...4PM Research Paper The genre of music called “Hip Hop,” originated back in the 1960’s with the help of a Jamaican native and Dj, named Kool Hurc aka, Clive Cambell. Since the evolution of hip hop, the style of music has become one of the main branches of an artistic culture that consists of b-boying (break dancing), graffiti, and MC-ing. All of which have tremendously influenced many aspiring artists, their physical images, the ever-changing sound of hip hop, and other elements that relate to the hip hop culture. A lot of people claim that hip hop and rap can only be about violence, aggression, sex, and money in order to sell or be popular. Another view on hip hop and rap is that it’s too violent, and inappropriate to audiences. That it’s not even music but just a bunch of crap, when in reality, it’s like poetry. The lyrics that artists write come from personal experiences, and perceptions of what they see in the world they live in. Hip hop and rap is more than just music. One of the primary sources I found is a review/article published in “The New York Times” called “The Uncluttered Hip-hop of De La Soul”, written by Peter Watrous, in which Watrous critiques the performance and the group De La Soul at a show. This review of Del La Soul is relevant to the history of hip hop course because it makes a point in which gives an argument for positive recognition of not only De La Soul, but other hip hop groups with similar style of music. These groups don’t write about sex,...
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...Is there more violence in gangster rap than in regular hip hop music? The answer to that is: there is more violence in hip hop music rather than ganster rap. I know it is may seem a little weird, but, it is true, there is more violence in hip music rather than gangsta rap, but, the number of gun violence has doubled from gangster rap from 2000 to 2014 (Taboola, 2015). On top of this, most people would think that hip hop is the culture of nonviolence and just people singing, to have a good time but, this is not the case now these days (Taboola, 2015). “Violence in the hip hop world really needs to cease...it needs to stop to save people from being influenced to be part of a gang or, go and commit crimes of all sort”. It isn’t worth spending...
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...topic other than that of your Oral Presentation. While your paper may be on any topic related to course materials; it must synthesize material addressed throughout the semester. For example, if you decide to write about visual culture of hip hop, you should probably refer to Tricia Rose's arguments about "preferred transcripts" suggested by music videos and Todd Boyd's conception of "hyperreal" cinematic imagery. FINAL PAPER INSTRUCTIONS: Your paper should also incorporate research that extends beyond the boundaries of materials on our syllabus. You should also be sure to construct an argument and offer a critique of assumptions surrounding your argument. The most successful papers will allow the "messiness" of researching popular culture to foreground contradictions implicit in your arguments. For example, if you want to argue that misogyny is less of a concern in 2006 than it was in 1995 because many of the gangsta rap groups responsible for "bitch-ho" rhetoric have disbanded, you would probably want to underscore the pervasive lack of feminist female representation in any hip hop idiom in 2002. In other words, less gangsta rap has not meant more positive heterosocial conditions for the production of hip hop. This is a research paper, and it will be graded according to standards of college-level humanities writing. Your paper must be typewritten, double-spaced, and thoroughly edited for spelling and grammar. Composition counts! For compositional guidelines...
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...Check, One-Two Suzanne Fields, the author of “Bad Raps: Music Rebels Revel in Their Thug Life” wrote her article on May 21, 2001 for insight on the news. In her article, Fields talks about how rap music has negative effects on our younger generation. She personally believes that the lyrics in these songs have a harsh effect on our youth and that it is the worst genre of music out right now. While reading, I found her opinion to be extremely biased and unfair. I also found myself disagreeing with almost every bad thing she stated about the rap genre since many other genres can have the same types of effects on younger people when they listen to them. Fields starts out her article by saying that rap music “expresses the worst kind of images” and is harmful to our younger generations. She thinks that the lyrics “employ vulgar street idioms” and are too harsh. She also states that she believes their lyrics come from “a world of broken families, absent fathers, illegitimate children and matriarchal dominance, often subsidized by welfare.” (Fields) Fields continues her argument against rap music by saying that the reason for the harsh lyrics is because language and experience of poetry and romance are absent from the lives of the rappers and their audiences. Fields personally does not know the true lives of the rappers, so she shouldn't be judging them just off of their lyrical content. Fields continues her article against rap music by using a couple facts about other singers, such...
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...the seventies. Throughout its formation, the various elements were at some time or another, deemed unacceptable. Graffiti artists faced jail sentences, break dancing became illegal in some areas, and rap music has been severely criticized for various reasons. These elements were never analyzed in an oppositional manner until recently, however. Hip-hop culture represented the claiming of urban communities by the residents. Writers decorated the empty walls of their communities in an attempt to personalize their surroundings. They also painted trains, which traveled to other communities, and in this sense they developed a living and moving art form. Break dancing claimed space simply because it utilized community space for the performance of a culture specific dance form. Finally, DJing and MCing claimed public space because the main stage for performance was often local parks where they would throw parties for the community. ?The power was supplied by the city unknowingly as community members discovered ways in which they could tap into the city's power boxes at no expense to themselves? (Shomari, 45). Therefore, the development of hip-hop culture was inherently oppositional. Rap music now viewed as an area for political debate by many, did not begin with this in mind. Rap music was developed by DJs, who used two of the same records and looped the break beats of the record, which then allowed the beat to be extended infinitely. They also used the record for ?scratching.? Scratching...
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..."I'm the motherfucker that you read about /Takin' a life or two / That's what the hell I do / If you don't like the way I'm living, well fuck you!" boasts Ice Cube from the song “Gangsta Gangsta,” courtesy of N.W.A’s debut album in the late 1980s (Cooper). N.W.A, or Niggaz With Attitude, has been known as one of the most influential and controversial rap groups around the hip hop globe. They are most known for creating “gangsta rap”( A style of rap music linked with urban street gangs and the inescapable features that represented by it, such as gang violence and misogyny, to name a couple). Their harsh music brought police discrimination and the mean streets of the hood to the public’s eye, forever changing the music industry. Many of the themes of N.W.A’s rap songs deal with their hometown in California:...
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...kinds of forms which are DJing, Rapping, Graffiti, Break-dancing, and Beatboxing. However why music, in this case is Rapping, can build great influence to the listeners. Music is form of cultural expression that does not necessary experience race and other identity relationships. This aspect appeals to youth experiences because racial identities do not mean only simply one thing for them. Since identities of race are combination of multiple identities, such as national context, class, and even gender. This turns up in Hip-hop music which focuses on mixed identities to find local’s expression. Hip-hop music is no longer seen only as song to listen but has become a lifestyle to youth in modern era. They feel this music can represent them who are struggling to find meaning and identities in their society which most of them do, regardless of they are White, Black, Asian, etc. However, other kinds of Hip-hop culture like graffiti art and break dancing also have same influence like Hip-hop music. This condition makes business players who are outside of Hip-hop industry find opportunity to contract famous and successful Hip-hop music artist to commercialize their products. These companies use the mindset that has been built by the artist and indirectly put that image in the commodities which appeal to young consumers. The thesis of this paper is how Hip-hop cultures specifically music and its artists have used their popular effect to influence how branding partnership works and...
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...Hip-Hop African American playwrights are writing about difficult topics that affect the hip-hop generation. In this paper, I will focus on the transformation of hip –hop through theatre in the work of Robert Alexander, A Preface to the Alien Garden, and the work of Kamilla Forbes, A Rhyme Deferred. These playwrights reflect the evolution and different elements of the hip-hop culture. There are many similarities and differences between them regarding themes, intent, definition of hip hop generation and black theatre, the impact each play has on the hip-hop generation, and the historical context of each play. Both playwrights do an amazing reflecting an accurate depiction of the hip-hop generation, which embodies gangster rap, regular hip-hop music, dance, and music. Kamilla Forbes is an actress, director, and playwright who wrote and directed Rhyme Deferred. She is the Founding Artistic Director of the Hip Hop Theatre Junction where she focuses on producing and creating works reflecting the hip-hop generation. Her thoughts and passion for hip hop and theatre and the idea that the new hip hop generation was not reflected through theatre, sparked her to began her story and write the play Rhyme Deferred. This highly energetic play engages the audience through dance and breaking down the “third wall” between the actors and the audience. Rhyme Deferred is the story of two brothers, both rappers. The older brother, Kain, is a mainstream rapper and becomes successful. The younger and...
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...fashion and modern language. It doesn't stop there. The culture permeates everything from TV commercials to toys to video games. Currently, there is even a hip-hop exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum of Art. You name it, and hip hop is there representing. However, hip hop's most potent form is its rap music--embraced by urban Blacks and suburban Whites alike. It is raw self-expression that sometimes features profane lyrics, misogyny and violence. The music, along with rap videos that often present a disturbing mix of rap, hip-hop dance styles, fashion and language, leave many people asking: Is hip-hop culture harming our youth" "The hip-hop culture is just like electricity," civil rights leader the Rev. Al Sharpton told JET. "It can be used negatively or positively. The same electric current that lights up your house can also electrocute you. It is the misuse of hip-hop culture to attack our women and promote violence. We must encourage the proper use of hip-hop culture. We are all influenced by the hip-hop generation." Sharpton, who recently hosted a special summit on social responsibility in the hip-hop industry, labeled gangsta rappers "well-paid slaves." Advertisement "Don't let some record executive tell you that cursing out your mama is in style. Anytime you perpetuate a slave mentality that desecrates women and that desecrates our race in the name of a record.... I consider you a well-paid slave." Sharpton labeled...
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...For as long as people have been making rap music, people have been challenging the content found therein. Dating back to the days of groups such as NWA, Geto Boys, and 2 Live Crew in the 1980s and 1990s, rap music has faced repeated challenges because of its violent, misogynistic lyrics. Law enforcement groups, such as the FBI, have taken exception to songs like NWA’s controversial “Fuck Tha Police” because of the lyrics, which explicitly accuse police of racial profiling, and later in the song, apparently advocate the murder of members of the Los Angeles police community. Supporters of “gangsta rap” have argued that many of the lyrics found within the genre are protected under the 1st Amendment, and that “no reasonable person” would go out...
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...Characters The main character of the book, Gangsta Rap, is a fifteen year-old boy named Ray. Ray is faced with plenty of turmoil throughout his household. He is constantly fighting with his parents about the way he acts and carries himself. Getting thrown out of school does not make Ray’s situation any better. He hangs out with his two closest friends, Tyrone and Prem. Just like Ray, Tyrone and Perm have been kicked out of school too. The boys love rapping and listening to many different genres of music. They use their talents and eventually make up a Rap group. Ray is the lead rapper in this group, and he finally finds something that he can relate too. Another character in this book is named Marga Man. He is a Jamaican, who owns a very popular music store in the city. He treats Ray, Prem, and Tyrone as if they were his own children. He allows them to hang around the shop, pretty much whenever they want to. He even allows Ray to sleep in the shop, when Ray decides he does not want to go home for the night. He has so much of a good relation with the boys, that they name him there manager of their rap group, Positive Negatives. One of the most important characters in this book is Mr. Lang. He is the principal of the school where the boys attended. Unfortunately he kicks the boys out of the school, but he also managed to get a special program for the boys to focus on their interest in life, music. He convinces the boys’ parents to let them attend this special program...
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...The book that I have finished reading is a novel called Gangsta Rap, a story by Benjamin Zephaiah Benjamin’s main theme of this in Gangsta Rap is that maturity and responsibility is in the traits of being a man and stick to your family though tough times. Gangsta Rap is on a problem teenager name Ray that can’t seem to stay out of trouble. It seems as if music is the only thing that matters to him, like he would take a bullet for music (Hip-Hop) specifically. Ray is the oldest out of him an his younger sister Kory that is 12 years old and Ray is 14 years old that he lives with. Ray also lives with his mother and his father, Ray is on good terms with his mother but not good terms with his father do to some altercations in the past. Ray tries to focus himself by striving for him two buddies to make a real rap group. I honestly think that this book was okay .personally I think it could have been better in terms on the setting which is in LONDON…for Christ sake!!! I maybe would have liked it better if it took place in the United States like a “Hood” for ex-sample…just my personally thought on how I feel about this book. In my head I have right to believe Ray and friends are a bit posers because it takes place in London an friends is Asian and his other friend is Indian and u don’t usually so that in Rap. I would recommend this book to anybody that likes drama/family problems type of stories. Also that takes place over sea like Europe or else where that involve something that people...
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...study: “Gangsta Misogyny: A Content Analysis of the Portrayals of Violence Against Women in Rap Music 1987-1993” serve a purpose to change the way women are portrayed in popular culture. These pieces effectively point out the fact that women are looked upon in a very negative light, though one is conducted as a study and the other is satire. The satirical piece also pokes fun at other aspects in popular culture. Beginning with the title, “Study Confirms That Bitches, As Suspected, Ain’t Shit But Hoes and Tricks” the piece pokes fun at common culture as well as academia because of the outlandish study. However, looking deeper into the article it is apparent that the piece exploits the way that society displays women as its main topic. The piece points out that this negative view isn’t a new idea as “Shakespeare used the sentence “Wenches art naut beside harlots and strumpets” in his private works, but it had never been presented publicly.” This gives a timeframe to the crisis. This piece really brings up the issue, however it lacks the resolve and seriousness needed to make a change. The study: “Gangsta Misogyny: A Content Analysis of the Portrayals of Violence Against Women in Rap Music 1987-1993” gives a better analysis of the same problem brought up in the satirical piece. This work is presented in a much different way and offers much more evidence and explanation supporting its claims. This piece states that, “a deconstructive interpretation is offered in which gangsta rap music's...
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...by Erich Anger Characterization of Ray The main character of the book Gangsta Rap is a fifteen- year old boy named Ray. Ray is faced with several problems at home. He is constantly fighting with his parents about the way he acts and his future. Getting thrown out of school doesn’t make Ray’s Situation any better. He hangs out with his two best friends, Tyrone and Prem. Just like Ray, Tyrone und Prem have been kicked out of school too. The boys love to rap together. They use their skills and eventually form a hip hop band. Ray is the lead rapper of the group and calls himself X Ray X, and he finally finds something where he’s really good at. Characterization of Marga Man Another important character of the book is named Marga Man. He is a Jamaican, who owns a very popular music shop in the city. He treats Ray, Prem and Tyrone as if they were his own children. He allows them to hang around the shop whenever they want to. He even allows Ray to sleep in the shop, when Ray decides he does not want to go home for the night. He has so much of a good relation to the boys, that they make him to the manager of their rap group, Positives Negatives. Review The book Gangsta Rap by Benjamin Zephaniah is the story of three boys who got kicked out of school in London’s east. But the boys get lucky when the principal oft he school offers them a chance at a playe where they would lern to danc, rap and put ther skills together with some other formal lessons. It’s the last chance...
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...Imagine living in a Puritan society 330 years ago. Religious zeal and devotion are the basis of the community. Ministers and pastors promote male supremacy and women are looked down upon. The fundamental rule in society is to follow God’s law and obey His commandments. Harsh, remorseless punishment is inflicted on those who stray from God’s laws. Now compare the Puritan society to today’s society. The American culture is ruled by momentary yet popular trends. Colored skinny jeans, snap-backs, unnecessary fashion glasses and neon clothing can be seen almost anywhere on the street (Lutz). Also modern culture has astronomically altered social norms. Women used to be the ideal caretaker of innocence and purity, but now women dress in revealing clothing and are preyed on by the indecent society. Proper mannerisms have vanished and young people have become straightforward and sometimes even rude. Respect for elders and wisdom has dwindled (The Revolution in Manners and Morals). What is the cause of this cultural shift? In Boston during 1684, a group of strict Puritan religious leaders wrote a letter to the community addressing the issue of dancing. Men could dance together and women could dance together, which was viewed as a natural expression of joy. Also children could dance with their parents’ permission. However if a male and female danced together it was seen as an inexcusable sin before God (An Arrow Against Profane and Promiscuous Dancing). Puritan religious leaders warned...
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