I saw this posted on facebook today between two of my friends, an interesting perspective to follow up our presentations today...

Commodification of Hip Hop

Over this thanksgiving weekend I saw something that reminded me of the talks we have had about the commodification of subcultures.

My family and I were on a New York subway and at one of the stops a few young black males carrying a CD player got on. Right after the doors closed, one of the young males turned on some music and the other guys started doing numerous impressive hip hop moves. Before the subway pulled into the next station, the young guys took of their hats and asked for money.

I thought it was cool to see a real-life example of something we had talked about in class.

I was also wondering if I would be correct in saying this is an example of the commodification of a subculture.

Alternative Sports Culture

On Tuesday we had an intriguing conversation on parkour and several other unique alternative sports, focusing mainly on "Youth Tribes in sports." We asked several questions concerning Parkour's status in mainstream culture. What the conversation boiled down to was whether or not free running represents a legitimate threat to society, and the general conclusion that was made was that free runners do not threaten anyone: they are just individuals who want to have fun and do so by turning the world into their playground. If we had enough time, we would have delved into the world of skateboarding through the lens of "Dogtown and Z boys" to discover where skateboarding has its roots and its relationship to the dominant culture.

The question I would like to ask about skateboarding is: What represents the subcultural aspect of skateboarding more clearly, Major media events, such as the X games, or homemade videos of skaters in more natural settings?

Here is an example of each:

The X Games

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwMSsicKRYI

FDR Park video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSNY7XxQ470

Skateboard Occupiers!

I was researching Occupy Philly and I found this video. I though it was quite relevant since we're currently talking about skateboarders. Watching the boarders do tricks in the midst of all of the tents and protestors is actually really intriguing- they even get yelled at and threatened by a woman protestor- pretty funny to watch. Check it out!

http://www.aroundphilly.com/blog/2011/10/28/watch-skate-occupy-philly/

Bob Lefsetz

I do not read incredibly much. However, every day I read an article by Bob Lefsetz, a commentator on the arts, the music business and society at large. He is incredible and is always what I believe to be, spot on. He is constantly talking about differences between generations, and how our generation is going to be the one to bring back creative artist expression. Here, I'll copy and paste today's article. Sign up for the Lefsetz letter, it's free as well as enlightening.

First we watched "Senna".

Formula One is close to meaningless in America, but the longer you watch this movie the more you get hooked. By the spectacle, the racing, the athleticism. Ayrton Senna wins the Brazilian Grand Prix and passes out, it was just that much of an effort, just that draining. Walking through the crowd after coming back to, he keeps imploring people not to touch him, he's in that much pain. When you're a superstar, you're no longer beholden to your fans, you're beholden to your art. Which is why we never expect Van Morrison to tweet, why it's unnecessary for the Belfast Cowboy to be nice to his audience.

And who knew Formula One was so political? You'll wince when the powers-that-be go against Ayrton, snatch away victory for a reason that's never been employed previously, despite being in the rule book. Making him start on the wrong side of the grid, even though he won pole position. In the Internet era, you get to do it for yourself, you can avoid the b.s. The younger generation has got no idea how freeing this is, the same way today's young women don't appreciate all the rights their mothers won for them back in the seventies.

And it all comes down to the car. The greatest driver can't win if the wheels are bad. That's one of the unseen problems with so many sports. He who has the best equipment has a huge advantage. At the elite level, a small edge makes all the difference.

And then we watched "The Other F Word". The movie about being a punk rock dad.

We needed to be cleansed after "Senna". Ayrton's so alive in the movie, yet so dead in real life.

Not quite as watchable, I wish wannabes could see "The Other F Word". Because I've yet to see a film that depicts the tedium of the road so well.

Here's the story. They were rebels living in SoCal beach towns. They played punk music not for tomorrow, but today. No one even believed there would be a tomorrow. And so many punk musicians never did make it.

But those who did...

Normalized. To a degree. They got married. Had kids.

And now, to support their families, they've got to go on the road, hundreds of days a year. Not because they love it, but because they have to pay the bills.

One of the great scenes is when Jim Lindberg says you've got to hold your tongue. You're in some far-flung town and you've got to be nice to the audience when really all you're doing is counting the days until you can get back home, you're wasted, you're pissed, using drugs just to get by.

Lindberg's choice is Ambien. Yup, sleeping on the road is impossible. First of all, you're in a bus with not only the band, but the crew, it smells like a locker room. And when you check into a hotel, it's not the Four Seasons, but the Comfort Inn, it's barely habitable and the food makes you yearn for home cooking.

You've got an audience that will support you, but you've got to satiate it to stay alive.

Although they're tattooed and pierced, they're just like you. Maybe worse off. These tend to be blue collar gentlemen. If they're not playing music, they're...working in a print shop, as one ex-member of Black Flag is doing.

Somehow, as a result of the burgeoning classic rock scene and then the MTV explosion there's a conception that playing music means you're rich, that it's a 24/7 party, that the highest and best occupation is playing music.

That's wrong. That's all it is, playing music. You've got to love it, otherwise it's tedious. Not only do you miss out on normal life, taking your kids to school, being there for their birthdays and Halloween, you've got to endure the endless road, arguing with your bandmates and wasting the 23 hours a day you're not on stage. It's some weird bizarro world, where not only do you not get to do what you want, but most of what you do do is positively awful.

Now if you're in your twenties, if you're just out of the house, the road is an adventure. But it gets old real quick.

Everyone in music complains that they just can't make money like they used to, that the Internet and the public have screwed them. But no matter how much money they pay you, going on the road becomes an endless repetitious tunnel. The only saving grace is the music. And if you're lucky, the money.

It's like God hit a giant reset button. It's like someone flipped the Monopoly board. We're starting all over, building up from the ground. And if you don't need it, it doesn't pay to do it.

hip hop sprite commercial

I thought I would post a link for one of the Sprite commercials from the 90's that use hip-hop to sell its product. It's interesting though because the rap artists featured are not really commercial artists. Here's the link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgZCuYqZwA0

Parkour

This weekend my roommate showed me this video of Parkour. I recall my cousin showing me this video of his extremely agile friend hopping, flipping, and running; he was doing tricks that seemed impossible to me. After visiting youtube, I realized how much this phenomenon has really taken off and has evolved into its own youth subculture. Unlike many subcultures, in which ideals and clothing style define membership, these members have to be in amazing physical shape and be willing to perform feats that seemingly defy gravitational boundaries. I watch these videos in amazement, wondering how an initial interest in this type of act was formed. How do you practice this without the fear of injury or death? It may just be the fact that I am firmly aware of my physical limits and realize that participation in this subculture would literally be the death of me. Below I've posted a link on this phenomenon: Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEeqHj3Nj2c