When I think of authentic hip hop artists, I think of the artists who tell stories through their lyrics. The ones who express grief and sorrow, and talk about overcoming adversity are much more deserving of revere, as opposed to those who talk about mundane subjects such as money, women, sex, and drugs. Rather than just focus on catchy beats, a true listener should analyze the lyrics and realize the not-so-obvious metaphors and connotations present in the words. The martyrs in hip hop, Biggie and Tupac produced numerous songs in which they delineate their childhood, life on the streets, and feelings of imminent death. Although often controversial and offensive, these lyrics tell stories. You can hear the emotion present in the rapper's voice. One of my favorite hip hop songs is Tupac's "Keep Ya Head Up," in which, rather than offend and view women as mere lust objects, he encourages men to stand up for their woman and realize all the hardships they constantly face. The lyrics of this song are only strengthened by the use of The Five Stairsteps, "OOh Child (Things are Gonna Get Easier)" as the backing track. The following link below contains the song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfXwmDGJAB8
Another hip hop song that I personally believe deserves more credit is Immortal Technique's "Dancing with the Devil." This is by far the most disturbing song I have ever heard. It's one of those songs that require you to really analyze the lyrics and not just be entranced by the beat. By the end of this song, my mouth literally dropped open, displaying how much shock I was in. Growing up in the suburbs, the concept of this "gangsta" lifestyle was enough to make me cringe. I won't go into depth about this song because I don't believe my interpretation will do it justice, but I encourage everyone to listen:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qggxTtnKTMo
This is so coincidental....The other day my roommate Alex and I were talking about songs with crazy lyrics and she played this song for me. The whole song was really insane but at the very end, oh my god.... Just like you said, my jaw dropped! It was so disturbing and sad! I asked Alex if the song was true, and LUCKILY it is fictional... I really don't know how I'd respond to the song if it was non-fiction!!
ReplyDelete^Oh yeah, I was talking about "Dancing with the Devil"
ReplyDeleteYeah, Immortal Technique really knows how to paint a picture. He is a great story teller.
ReplyDeleteBrianna, you said you felt like you level of shock was really related to the fact that you grew up in the suburbs and didn't have much exposure to the lifestyle that hip hop comes from. That overall idea is really interesting to me, especially in light of the fact that the suburban youth is one of the major consumers of hip hop. I'm curious as to what the attachment to that is about. At first I was certain that it didn't have anything to do with having interest in a culture that seems more on edge or threatening than the one in which suburban youth are raised in. Having been raised there and left, I remember suburbia as an intensely dominant culture based community and the presence of youth who actively consume what seem to be surface level ideas of subcultures as a form of identity. I wonder if the overall ease of suburban life combined with the angst of oppressed teenage years creates a fertile ground for the taking on of alternative identities without presenting a socioeconomic structure inspiring original and authentic subcultural movements.
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