Where Did Real Hip-Hop Go?
Where did the real Hip-Hop music go?
When I was almost too young to remember, Hip-Hop music challenged people. There were songs like “Fight the Power” by Public Enemy, “Changes” by Tupac Shakur and songs that discussed real relationship issues. Hip-Hop was not centered around violence, drugs, and weapons like most people thought in the early days. Many people used Hip-Hop in positive ways. Young African-Americans coming out of the civil rights movement have used Hip-Hop culture in the 1980s and 1990s to show the limitations of the movement(Diawara 239). Hip-Hop gave young African-Americans a voice to let their issues be noticed and heard. It also gave young African-Americans a chance for financial gain by "reducing the rest of the world to consumers of its social concerns" (Diawara 239). Now, all we have is music with pointless rhymes and explicit lyrics thrown on simple beats. There are no hidden meanings, no positive messages and no legitimate problems. Where did Hip-Hop go wrong? Hip-Hop has recently received numerous criticisms concerning the substance and authenticity of its music. Rappers have reached unprecedented success over the years in record sales, sold out arenas, fashion, movies, television, and creating multi-million dollar companies. Throughout all this success Hip-Hop has never dodged the negative comments from the media about its obscene and explicit lyrics, glorification of drug dealing, pimping, sex, money, and violence. The recent events with Don Imus (a radio personality) calling the Rutgers University female basketball team “nappy-headed hoes” have charged up some of the Hip-Hop community. The movement led by Russell Simmons (the founder of Def Jam Recordings) challenges the Hip-Hop community to come together to call for a reform on Hip-Hop. What is causing this decline of substance and authenticity in Hip-Hop?
Most rappers grow up in neighborhoods where drugs have infected the community, the crime rate is sky high,...
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