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... n to the frightening demeanor of gangster rap. Although their lyrics seemed excessive and overly abrasive, N. W. A. provided America with a picture of the destitute conditions of the urban ghettos, and the dangerous lifestyle that many of the African American youth fell victim to as a result of their dire circumstances.
In 1991, N. W. A. released their sophomore album Niggaz 4 Life, which sold 945, 000 copies in its first few weeks of release, and reached the number one position on the Billboard charts (Unofficial Timeline). This event signaled raps pinnacle for the rest of the 90 s, rap became the highest selling musical genre (Unofficial Timeline). Additionally, it was evident that hip-hop culture had left behind the era of poor rap stars that it had originated from.
The gangster rap era of hip-hop continued through much of the 90 s with artists like Snoop Doggy Dogg, Dr. Dre, Warren G, and TuPac Shakur dominating the charts. Much had changed since the birth of hip-hop. In fact, rap was no longer a genre fighting for acceptance in the mainstream, it was already well established. The industry grew into a multi-billion dollar phenomenon, and as hip-hop entered the new millennium a new mentality was born or rather reborn. Hip-hop was founded on the art of boasting, and thus it was no surprise that as hip-hop approached the new millennium it shifted back to bragging and self promotion.
This time, however, one was not concerned with asserting their superiority in rhyming, instead, the focus shifted to ones wealth of material objects. Artists began writing braggadocios songs about cars, houses, clothing, and jewelry. Many hip-hop aficionados were troubled by the superficial nature hip-hop music had developed. Hip-hop no longer expressed the toils and tribulations of an impoverished and oppressed people, instead, it promoted shallow and unrealistic goals. Ronald Jean Stephens commented on the type of lyrical shift: [] the commercialization of rap lyrics undermine the importance of the African oral tradition. According to Anthony Palmer, the majority of commercialized rap lyrics are concerned with humor and mockery, a lighter version of rap that reduces it to another faddish new musical form whose newness allows it a hearing from white culture while denying African Americans their cultural roots. (Glance 293) He points out that the shallowness of new gangster rap songs not only influences its audience but also degrades what hip-hop music stood for.
Artists like the Big Tymers, Master P, Lil Wayne, and others wrote raps centered on cars, houses, jewelry, and other material pursuits. For example, in the song Shine rapper Juvenile begins his verse by bragging about his car collection saying, Yellow Viper, yellow Hummer, yellow Benz/Yellow PT Cruiser, yellow Lac on rims/Drop yellow Vette and a platinum Rolls Royce/Thats seven different cars every day I got a choice (Leos Lyrics). Other rap artists followed the trend, and radio airwaves became dominated by songs lacking substance or significance. In 1993 a Tripe Called Quest tried to warn agains this change and defend the rap industry in their song we can get down: How can a reverend preach when a rev cant define / the music of our youth from 1979 / we rap about what we see/ meaning reality/ from people busting caps to Mandela being free/ not ever M.
C. be with the negativity/ we have a slew of rappers pushing positivity/ hip-hop will never die yo, its all about rap/ Mayor Barry's smoking crack/ lets preach about that. (Gladney 293) Un substantive music appealed to white listeners which fund a lot of the multi-billion dollar industry. Yet, despite the success of this new era of hip-hop, many strived to uphold the roots of the culture and advance the consciousness established by such figureheads as Public Enemy, KRS-One, and Afrika Bambaata. In the wake of the materialistic charged wave of rap music, artists like Mos Def, Common, Talib Kweli, Jurassic 5, the Roots, and Blackalicious took a different approach to their music, choosing to focus on more substantive issues than wealth and possessions. These artists are often considered underground artists because they are not played on the radio. Yet, many artists such as these have developed a large following of white listeners.
In a song on The Roots newest album Phrenology, the roots explain how the black man does not financially support their group, but instead they depend on their white listeners. Larger issues like poverty, racism, and African American empowerment were among the many topics examined by such artists. For example on his song Get By, Talib Kweli scrutinizes the disproportionate number of African Americans in jail saying, Yo, I activism- attack the system, the blacks and latins in prison/Numbers of prison they victim black in the vision (Leos Lyrics). Kweli effectively raises notice of this issue, which has had devastating effects on the African American community.
Lyrics like these are reminiscent of the Black Arts poetry of the 1960 s, which addressed plaguing issues in black America. The work of artists like Kweli demonstrates how rap music can serve as an effective medium for constructive artistic expression. Hip-hop culture in its beginnings was a counterculture movement that gave voice to the downtrodden, silenced, and oppressed members of the American society. As hip-hop culture evolved and entered mainstream American culture its focus shifted greatly; however, regardless of the general trends of the genre, hip-hop specifically the rap music component - continued to express the concerns of an otherwise overlooked portion of America. Today, rap music stands in the forefront of popular music, and the effect of hip-hop culture on the American public is blaring evident.
Yet, despite its commercialization, hip-hop has maintained its status as a highly pertinent method of expression. [b]Works Cited/Consulted Light, Alan, ed. The Vibe History of Hip Hop. New York: Three Rivers Press, 1999. Rhodes, Henry. The Evolution of Rap Music in the United States.
Yale? New Haven Teachers Institute. 13 Mar. 2003 < web Unofficial Hip Hop Timeline. 8 Apr. 2003 < http: //www. b? boys.
com / hiphop timeline . html> . West, Cornel. The Cornel West Reader. N.
p. : Perseus Publishing, 1999.
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