...Portrayal of Women in Rap and Music Videos :: 4 Works Cited Length: 1724 words (4.9 double-spaced pages) Rating: Blue Price: $24.95 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Misogyny and degradation of women is present in almost every genre of music, yet the one genre that completely revolves around demeaning women is rap. Over the years rap and rap music videos have continually become more sexual and degrading towards women. Rap has been criticized numerous times for this reason, and that is because rap is one of the most popular genres of music for the younger generations. It is more than a genre of music, it is a complete industry filled with clothing and other merchandise. The reason this constant demeaning of women exists is because rap as a genre that rewards the objectification of women. The excuses used to justify the misogyny in rap are incomplete and lack accurate support. The most effective way for this continuous cycle ends, is if the fight and protest comes from the women themselves. Men are the problem in the objectification of women but in order for it to stop, women need to step up and take control of the situation. Women need to act sooner rather than later because in recent years the rap industry has become more and more sexual. Ra... ... middle of paper ... ...Society 113 (2000): 255-69. JSTOR. 29 November 2009 . McLune, Jennifer. "Hip-Hop's Betrayal of Black Women." Perspective on Contemporary Issues. 5th...
Words: 5327 - Pages: 22
...2 Courtney Mustoe Does Rap music Misrepresent African Americans? There are many genera’s in today’s music world. Depending on who a person is, and what their emotions may be, there will always be a song or genera that one can relate to. Some music helps us relax, while others help us to get pumped up. Other music helps us study while some get us ready to party. Music can create closeness with a significant other while sometimes it can relate to our sorrows of a breakup. It can make us happy when we are sad, while in curtain circumstances make us sad when we are happy. Music can take over our thoughts and emotions that create a story we can relate to or a story we are unfamiliar with. It can take us down a street we have never been before. In some aspects this could be a problem. Some listeners might think all country singers are hicks from the south or mid west. Many might assume every punk rocker is a rebellious Goth. So if these presumptions can be made, what is there to stop people from letting a genera of music represent a certain race in our society today? In the past, music was limited by certain branches of music that could air on the radio and one genera in particular, rap, had to fight its way through the music industry to be heard. Its roots came from the hip-hop culture which includes rapping, graffiti, break dancing, DJing (audio mixing or scratching) ect. After rap was recognized, over the years, changes within the music industry and what the media...
Words: 2681 - Pages: 11
...Research Evaluation: The Behavior of African American People through Hip Hop Music Papi Jean Florida Memorial University Introduction The Growth of Hip Hop in America As hip hop continues to grow into a major aspect of the modern African American culture, the studies intend to distinguish the mass outlook of black people in America. It is incredible that this single genre of music has transformed into a vital communication mechanism for an entire race and may even become larger in future generations of African American people. The other races, in America, have gotten an idea of African Americans through the controversial rap music in which black people use to communicate with each other, and outsiders; the non-blacks. The study revolves mainly around the attitudes which have deemed as common in the black culture; rap music has always been open for interpretation which can lead to danger. The music has become so popular and influential to the youth that many crimes have been linked to the music which fuels an efficient form controversy in America. Do people receive the negative aspects of rap more than the positive aspects? If so, then why? Also, why are the positive approaches of hip hop not made commercial rather than the sex, drugs, and violence? There is belief that the music has a great influence on how the other races in America view the black culture. It is not certain whether rap music is more negative than positive, but it is obviously a notorious topic for many...
Words: 4412 - Pages: 18
...Ryan Boeh Music apparition American gangster Rap is a popular type of music in today's society, but it didn't just come to be. In the 1970's rap emerged from other types of music to become what it is today. Rap is influenced and inspired by other types of music. Its influences are closely related to each other. Rap music has derived from various types of music. In a world in which people are constantly confronted with violent acts such as rape, assault, murder, school shootings and other violence's, society is eager and anxious to find and remove all causes of these cultural ills. All the blame can not be put on one particular thing but a heavier degree of blame can be put on one thing. Some of the violent acts listed above are expressed through music. Gangster rap, which followed rap music, developed in the 1980's. Though the immaturity and lack of teaching morals has an impact on how we view and take in things, the context of gangster rap presents a negative image for people in society. Rap music has derived from other music categories. One of the first musical influences on rap music is hip hop. Hip hop is comprised of graffiti, break dancing, attitude and the dress of the people who listened to it. The start of hip hop, along with rap, can be located in the Bronx of New York. There were three major events that occurred in the Bronx that contributed to the hip hop subculture. The first event was the building of an expressway through the Bronx. This plan was carried...
Words: 2167 - Pages: 9
...Music itself by definition means the expression of oneself through either your voice or an instrument. It is the most well liked art form. The music industry is a bit different though, it is run by these big companies and people who try to make money off creating catchy songs and concerts. It is often seen as either something that just about everyone wants to be involved in or something negative due to the large amount of child stars going in a downward spiral adults. Many people overlook the bad messages the music industry, specifically rap music gives to the adolescents and children, it influences them to have sex at an early age, become drug addicts, and engage in violence. Music is apart of life, it brings people together and brings people apart, in a sense that they get so lost in a tone of a song that they mentally escape reality, thus bringing people apart in a way. Even though this is a fact not many people listen to the lyrics of the song they love so much. Adolescents, are usually those who do not think about the message about their favorite song. Teenagers in today’s generation would say that the music they hear does not effect them in any way shape or form. On the contrary it affects them without them without noticing with subliminal messages. Rap music in particular has the greatest impact on young people to this day....
Words: 1341 - Pages: 6
...Behavior In Iran listening to rap music is considered as deviant behavior. All music except music with religious lyrics was outlawed in Iran by Leaders in 1979. The leaders feel that the lyrics in rap music are blasphemy ad invasion of western cultures. Rap music is forbidden and people can receive punishment of being arrested or their business closing. The government feels that this is a deviant behavior because it has an influence on the younger generation (Chopra, 2008). The reason why listening to rap music is not considered as being deviant in the cultures in the Untied States is that people have the right to listen to what ever type of music they want. Rap artist also have the right to free speech which means they can rap about anything that they want. Listen to rap music is a norm in the societies in America. When someone who has a powerful status in society, they are not treated they same as a person who does not have a powerful status. The norms of society suggest that people with power people are not consider as deviant. When they are faced with being labeled as deviant the have numerous resources to fight the claim. While a person with no power is not able to use the same resources they are likely to be labeled as deviant and can not do anything about it (Macionis, 2011). References Chopra, A. (04/16/2008). Rebels of rap reign in Iran. Retrieved from http://www.sfgate.com Macionis, J. J. (2011). Society: The basics (11th Ed.). Upper Saddle...
Words: 281 - Pages: 2
...cases is possible that the home setting could have a great influence in pushing our youth in the wrong direction. Another big reason for the way children and teenagers act the way they do is the pop culture and the music that most of society listens to which can also greatly affect their minds. There are countless reasons to which why teens turn to music as a source of relief. Sometimes they need a little attention, praise even, to show that they are being noticed. They want to know that their parents have pride in their children and the path that they are taking in their lives. When teens are being ignored by their family, lack an active social life and are possibly being bullied among other reasons, they turn to music among other outlets. Although music can sometimes be a healthier way of dealing with one’s problems and issues or just a form of healthy entertainment, it can also become a negative influence for a person. Lyrics and rhythmic beats can either help soothe the soul or worsen the anguish one is dealing with. In this paper the main focal point will be music and the effects it has on our American youth. Music can be used as an escape. In the article Impact of Music, Music Lyrics, and Music Videos on Children and Youth they speak of a study in the 90’s where teenagers admit to listening to music around 40 hours a week (Council on Communications and Media, 2). This is about six hours of listening to music a day. In that same article they also speak of a more...
Words: 2356 - Pages: 10
...What effects does rap have on teen’s language and behavior? Rap is a popular type of music in today’s society. Rap is influenced and inspired by other types of music. Its influences are closely related to each other. Rap music has derived from various types of music. In a world in which people are constantly confronted with violent acts such as rape, assault, murder, school shootings, and other violence. Rap has many different effects on teen’s language and behavior. Some negative some positive. When most people think of rap music today they immediately think of the gangster mentality, drug dealing, fighting, smoking, and killing. Rap paints a picture to a child of what is going on in the streets. It has a much bigger influence on teens because children who live in poverty strictened areas already have an idea of what that life is really like. Lots of times it comes down to children wanting to be considered "cool". If you are a teenager, being cool probably is a top priority to you. Lots of times you will find that teens are relating with one particular emotion that is expressed in the music. Some teens feel that way because their parents don’t take the time out to listen to them or the problems they have. When parents connect with their teen, it makes them feel complete and they will normally begin to open up more to their parents. Many teens feel like rap and hip-hop relates to their life or lifestyle. As a teen some music I listen to does relate to part of the way people live...
Words: 897 - Pages: 4
...“Today's rock music extols everything from rape, and homosexuality to sadomasochism and bestiality.... Other lyrics glamorize drug and alcohol use, and glorify death and violent rebellion” (Betz, 2004, p. 1). Music is and always has been a major influence on teenagers around the world. Is music today taking it a step too far? According to Smilkstein (1999), violence occurs in 57% of rap and rock videos and sexual intimacy in 75%. Of videos with violence, 81% also contained sexual references, (p. 1). Music has been around for centuries and affecting teens in all sorts of different ways. Violence and bad situations are not the only thing that comes out of music. Christian music affects religious listeners in a much different way than rap music would affect a teen today. This paper will deal with all the effects, positive and negative, of music and teenagers. The music being discussed will be rap, rock and roll, heavy metal, country, and Christian. Each section of music will be thoroughly explored and how each individual aspect affects teenagers will be brought into light. “Teens who spend more time watching the sex and violence depicted in the ‘reel’ life of ‘gangsta’ rap music videos are more likely to practice these behaviors in real life” (Kerchheimer, 2003, p. 1). Five hundred and twenty two black girls between the ages of 14 to 18, all who listened to rap and watched rap videos, were studied. Compared to girls that rarely or never watched the videos, the 522...
Words: 1780 - Pages: 8
...using our eyesight. Another famous form of art, which involves our sense of hearing, is music. Music is vast that it has so many genres and subgenres. One genre, that is quite popular in today’s world, is hip-hop. Most people view hip hop as a movement, but i consider that its more than just a movement. Hip Hop is a median to express yourself. The shared ideology of Hip Hop is that it is a platform to portray art and beliefs through lyricism, abstract art, clothing, etc. Hip Hop is a subcultural movement, which was formed in the 1970s in South Bronx, New York. African Americans mainly started this movement, but now it is diversified. It has various components, such as “DJing”, rapping, graffiti art, and break dancing. Hip Hop gained a lot of popularity for its fashions. Its authorial power and influence highly impacts the fashion world. Many rap artists have successful cloth lines, which are quickly adopted by the followers. Language, in Hip Hop, plays a vital role. Slang terms gained its popularity after it was being used in raps. Some say that rap is the modern day poetry. Rapping also known as “MCing”, is basically a mixture of rhymes and beats to produce a meaning or even a message. Many rappers incorporate historic events or figures in their raps to compare things. Rap Artist Tupac Shakur used to read and write poetry at an early age, and it developed to show through his rap songs. During his last days, he was studying the philosopher, Machiavelli, and released...
Words: 1321 - Pages: 6
...Research Project ‘Does Hip-Hop have a negative influence on young people?’ Introduction This research project will explore the impact that hip-hop culture has on young people in society today. From examining current literature and conducting a quantitative study the project will aim to answer the question ‘does hip hop have a negative influence on young people?’ There has been lots of controversy surrounding this subject in recent years. Some say hip-hop is responsible for the rise in youth violence whilst others say hip-hop is just an accurate representation of a violent society. This paper will give an insight into what young people in the Teesside area who live and breathe this popular culture think. Action Plan Project Management Plan Research Project | | Timeline | Start | Finish | Weeks Needed | Task number | Task detail | | 1 | Agree Topic with supervisor | On-going | 2 | Literature review | 15/01/2015 | 05/02/2015 | 3 weeks | 3 | Decide on research design | 20/01/2015 | 27/01/2015 | 1 week | 4 | Develop Data Collection Tools | 06/02/2015 | 20/02/2015 | 2 weeks | 5 | Distribute/Conduct Data Collection Tools | 23/02/2015 | 02/03/2015 | 2 weeks | 6 | Collect and Analyse Data | 02/03/2015 | 16/03/2015 | 2 weeks | 7 | Draw conclusions | 16/03/2015 | 30/03/2015 | 2 weeks | 8 | Write Report | 20/03/2015 | 15/04/2015 | 3 weeks | Sources Both primary and secondary sources of research will be undertaken throughout this project. The...
Words: 2499 - Pages: 10
...“Blues in Technicolor”, we learned a lot about how LSD played a major role in rock music. One of the popular figures who promoted LSD was writer Ken Kesey. One of the most prominent groups during this era of rock music was “The Grateful Dead”, who originated in San Francisco, and were heavily into improvising. There was a neighborhood at this time where the early psychedelic bands lived, and this place was called Haight Ashbury. This era also saw what was to be the end of the Beatle’s touring days, because they decided that they would rather experiment with new directions in the music industry. One of the first bands out of San Francisco to have success with pop was “The Jefferson Airplane”. Another major accomplishment from this era was in 1968 when LPs outsold 45s for the first time ever. This era of strong hippy movement which lasted a long while, came to an end by late 1969. In video 7, we learned about “The Velvet Underground” band and how they were associated with famous pop artist Andy Warhol. This same band which was popular in the 1960s, was also a major influence to Jim Morrison. Another extremely popular band during this era was “The Doors”. “The Doors” were major influence to “Iggy Pop”, along with “The Velvet Underground”. One of the most prominent figures in rock during this time was Alice Cooper, and his band. His band was really the definition of cultureless American society. Alice Cooper gained a lot of press for an incident in which he bit the head...
Words: 699 - Pages: 3
...The Rap Culture’s Negative Side In America women are supposed to be equal to men. In rap music though, it is portrayed that men are superior to women. Rap music was created in the 1970s and it is a fast growing culture. Rap has “taken the center stage in both the music and television worlds” (why we need to…). This is a problem in our society because women are not portrayed fairly in rap music. This has a negative effect on how the audience perceives women. Rap culture can influence men to think of women as sex objects, normalize domestic abuse, and can instill misogynistic views towards women. Sex is a big part of rap music and culture. It is mentioned in the majority of songs at an alarming number. This has a big influence on males. Rap music contains very explicit content of sexual acts, sexual thoughts, and sexual images. The problem is that most rap songs aren’t about love. The songs are only about the act of sex with a lot...
Words: 1216 - Pages: 5
...Addison Kogami Professor Frederick Lau Music 407 23 June 2014 Hip-Hop Music This research paper will be discussing the origins and development of hip-hop music, some of the characteristics that define hip-hop as a musical genre, and the social significance of hip-hop from its creation up until current day. The purpose of this paper is to inform and enhance the understanding of hip-hop music, drawing connections between musical stylistic origins and social influence throughout history on hip-hop music to create an unbiased, accurate account of how hip-hop music came to be what it is today. The genre of hip-hop music formed in the 1970s amongst African American Groups in urban New York City, during a time when “block parties” and it’s associated music started to become extremely popular. Credited with founding hip-hop music, DJ Kool Herc, an immigrant from Jamaica, started to extend the percussive breaks in popular funk and soul music (Dyson). This new sound became so popular that DJs needed to start using two turntables to lengthen percussive breaks, effectively creating an entire new sound and new genre of music (Bekman). Hip-hop music is characterized by four main elements: rapping, scratching (DJing), break dancing, and graffiti (Chang). Because music is dynamic and constantly changing, hip-hop started to develop sub-genres within hip-hop, such as southern trap music or west coast gangsta rap. Hip-hop music in different regions started to develop their own unique...
Words: 2815 - Pages: 12
...everyone else” (Emerson). This quote accurately depicts the intention of creating music for others. In the 90s, the grunge and rap communities would express annoyance towards how society functioned during this chaotic decade. The United States was undergoing an economic boom which affected the music world. In terms of political change, the government and society had disagreements over the scandals and controversial issues being discussed throughout communities around the country. The 1990s revolutionized the grunge and rap music genre and its society during that time by creating a sense of rebellion, self-expression, a...
Words: 1734 - Pages: 7