Hip hop is one of the most influential forms of music in the world. Research has shown that the youth consume more hip hop music than any other modern genre.
“..Rap is something you do…
Hip hop is something you live…“
– KRS ONE
Hip hop is more than just a musical genre. It is a complex cultural movement comprising four different elements of creative expression: Rapping, also known as MC’ing (rhyming over a beat); tagging or graffiti; B-boying or Break Dancing also categorized as B-Boys and B-Girls; and Deejaying or Turntabling.
“..Mothers are tryin’ to feed children
But gentrification is kickin’ them out of their buildin’
A generation of babies born without healthcare
Families homeless, thrown the f@%& off the welfare…”
– IMMORTAL TECHNIQUE
Born in the late 1970’s in the South Bronx, New York, hip hop began gaining popularity in America in the 1980’s. At this time the Bronx was experiencing a severe economic crisis that led to deindustrialization, suburbanization and disinvestment, which were all entangled with racism towards black and brown working class people. Industries, jobs, and white segments of the working class moved from city centres to the suburbs. The urban population, faced with low-paying jobs and unemployment, were less and less able to pay rents, while the housing costs went up due to high interest rates and inflation.
The remaining residents, mostly African American and Latino American, were at the mercy of racist landlords who were losing on their investment properties. This led many to focus on short term profits – either selling their buildings or burning them down to collect insurance money. As a result, more than 2 000 square blocks of housing were lost to fires.
”..late stage capital, shooting down the living wage
Caveman figure rational..”
– ARMAND HAMMER
The dire situation the black youth experienced in the South Bronx created the conditions for a new youth-infused cultural form – hip hop represented a new form of musical expression. It should be noted that rap is a vital element within hip hop culture, and the most popular vehicle of freedom of expression in the genre. The styles of rap that have shaped the art to what it is today can be classified into a number of classes that vary in their degree of lyrical content, including conscious/alternative hip hop, gangsta rap, boom bap, jazz hip hop, trap etc.
Both the globalization and localization, as well as the authentic nature embedded in the culture, have had a tremendous impact on the subgenres that have emerged and are somehow distinct from a local and global perspective. Hip hop subgenres in the global scale, although characterized by their unique distinctions, link various common urban experiences of unemployment, police harassment, racism, socio-economic isolation and specific experiences. This feature of hip hop is driven by the idea that culture is an emancipatory source of expression.
“…Hip hop is not a product to be bought and sold…
Hip hop is you and me man…”
– KRS ONEit
Aside from being a musical platform for expression among the disenfranchised black youth, hip hop has always maintained its striking capacity for political insights and social critique. Unfortunately, in its later stages of evolution, it has succumbed to the effects of neoliberal capitalism. Its assimilation into the capitalist system is a direct consequence of the profit motive. The commodification of hip hop has allowed record label executives to determine what messages the music sends – perpetuating stereotypical lyrics of violence, sexism, and misogyny in black communities. This is more evident in mainstream rap music where artists seem to embrace the capitalist system. At the same time it buys into the interests of capitalism by promoting the consumption of black stereotypes for economic gain and material satisfaction. However, some artists, such as Childish Gambino, continue to write radical lyrics that challenge the status quo in the historical traditions of hip hop.
Whereas contemporary corporate rap artists represent “thuggish” music that is stripped from all political and societal context, underground hip hop is known for its politically charged messages and intense protest music. It strictly defines itself as the original hip hop, and is largely absent from television and radio coverage – far from the commercialized pop rap being produced by capitalists on a large scale. The latter has weakened the culture’s capabilities of resistance and influence in society. Thus, the youth is presently being dictated to in a particular way by these corporations for the sake of profits.
“..no rest or restitution ‘til the workers revolution
Get some union rights that truly fight to coexist as humans…”
– BEN SHARPA
The future of hip hop requires that its fundamental role as a cultural force of the urban marginalized class is restored. It must reclaim its role in fighting against societal oppression which springs from capitalism. The effects of commodification on contemporary society must be exposed; it is important to be aware of how corporate controlled media destroy communities with the production of stereotypical images of violence-, sexuality- and criminality- driven music. Our role as communities and the artists we produce should emphasize the historical education of class interests and how to fight against the traps of capitalism and the path that it wants society to follow.
FOR THE LOVE OF THE CULTURE!
“In this large sense of the word, art is a handmaiden. It is not a disembodied element feeding on itself, but a function of social man indissolubly tied to his life and environment”
– LEON TROTSKY
