Hip-Hop, The RAP Act and the Demonization of Rap Culture

by Cory Utsey is a reporter for HUNewsService.com

Hip-Hop Fans and Experts Comment on the Efficacy of The RAP Act and Rap Culture

Those who believe that art should be separate from the artist are most often referring to the exploits of their “problematic faves,” but this concept remains especially relevant when considering how certain art forms and their proprietors face demonization.

The case against rapper Young Thug and the Young Slime Life (YSL) label, which began the week of Jan. 9 in Atlanta’s Fulton County, has garnered much attention and renewed arguments about lyrics being used against rappers in criminal court cases, therein begging the question of whether lyrics should be seen as separate from an artist’s lifestyle.

Thug and other affiliates of YSL are accused of violating Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. The grand-jury indictment of over 80 pages alleges 182 instances of involvement in gang activity, including murder. Evidence includes “SLIME” labeled clothing and accessories, social media posts and song lyrics. The phenomena of using lyrics as evidence in court is nothing new, as the likes of Snoop Dogg, Mac Phipps, 2 Live Crew and Tay-K have all had lyrics referencing violent acts used against them, according to XXL.

The recently introduced Restoring Artistic Protection Act, or “RAP Act,” aims to address this issue. Presented to the House of Representatives by Congressmen Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., and Hank Johnson, D-Ga., the RAP Act seeks to protect artists from having their song lyrics used as legal evidence in criminal cases.

David F. Green Jr., Ph.D., who is an expert in African-American rhetoric, critical pedagogy and hip-hop, believes that the RAP Act could certainly put structures in place to ensure that rappers can continue their modes of creative expression without threat of facing jail time. Yet, when considering the larger cultural perception of hip-hop and rap culture, he believes that the RAP Act is not enough.

“It doesn’t address the larger kind of social issues that contribute to these feelings, to these experiences, to the targeting that is occurring,” said Green, an associate professor of English and the director of First-Year Writing at Howard University. “What needs to happen is, as with everything, a kind of multi-pronged approach, one that raises public awareness and public consciousness of the ways that these things are discriminatory,” he explained. “There also needs to be a stronger understanding of how certain cultural practices have come about historically.”

Green says that hip-hop, as an art form born out of response to the marginalization of Black and brown communities, has always faced scrutiny. While the tone and themes of hip-hop and rap music have changed over time, the view of the culture remains monolithic – especially in the United States, he added.

“People are listening to various forms of hip-hop across the world for various means,” he said. “It is only in America where it still kind of holds this demonized kind of position, where we can honor a hip-hop artist at various award shows but in the same breath come to view them or believe them to be capable of certain acts or certain behaviors just because of their music.”

With regard to separating the art from the artist, one edge of the sword ensures the art remains authentic, giving the artist an outlet to express themselves and their understanding of the world. On the other edge, though, there exists the idea that art