Originally Posted by spaceygal:
“That's one of the main things I can't stand about rap/hip hop, the glorification of violence, guns, gang culture. The misogyny, sexism and homophobia in so much of it over the years and the use of words like pimp, ho and thug as if they're something good. I wouldn't put Grandmaster Flash's The Message in that category though. The lyrics to me are more a condemnation of violence, not glorifying it: "It's like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder how I keep from going under." I like rap/hip hop with positive messages, The Black Eyed Peas' Where Is The Love being one of the most amazing songs ever, imo. De La Soul were good too. I love the rhythms, the beats of old school rap, I just can't stand the glorification of thug/gun culture in so many (not saying all) of the songs.”
Does music reflect something about the society or the community it comes from? There are people in society who do actually glorify violence, gang culture etc. It would be naive to think otherwise. But yes why that became the dominant narrative in Rap/Hip Hop is unfortunate. However, the anti-establishment stance of Public Enemy and NWA seems as relevant now though as it did in the 80s/90s. I must admit that 'The Message' is a truly brilliant synthesis of African Ameican experience and European electronic music. I wore out at least two vinyl copies and I still play it to this day. Perhaps it could have been even more influential than it has been.
Originally Posted by barbeler:
“Most of it's just bad rhymes (I won't call it poetry) chanted to cliched rhythms that are more conservative in their nature than the oldest of those finger-in-one-ear, traditional folk songs and sea shanties. It's a noise produced by mindless thugs, produced for juvenile inadequates who think that driving round a car park with sweary stuff coming out of their open car windows makes them look hard. It's for silly little white boys from places like Carshalton, who pretend to have grown up with a Jamaican accent.”
There are many modern poems that still follow traditional forms, does that make them all cliched? I don't listen to as much rap/hip hop as I used to but I do listen to Roger McGough's Poetry Please on Radio 4 a lot and I find much modern poetry quite traditional in form but often extremely satirical, irreverent and witty at times.
Whilst your humorous description of white rap boys is on point I wonder how relevant that is to young black boys from the Deep South of the USA? I wouldn't presume to know why or how they choose to articulate how they feel about the world.