In the hand out that we read for our quiz in class about why white kids love hip hop was a very interesting article. It brought up a lot of topics that I don't think about when I think about hip hop. I thought it was interesting to find out that now there are just as many white people that love hip hop as african american. The quote at the beginning of the article was something I think is very true it said, "People are not born racist. Racism is a learned behavior that is part of American culture. If hip-hop can change that, then there is reason for hope." Haki Madhubuti. That quote is somthing that I have talked about to some people in my own family. I have always hated when people talked down to blacks or treated them as if they were not equal. I am also the person that when I hear it always make known that I am not okay with things like that being said. So I really do feel that this particular quote says a lot. I also found it very intersting when they discussed about the different magazines and news stations that before didn't want to have anything to do with talking about hip hop. But as the music and the artists began to become more famous they couldn't not talk about them or put them on the cover of the magazines. I think that is so good of the hip hop artists that if the media and other are going to go out of their way to try and keep them from not succeding that they make it where they can't help but give them the respect they deserve. Another interesting thing was about the real leaders and owners in the hip hop business not being the artists but being corporations which are mostly owned by whites. Just from reading this article I became more aware of what hip hop use to be to where it has become today. And to get back to something that was asked in the beginning of the class if I thought hip hop was going to die. I didn't really know how to answer that question at first because I didn't know how it got to where it was, but after seeing what it has gone through and the success it has had I think it will be a long time before hip hop dies. And now that it is becoming a very dominat music genre it could be around a lot longer than we think.
Links:
http://men.style.com/?mbid=google
http://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/53/O0ZT.html
http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/chart_display.jsp?g=Singles&f=Pop+100
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Hip Hop was never going to last and because of the images it was associated with no body wanted to take a chance, but we can see that now it is big money, big business. A lesson in capitalism once again.
Happy Holidays.
I totally agree with your reaction to the handout. I always knew that hip hop had affected many people in our nation including white kids but not to what extent. I have always listened to hip hop for as long as I can remember but have been very particular about what artists I like. I’m more of a Common, Most Def type of fan that likes music that is very thought provoking and means something. Being me a white girl who listens to mainly classic rock and country doesn't mean I can't enjoy hip-hop as well. Hip-hop to me is a music that you can enjoy for a number of reasons: dancing, entertainment or really listening to a strong message. Hip-hop seems to say more of what the artist views and feels than other music that is out there. I think that hip-hop, at least most of it, is a lot more real than the pop songs and artificial type of music that is put out there by artists like Britney Spears and Ashlee Simpson. I think that hip-hop means something to the people that make it and the people that hear it, causing a worldwide phenomenon. Also, how can hip-hop not affect the white population when it is the white fifty year old businessman that controls the industry. People will always listen to music that makes a statement and I think that hip-hop is the statement making music of our generation like Rock and Roll was for our parents. Like we heard at the beginning of class, hip-hop transcends boundaries and I think that can be seen in this handout as well. I don't think hip-hop will die anytime soon either. It is making a huge profit and seems to be accumulating a wider audience every second. Long live hip-hop!
As a white, middle-class female I am proud to say that I LOVE hip-hop! So it was very interesting to me as well to read the handout "Why White Kids Love Hip-Hop". It was no suprise to me, howvever. As new generations come of age, they seems to be more and more open to things that prior generations had been opposed to. Which could be part of the attraction, I suppose.
Hip-hop has always intrigued me. I remember recording "Regulators", "California Love", and "Gangsta's Paradise" among many, many others off of my radio to listen to on my Walkman when I was really little. I realize now that some of the content was not at all appropriate for my age at the time. My mom knew it wasn't appropriate and tried to keep me from listening to it. I can't tell you how many times I got caught watching a rap video on MTV. But it didn't stop me. I have just always preferred the beat of hip-hop to other music. That might surprise some people that don't know me well, but those closest to me would confirm just how much I love hip-hop.
I think hip-hop has done great things as far as races relating to one another. Hip-hop is as popular as it has ever been, and has such a wide audience. It can have a great affect on its listeners. Newer generations are into hip-hop no matter what race they belong to. It is part of current pop culture and is not seen as just a "black thing" as much as it used to be. In the near future, races will be so blended that race will not be an issue. Until then, I think it's great that hip-hop brings together different people that might have nothing else in common.
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