Hip Hop Directory by Rob McGee

|| Magazine part ||

LETTER

FROM THE

Hip-hop is a genre that is extremely overlooked. In many people's eyes, it is the black sheep of the music family that is shunned by those who don't understand it. The people who don't understand it are the same ones that say it is music for the delinquents. "It's trashy music for trashy people." In reality, that is not the case. When people say these things, they are referring to the bad hip-hop. Just like how there are adulterous Christians, cops who unlawfully kill innocent people based off the color of their skin, black people who can’t dance and white people who think using the word “ratchet” is ok, there are always the rotten apples within the bunch. Not all Christians cheat. Not all cops kill unarmed harmless minorities. Most black people can dance and most white people don’t even know what the word ratchet means. The same goes for hip-hop; some of it is good and some of it is bad. But how will people know of about the good things about hip-hop if the bad things are the things that are always highlighted? The media has slandered hip-hop so much that most people have these false notions about what it is. This is exactly what Hip-hop Directory is for. We aim to change those negative thoughts people may have about hip-hop and introduce them to something that is positive within the genre by giving our readers a small glimpse of the real hip-hop. Our readers will see and understand that there is more to hip-hop then just drugs, money, clothes and hoes because that is not what all hip-hop knows. (Real hip-hop people will know that that was a Biggie Smalls line!) For the people who love hip-hop, this will be refreshing! For those new to what real hip-hop is, this will be an eye opening experience! I hope you enjoy reading this magazine as much as I enjoyed creating it; maybe I’ll bring you over to my side with this!

TABLE of CONTENTS 6 WHAT IS HIP-HOP? A brief description of the culture through music, dance, graffiti, and DJing

Hip Hop: Today’s Civil Rights Movement Musical Culture More Relevant than King Speeches

as 8 HIP-HOP high art

Breakin’ Convention fuses music, dance and theater

How Kendrick Lamar Is Proof Hip-Hop Can Influence Societ In Big Ways

s r

ARTIST BLENDS HIP-HOP WITH RENAISSANCE TO MAKE BEAUTIFUL ART

HIP-HOP & RAP as ART an Agent of Change for Social Justice and Political Reform

6 REASONS YOU SHOULD LET YOUR CHILDREN LISTEN TO HIP-HOP

WHAT IS HIP-HOP?

A brief description of the culture through music, dance, graffiti, and DJing

Hip-hop is a cultural movement best known for its impact on music in the form of the musical genre of the same name. It has its origins in the Bronx, in New York City, during the 1970s, mostly among African Americans but with some influence from the Latin American population of the area as well. The culture has gone from being a relatively underground style to being a major style throughout the world, and it has been commercialized and

popularized, especially in the United States. The four traditional pillars of hip-hop are DJing, rapping, breakdancing, andgraffiti art. Five additional pillars are sometimes added: hip-hop fashion, beatboxing, hip-hop slang, street knowledge, and street entrepreneurship. Hip-hop music incorporates a number of iconic elements, most notably DJing and rapping, along with

things like beatboxing, sampling, and juggling beats on turntables. In early forms of the music, DJs would loop portions of songs, highlighting the interest percussive patterns found in them, to create their own new, emergent beats. These beats were eventually coupled with a rhyming, chanting style of singing, referred to as rapping. Beatboxing was a hip-hop movement that broke from the machine-oriented DJs, replicating

|| What is Hip-Hop? ||

their sounds and breaks with the human vocal apparatus. Early drum machines were referred to as beatboxes, and early beatboxing simply replicated these drum sounds. Later, it became a much more complex art form, with the human vocal system mimicking even the most complex of instruments, and often even layering beats over one another by using a form of overtone singing. Some later beatboxers, notably Rahzel of the Roots, even sing at the same time. Along with the musical scene of hip-hop, the culture also originated its own form of dancing, called breakdancing. It began in the South Bronx, along with the music of hip-hop, and is sometimes called Bboying. Breakdancing involves a frenetic, but incredibly controlled, style of dancing that highlights strength and dynamic movement of the body, matching the precise beats laid out by DJs or beatboxers. Often, breakdancing is done in a battle format, with

various competitors facing off by showing their skills and trying to one-up each other. Graffiti art became an important cornerstone of the hip-hop scene as well, helping to incorporate elements of the culture in a visually-stimulating way. Although graffiti had existed since time immemorial, and was widely spread in the United States among activists and gangs during the 1960s, hip-hop culture took hold of it and redefined it to create a visually distinctive style, most notably the bubble letters and wildstyle of writing now associated with the form. Graffiti art is in many ways viewed as the visual manifestation of hip-hop, in the same way breakdancing can be viewed as its physical manifestation. In recent years, hip-hop has become ever more commercialized, while at the same time battling to keep its free and independent spirit. While mainstream ad campaigns appropriate aspects of the culture,

major rappers become multimillionaires, and aspects of hip-hop slang trickle down into a society unaware of their origins, a constant revitalization occurs at the grassroots level. The exporting of the hip-hop scene around the world has led to a new global hip-hop, incorporating traditional musical arrangements and native languages into the forms. At the same time, hip-hop in the U.S. continues to innovate at the street level, constantly rejecting and challenging a consumer culture that more and more accepts it.

HIP-HOP AS

Breakinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Convention fuses music, dance and theater

|| Hip-hop as High Art ||

Three words describe hip-hop. Hype. Inclusive. Innovative. On October 9-10, Breakin’ Convention comes to the Queen City with a festival unlike anything before. The international festival of hip-hop dance theater will take place at Knight Theater at Levine Center for the Arts. “The primary essence of hip-hop is about presenting new stuff,” festival creator Jonzi D said Tuesday at a Knight Theater reception. “Basically it’s about connecting the theaters with the local hip-hop community that exists everywhere. Hip-hop is everywhere—it’s as simple as that.” Breakin’ Convention, which started in 2004 in London, offers a family friendly community atmosphere where dancers, graffiti and spoken-word artists perform. “What we do need to start doing is creating bridges amongst the wealth of art that’s happening in these communities anyway and refocus in our lenses and understand that [hip-hop] too is art,” said Jonzi D. “For me, hip hop was always a theatrical vehicle.” Jonzi D, the British-born son of Granadian immigrants, grew up in a time when hip-hop did not have a place in traditional theater. “I struggled when I was in school, because we were told that hip hop wasn’t really a part of the theatrical voice,” he said. “I studied classical ballet, contemporary dance — I didn’t do that much musical theater, because I was really focused in this dance area. I grew up with soul music on one side and reggae music on the other.

“When hip hop first came about it was like a fusion of the two, and also as a 13-year old, I knew my older brothers were not going to try and roll around on the floor and get their clothes dirty — whereas I was more than happy to develop head spins and all of that old school stuff from a young age.” Since then, he has seen the art form grow and explore new creative expressions. Having toured all over the world, Jonzi D has seen the benefits of hip-hop culture when merged with the traditional theatrical sphere.

who are in their 40s who remember all of this culture from back in the day. Then they bring their children to one of the coolest events going, and it’s also a way in which the generation of people who remember how hip-hop really is, are able to bring their young people in a safe environment to be able to understand what this culture is really about.”

“[Breakin’ Convention] comes as a result of me touring around the world seeing all of these other communities that are exploring hip hop culture in the theater space,” he said. Additionally, Breakin’ Convention extends to more than just those in their teens or 20s. “It’s from 1 to 100,” said Jonzi D. “We literally have had 70-year-olds freestyling with the 7-year olds. Over the years we have had a group at Sadler’s Wells [the London theater Breakin’ Convention is part of] called the Company of Elders. We’ve done hip-hop workshops with them — it’s an over-60 dance group.” This cross between generations offers something for everyone, going back to the core of hip-hop by including everyone. After touring Europe for several years, Sadler’s Wells took the festival abroad to hip-hop’s American roots at the Apollo Theater in 2013. Blumenthal Performing Arts is committed to a three-year run in Charlotte. “When you come to the event, what you’ll find is it’s a great way of families bonding,” said Jonzi D. “You’ve got these parents

ARTIST BLENDS HIP-HOP WITH RENAISSANCE TO MAKE BEAUTIFUL ART Artist Kehinde Wiley blends contemporary life with art history to make beautiful paintings that raise questions about identity, culture, and race.

Kehinde Wiley is a Los Angeles born artist whose work reimagines Western conventions in art history and gives a voice to black men and women who have otherwise appeared underrepresented in museums and on gallery walls. Kehinde Wiley: A New Republic, on view now at the Brooklyn Museum until May 24, offers an unprecedented survey of his prolific 14-year career with a collection of more than 60 of the artist’s paintings and sculptures. Wiley begins his process in the streets. Meeting complete strangers, he asks his subjects if they would be interested in sitting for a portrait.

Once in the studio, he encourages them to pick a historical art pose based on how they perceive themselves — whether that be with the prowess of victorious emperor or the sensuality of reclining goddess. The final painting blends aspects of contemporary life — Timberland wear, hoodies, baseball caps, sneakers — with contrasting historical poses and ornate backgrounds that recall Old Master paintings. By replacing the wealthy European aristocrats with contemporary black subjects, Kehinde Wiley asks viewers to re-evaluate art history and to question how images affect our ideas of identity and culture.

|| Hip-hop and Renaissance ||

HIP-HOP & RAP as ART An Agent of Change for Social Justice and Political Reform

A Closer Look at a New Hip Hop Movement “Rap,” a voice of the disenfranchised raises concerns and asks an important question: “how do you undo 500 years of indoctrination?” While “rap” is defined as a spoken word art form of usually rhyming poetry over beats and hip hop is a music genre, it’s also a movement calling for revolution and crying out for reform. The request is not for anarchy but for social justice. Rap and Hip Hop has been criticized because of the misogyny, violence and homophobia.

Not all hip hop fits that category. In fact, the commercial rappers and hip hop artists constitute less than 1% of the genre. Hip Hop that began as party music in the black culture in South Bronx, New York around 1973 has been co-opted by corporate music producers, kept dumbed down and offensive because it sells to the lowest common denominator. It’s supposedly cool to be “gangtsa” in that sub-genre and the music industry capitalizes on that vibe reinforcing justifiable anger because it’s easier to sell it back to the streets. The new trend in hip-hop or “Indie Hip Hop,” as it’s known, is a different kind of artistry that invites another look at a culture trying to highlight and hopefully reverse the indoctrination that has been wrong headed for so long. Indie Rappers and Hip Hop artists are local independent artists who uphold the tradition of hip hop as a movement and call for social reform. The elements that sprang from a disenfranchised culture building community through its common concerns, are preserved in the local hip hop culture that spans the globe and millions

of followers. Local artists try to “keep it real” by keeping out the commercial qualities that might overtake the social value of a community coming together in the quest to end disenfranchisement and push forward justice and social change.

In the Streets Many in the urban black culture embrace the oral traditions of poetry slam, rap, hip hop and street dance similarly to preserve tradition, spread concerns, examine their daily lives, convey discontent and share dreams just as their ancestors did on the African continent. Viewed as the voice of the poor, misrepresented, disenfranchised and dismissed, black urban youth find in hip hop culture, the “voice” they are often denied in mainstream media where racism can be so institutionalized as to be invisible. Rap and reggae have an intertwined path that gives voice to similar circumstances that compel criticism for rap and reggae’s tradition of advocacy of violence in solving social,

|| Hip-hop & Rap as Art: Agent of Change ||

economic and political problems. In fact, rap and by association hip hop has become a scapegoat in the musical tapestry of America. As the genre became popular and commercialized, consumerism threatened the identity and power that hip hop once enjoyed as the voice of community. Just as those outside the Rastafarian culture capitalized on reggae, rap and hip-hop now struggle to survive adoption, commodification and commercialization by big labels and producers. Commoditized and packaged hip hop erases its historic function and disenfranchises its voice as a form of resistance reducing it to little more than a repackaged commodity by “big business” with consolidated power held, not by blacks, but by mostly by white upper class corporate financiers. The shiny packaging of co-opted and commercialized rap, the platinum records, huge paychecks and the implied opulence effectively decontextualizes and bastardizes the message inherent in rap and minimizes the oppression out of

which the culture emerged and against which it still continues to battle. Hip Hop is steeped in the fight against political, economic, social oppression and a history of slavery. The history follows beginnings in West Africa, kidnapping and enslavement, prejudice, and segregation through faux emancipation and continues to try to surmount the obstacles of economic segregation while still longing to reclaim a respected cultural identity of African Americans. By comparison pop music and country may seem less violent and milder because it has not had to fight that history nor does it deal with the social, economic, political disenfranchisement and violent ecosystem with the pressures of daily life in an urban economic and racially stratified culture of the inner city and housing projects. Violence in rap is not a call to arms or to violence but an outcry from what is an already existing world view with little hope and the nihilism

that arises from long time deep inequities divided mostly along racial (and therefore, economic) lines. It comes from subjugation and socially produced irrational hate—hate projected toward blacks and self-hatred by blacks themselves taught to them by a culture that always reduced them to less than fully capacitated humans. Many of the voices that denounce hip hop as corrupting youth come from the same people in power who undercut funding for education and social programs or perpetuate the prison industrial complex or fund the military one that embraces and fiscally supports the use of drone warfare. America was built on conquest, rebellion, and bloodshed beginning with the genocide of the Indigenous Indians and the capture, kidnapping, selling and slavery of peoples involuntarily imported from another world. Hip Hop is an educational tool when explored and listened to in that context. It’s part of black history and should be studied within that framework and included in educational programs. It is another kind of language and voice for the voiceless. Indie Hip-Hop

in particular may warrant another look by those initially turned off to the glam celebrity rappers and hip hop culture. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a language and voice that raises consciousness and elevates awareness which is the first step on the path to change and a new paradigm. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a way for black folk nearly always silenced, rudely interrupted or vocally overrun by those privileged only by the paler color of their skin to finally and emphatically be heard.

KENDRICK Hip-Hop Artist // Rap Pioneer

|| Hip-hop & Rap as Art: Agent of Change ||

|| 6 Reasons to Let Your Children Listen to Hip-hop ||

6 REASONS YOU SHOULD LET YOUR CHILDREN LISTEN TO HIP-HOP 17

It’s important to understand & embrace the struggle. Whether it’s stories about growing up in the projects or battling addiction; Hip Hop is filled with stories of struggle and overcoming professional & personal obstacles. Ben Horowitz talks about the Struggle for entrepreneurs and uses the lyrics of Lupe Fiasco to further demonstrate the idea behind his thoughts. The Lu Ben shares the fact that in entrepreneurship, You start out chasing your dreams and a vision but that vision eventually turn into nightmares and you find yourself in The Struggle.

In Hip-Hop, the struggle is seen as an obstacle that is common. It’s an obstacle that is embraced and one that is put in front of someone not because they aren’t talented but instead because nothing great comes easy. In the lyrics above, you find a quote from the song “Talking to Myself” by Eminem. This song was Eminem sharing the story about his struggle with drug addiction and how he needed to put drugs behind him to become the rapper that he wanted and needed to be. The idea that one of the most recognized rappers in history can come out with a song about his struggle and weakness in such a transparent way is powerful. It sends a message that even those at the top have inner demons and problems and that it’s important to face them.

Valuing ongoing quality work is important. You can learn a handful of business lessons from Jay-Z but one of the most important lessons is the value of quality work. Inspired by an interview with Notorious B.I.G a slain rapper, on his track “My first song” Jay-Z references the importance of treating every song and album as if it’s his first chance to impress the fans. This mentality is important in developing a sense of worth as it relates to giving 100% all the time. It’s a mentality that embraces the idea of always pushing forward and never riding on our past successes to take us into the future.

|| 6 Reasons to Let Your Children Listen to Hip-hop ||

Being confident & comfortable with who you are and embracing those who are different is also important. Hip Hop is about being comfortable in your own skin and being confident in yourself while embracing peoples differences. The early years of Hip Hop were all about being proud of where you came from (the hood) and being proud of your culture. There were a handful of songs that celebrated the struggles of blacks and were meant to give youth a sense of pride and confidence. Whether it’s in a song like “I Know I Can” where Nas proclaims that his “An architect, doctor, maybe an actress But nothing comes easy, it takes much practice” his lyrics speak to young people with the hope of allowing them to recognize that they’re able to achieve their dreams. Furthermore, you look at more recent lyrics from folks like Macklemore who use songs like “Same Love” where he demonstrates support for equal rights for everybody no matter the color of skin or sexual preference. Overt the last few years, things have been great in terms of progress for Hip Hop. That said, I’m not going to pretend that Hip Hop has always an accepting of people who are different. It’s common knowledge that there have been songs filled with homophobic slurs and degrading rhymes. That said, there’s no doubt the music has

come a long way and that the next wave of artists like Macklemore, Frank Ocean & Childish Gambino are more supportive of equal rights for all than ever before. I’m confident that this new wave of music is going to continue making strides in moving society forward.

Children shouldn’t be afraid to chase their dreams. Everyone has dreams. The reality is, a lot of people are afraid to chase their dreams even though it can be life’s greatest adventure. Hip Hop also reiterates the idea that chasing a dream isn’t going to be easy. It is stated over and over again how hard these artists work to get where they are and through their music you hear that idea over and over again. It only takes one listen to Jay-Z’s “Black Album” to understand the importance of working harder and smarter to get ahead. When you look at some of the most successful Hip Hop artists over the last three decades it’s clear that the majority of them are living or lived what they saw as the life of their dreams. Whether it was Biggie stating: “Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis When I was dead broke, man I couldn’t picture this” or Jay-Z proclaiming: “I’m not afraid of dying. I’m afraid of not trying”. The idea of taking action towards accomplishing something isn’t rocket science or anything groundbreaking. That said, this is a simple idea that many people ignore and don’t embrace over the course of their lives. Instead, they go through their lives with these great ideas of what they should and could be yet die with the lyrics unheard and ideas forever in their head.

Kids should have the ability to identify what’s right and what’s wrong. Even when it’s in the lyrics of their favorite artist. It seems like there are more people in the world doing jobs they don’t enjoy than the number of people who love what they do every day. For me, I look at many of my friends, former colleagues, partners and peers and it’s as if they live simply for the weekends. They don’t love the things they do from day-to-day. They don’t enjoy their job and they don’t like being around the people they work with. They just go with the flow… In the Hip Hop classic, Sky’s the Limit , Notorious BIG said “Only make moves when your heart’s in it and live the phrase sky’s the limit.” This simple concept of doing this you truly care about is difficult advice to follow on a daily basis. In fact, there is no doubt that you’re going to have to do things you don’t actually want to do to get where you want to be. That said, keeping your eye on what your heart is ultimately after will help you push through it. It will help you get through the hard times and achieve your goals.

It’s always important for them to follow their passions. It seems like there are more people in the world doing jobs they don’t enjoy than the number of people who love what they do every day. For me, I look at many of my friends, former colleagues, partners and peers and it’s as if they live simply for the weekends. They don’t love the things they do from day-to-day. They don’t enjoy their job and they don’t like being around the people they work with. They just go with the flow… In the Hip Hop classic, Sky’s the Limit , Notorious BIG said “Only make moves when your heart’s in it and live the phrase sky’s the limit.” This simple concept of doing this you truly care about is difficult advice to follow on a daily basis. In fact, there is no doubt that you’re going to have to do things you don’t actually want to do to get where you want to be. That said, keeping your eye on what your heart is ultimately after will help you push through it. It will help you get through the hard times and achieve your goals.

|| 6 Reasons to Let Your Children Listen to Hip-hop ||

Hip hop is inherently political, the language is political. It uses language as a weapon â&#x20AC;&#x201D; not a weapon to violate or not a weapon to offend, but a weapon that pushes the envelope that provokes people, makes people think. 22

|| Hip-hop: Today's Civil Rights Movement ||

Hip Hop: Today’s Civil Rights Movement Musical Culture More Relevant than King Speeches

Hip-hop culture, with its street rhythms and explicit lyrics, is more relevant in advancing civil rights today than the peaceful messages of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., author Todd Boyd says. In his new book The New H.N.I.C.: The Death of Civil Rights and the Reign of Hip Hop, Boyd, who teaches at the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television, writes: “I would suggest that you might get a better read of what’s going on in the world of Black people today by listening to DMX on It’s Dark and Hell is Hot than by listening to repeated broadcasts of Martin Luther King speeches.” In an Weekend Edition Saturday interview with NPR’s Scott Simon, Boyd says he’s not demeaning King in making the comparison. “I would suggest that Martin Luther King and his politics are very specific to a certain time and it’s important for us to learn from that, but if we want to talk about the present and the future, hip hop is much more immediate and much more relevant. We’re in a moment where we can’t simply look at things from that 1960s perspective and expect for it to hold up in the present day.” “I think what Black Power did and what hip hop would pick up on later, was move away from the sort of passive sense of suffering, ‘We shall overcome’. Hip hop is much more active, much more aggressive, much more militant.” “Hip hop is inherently political, the language is political,” Boyd says. “It uses language as a weapon — not a weapon to violate or not a weapon to offend, but a weapon that pushes the envelope that provokes people, makes people think.” Boyd says H.N.I.C., the acronym in the title of his book, is a reference to “a phrase in the 1970s — head nigger in charge. N-i-g-g-e-r for so long was considered a derogatory word” rooted in slavery and racism, he says. But hip hop has “come along and changed the meaning of that word — n-i-g-g-a.” The late rapper Tupac Shakur said that acronym stands for “Never Ignorant Getting Goals Accomplished,” Boyd says. “So the word now, I think, for many people is a word of affirmation.” Below is an excerpt from The New H.N.I.C., The Death of Civil Rights and the Reign of Hip Hop by Todd Boyd:

Change the Game The Def Jam record label announced sometime in 1999 that it would be releasing two highly anticipated albums by rappers DMX and Jay-Z, respectively, during the last

two weeks of the year. The plan was to end the millennium with the number-one record in the country and begin the new millennium the same way. To no one’s surprise, Def Jam was successful in its quest. DMX’s And Then There Was X ended the year at number one, and Jay-Z’s The Life and Times of S. Carter opened 2000 at the top of the charts. Although this may seem less than exceptional now, there was a time in the not too distant past when hip hop was thought to be meaningless noise, simply a passing fad, another annoying youthful trend destined to go the way of disco, the betamax, and Rubik’s cubes. Over the course of the past twenty years, however, hip hop culture has gone from being a marginal New York subculture to being a phenomenon that not only has saturated mainstream America but also has had a massive impact at a global level. This move from marginal to mainstream was even highlighted by a recognized cultural barometer, Time, which on its February 5, 1999, cover declared America to be a “Hip Hop Nation.” Shortly after, hip hop diva Lauryn Hill, who received five Grammy awards at the 1999 ceremony, and who appeared on the cover of that issue of Time, quizzically stated after accepting award number five, “[T]his is crazy... cause this is hip hop.” Her astonishment at receiving such widespread acclaim while being immersed in a culture once deemed insignificant, even by the music industry, is truly a reflection of the arduous road hip hop has traveled since its meager beginnings in the South Bronx some twenty years earlier. The significance of this moment though is not solely confined to the current popularity of a music genre, or its musicians. The music and the larger culture that surrounds it, hip hop, emerged from a uniquely African American disposition, and like the blues, jazz, and soul before it, give voice to those who tend to occupy the lowest rungs of the American social ladder. Though the roots of the culture are informed by the African American oral tradition, as well as the lived conditions of poor Black and Latino youth in postindustrial New York, hip hop has been able to expand from this initial base, and has become, in my mind, a dominant generational voice throughout the world, be they gangbangers in South Central Los Angeles, Algerian immigrants in Paris, or blackface Japanese youth bouncing to the phattest track in Tokyo’s Roppongi district, not to mention the proverbial suburban White teenagers or rural “rednecks” who also constitute a large segment of hip hop’s consumer base.

Elvis Presley ain’t got no soul/John Coltrane is rock and roll/You may dig on the Rolling Stones/but they ain’t come up wit that style on they own. —Mos Def, “Rock and Roll” Yes, like rock and roll before it, hip hop too, defines a generation, but rock and roll was initially derivative, an appropriated form of Black music. When this appropriated form of Black music was performed by White artists, it would provide the soundtrack for the baby boom generation; its impact, again, having an almost exclusive effect on mainstream White society. In other words, rock and roll became White music, speaking to various segments of the White masses. Though rock would expose a generational shift during a very transitional time in American social history, it never had the same exclusive impact or significance outside the mainstream.

Hip hop, a social movement in and of itself, has been the most visible expression of this societal trepidation in regard to a full embrace of American society. In my mind, this is evocative of Francis Ford Coppola’s Godfather saga, in which Italian immigrants try to become American citizens; over the course of their journey, we see the toil and strife involved in making this happen. Though African Americans have faced a more difficult fate relative to mainstream social mobility, they have often demonstrated the same struggles in life, and through cultural expression. Hip hop has become the most compelling contemporary articulation of this age-old American question. It is this examination of post-civil rights African Americans and their struggles regarding this dilemma of assimilation, as expressed through hip hop, that again underlies the motivation for this book.

Hip hop has now revolutionized the times precisely because it is music from the margins that has grown up to consume the mainstream. As Jay-Z says, “[W]e brought the suburbs to the ‘hood.” However, unlike the blues or the rhythm and blues that formed the basis for rock and roll, hip hop did not need to be repackaged in Whiteface for it to be consumed by the masses, and this is a telling commentary on the historical changes that have taken place in America since the 1960s. In the late twentieth century and early twenty-first century, popular culture and especially music and sports have became cultural sites where a seemingly un-compromised sense of Blackness could be articulated and even turned into a profitable commodity. Many see this commercial nature of hip hop to be another example of the mainstream consuming the margins. It is my assertion that hip hop never went to the mainstream, the mainstream came to hip hop, and this reversal or shift in power relations underlies the cultural concerns that will form the basis of this book. As hip hop pioneer and present-day rap mogul Russell Simmons says in his book Life and Def, “I see hip hop culture as the new American mainstream. We don’t change for you; you adapt to us.” Hip hop, a music that in its very definition is about existing on the margins, must now confront life in the mainstream. This has, at times, been difficult, similar to the contradictions experienced by many successful rappers themselves, when their present life of luxury conflicts with their ghetto roots. On another level though, hip hop has become a profound expression of something much larger. The generation that emerged in the aftermath of the civil rights movement remains perplexed over whether they will actually try to integrate with mainstream society or whether they will choose to remain isolated in their own existence. This classic American dilemma over assimilation has been revisited through hip hop. In some ways, like the characters in Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, we find ourselves back at the same place many African Americans were at in the late 1950s/early 1960s: pushing for integration but constantly asking at what cost.

|| Hip-hop: Today's Civil Rights Movement ||

How Kendrick Lamar Is Proof Hip-Hop Can Influence Society In Big Ways

When you kno down before, lookin’ at the w go?” And we h dead in the str

KENDRIC

When injustice permeates society, sometimes the only way to accurately convey the array of emotions it catalyzes among people is via song. Music is a potent and indispensable form of protest.

Alright (To Pim

The pain and rage produced by the persistence of inequality, violence, racism and oppression in the United States has generated some of most powerful songs of the past century. In 1962, Bob Dylan wrote what is arguably the most famous protest song in history, “Blowin’ in the Wind.” It was a poignant and potent reflection on the sentiments of one of the most tumultuous periods in 20th century America. As Time puts it: Dylan made people look both inward and at the discordant world around them. His voice signaled that of a new generation, one ready to confront the injustices of the time and unwilling to settle for war or indifference. The song struck such a nerve, it inspired other great musicians to write their own protest songs. “A Change Is Gonna Come,” which Sam Cooke composed and recorded in 1964, was a direct response to Dylan’s work. When Cooke first heard “Blowin’ In The Wind,” he reportedly stated, Jeez, a white boy writing a song like that? Cooke was tragically and fatally shot two weeks before the song was released, but it went on to become an anthem of the civil rights movement and a song that continues to inspire hope to this day. Dylan and Cooke were hardly the first to write protest songs, and they certainly wouldn’t be the last. Many musicians, from Creedence Clearwater Revival and Neil Young to Marvin Gaye and Curtis Mayfield to N.W.A and Rage Against The Machine, would follow in their footsteps. The beauty of musical protest is it’s not confined to any single genre.

Today, Kendrick Lamar is continuing the tradition. His most recent album, To Pimp A Butterfly, is a politically charged response to the racism violence and police brutality that continues to plague society. It’s very telling the album deals with many of the same themes as other notable protest songs written by the artists mentioned above, among others, yet arrived decades after those were composed. The US has certainly made some progress in establishing a more equitable society, but has a way to go. America is currently embroiled in what some have characterized as a new civil rights movement, with #BlackLivesMatter as its rallying cry. The high profile deaths of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, Walter Scott and Freddie Gray, together with others, have incited palpable discontentment across the country.

|| Kendrick Lamar: Proof of Hip-hop's Influence ||

ow, we been hurt, been When my pride was low, world like, â&#x20AC;&#x153;where do we hate Popo, wanna kill us reet for sure...

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Lamar’s album is a timely meditation on the convoluted emotions and events surrounding this movement. “Blacker The Berry,” arguably the most powerful and emotive track, was written in direct response to the death of Trayvon Martin. As Lamar recently explained: These are issues that if you come from that environment it’s inevitable to speak on. It’s already in your blood because I am Trayvon Martin, you know. I’m all of these kids. It’s already implanted in your brain to come out your mouth as soon as you’ve seen it on the TV. I had that track way before that, from the beginning to the end, and the incident just snapped it for me. Like Bob Dylan and Sam Cooke in the 60s, Kendrick Lamar has tapped into a deep-seated dissatisfaction with the status quo in American society. And it’s already having an observable impact. To Pimp a Butterfly has been a massive success and widely applauded, with the Guardian calling it, “the album hip-hop had been waiting for.” It’s intelligent, articulate and pertinent, so much so teachers are using it to discuss race with their students. Moreover, a week ago, activists attending a Black Lives Matter conference at Cleveland State University became upset after police removed an allegedly intoxicated 14-year-old from a bus. As they attempted to block the squad car holding the teen from leaving the area, an officer pepper sprayed the crowd. In response, the activists began chanting a portion of what has debatably become the most popular track on Lamar’s album, “Alright.” It seems “Alright” has now become the anthem of Black Lives Matter, which is quite fitting given the song touches on police brutality but still radiates positivity. Correspondingly, at the BET Awards in June, Kendrick Lamar made a big political statement by performing “Alright” atop a police car. Subsequently, Geraldo Rivera appeared on Fox News and lambasted Lamar for the performance, stating, This is why I say that hip-hop has done more damage to young African-Americans than racism in recent years. This is exactly the wrong message. Rivera found one of the lyrics in the song, “And we hate po-po/ Wanna kill us dead in the street, fo sho,” particularly problematic.

The problem isn’t me standing on the cop car, I think his attempt is deleting the real problem, which is the senseless acts of [cops] killing these young boys out here. I think for the most part it’s avoiding the truth, it’s reality, this is my world, this is what I talk about in my music and you can’t dilute that. Me being on a cop car, that’s a performance piece after these senseless acts. Hip-hop is not the problem, our reality is the problem. This is our music, this is us expressing ourselves. Rather [than] going out here and doing murder myself, I want to express myself in a positive light, the same way other artists are. Simply put, hip-hop is an artistic response to the harsh truths individuals like Rivera seem determined to deny. Kendrick Lamar is not the first hip-hop artist to write protest music, nor is he the only rapper or artist producing politically-charged tracks in relation to Black Lives Matter. J. Cole, for example, wrote an insightful and emotional track, “Be Free,” in response to last summer’s disturbing events in Ferguson. From hip-hop’s earliest days, numerous artists have utilized the genre as a platform for expressing the unsettling realities of the inner city and the systemic mistreatment of blacks in America. This is particularly evident with songs like “The Message,” released by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five in 1982, as well as Public Enemy’s “Fight The Power,” released in 1989. With that said, there is no artist currently having a larger impact than Lamar in terms of the social movement currently sweeping this country. Lamar is revitalizing music as a form of protest and disproving notions hip-hop poses a danger to society. His album, To Pimp A Butterly, has emerged as the unparalleled soundtrack to Black Lives Matter. Not long ago, Questlove, drummer for The Roots, wrote an impassioned plea to the musicians of this era: I urge and challenge musicians and artists alike to push themselves to be a voice of the times that we live in… I really apply this challenge to ALL artists. We need new Dylans. New Public Enemys. New Simones. Lamar has answered this challenge. He’s the voice of this generation and proof hip-hop can change America for the better. He tells the truth, which is the first necessity of progress.

This sort of argument is nothing new, and it’s embedded in a misconstrued perception of what hip-hop represents, which Lamar highlighted in his apt and well-articulated response to Rivera’s comments: How could you take a song that’s about hope and turn it into hatred? The message is ‘we gon’ be alright’ it’s not the message of ‘I wanna kill people.’

|| Kendrick Lamar: Proof of Hip-hop's Influence ||

Been feeling this way since I was 16, came to my senses. You never liked us anyway, fuck your friendship, I meant it. I’m African American, I’m African, I’m black as the moon, heritage of a small village, Pardon my residence, came from the bottom of mankind. My hair is nappy, my dick is big, my nose is round and wide. You hate me don’t you? You hate my people, your plan is to terminate my culture. You’re fuckin’ evil I want you to recognize that I’m a proud monkey! You vandalize my perception but can’t take style from me! And this is more than confession. I mean I might press the button just so you know my discretion, I’m guardin’ my feelins, I know that you feel it. You sabotage my community, makin’ a killin’. You made me a killer, emancipation of a real n----...

KENDRICK

Blacker the Berry (To Pimp A Butterfly) 31