip-hop has developed and is not a fad that will disappear but a cultural and artistic expression that will continue to grow throughout the world. He believes that hip-hop has a message that is artistic and has influenced many artistic and cultural movements such as blues, jazz, the New Negro Reaissance, the Civil Rights, Black Power, and Black Arts Movements. This article provides a historical analysis of hip-hop. He also talks about influential writing on the genre of hip-hop. This article provides historical information about hip-hop. It talks about how hip-hop has changed and it provides support through many other writings written on the subject. This article sums up many essays in order to give inspiration and help in conducting research on hip-hop.This article summarizes many great writings that have information that would be valuable to my thesis.

It has been 30 years since Hip-Hop was first “introduced” to the world. Whether it be fashion or politics, this musical genre/culture plays a huge role in everyday life and has generated billions of dollars across the globe. In this paper I will be discussing when, where, and how Hip-Hop was created, “old school Hip-Hop, “Hip-Hop’s Golden Age”, “Hardcore rap” “Gangsta rap”, “G-Funk”, 21st century Hip-Hop, and how Hip-Hop affects society.

Hip-Hop today is genre of music that many, mostly a younger demographic are drawn to it. Hip-Hop culture is now commonly recognized by it’s fundamental elements; such as, rapping, dancing, lyrics, beat, urban and apparently relevance which are viewed as an art. Hip-hop is constantly evolving and incorporating different and new aspects to it and it’s just going to continue to grow within the next decades. Hip-hop focuses on urban youth therefore, many young people actually turn to hip-hop as an outlet to express themselves with various emotions and sentiments and sometimes devote themselves as aspirating hip-hop artists and pursue the hip-hop industry. Hip-Hop was was initially an underground urban movement and created in the 1970’s by an African man, Kool Herc influenced and introduced it which has now become universal in not only English, but in many languages. In the 1980s symbolized the diversification of hip hop as the genre eve loved into more complex styles. One of the positive aspects of the hip hop culture is that it encourages producers to recruit a diverse group of individuals. At first, Hip- Hop was predominantly performed by men and eventually evolved into being performed by both men and women. Some examples of successful women in the Hip-hop culture are Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu, Missy Elliot, Salt-N- Pepa,Trina Beyonce, and ‘Lil Kim. Although hip-hop

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

The beauty of hip hop is that it is malleable. It is not defined by strict boundaries but by multiple characteristics. Young artist J. Cole (2013) explains this best by stating in an interview, “I think there’s no rules [in rap]. You can say what you want. That’s your poetic license: to test people’s boundaries.” (p.1) The results of such malleability and the need to experiment within the unwritten boundaries of hip hop are the birth of different styles and sectors/scenes in America. These sectors are represented by the geographic location of the artists and the distinctive sounds and styles that the artists utilize. For years the genre of hip hop was found primarily in the United States in these particular scenes. In the past few years,