I Am Not My Hair Song Analysis and Application of Afrocentric Method - Case Study Example

I am not my hair Song analysis Introduction The term Afrocentricity refers to a paradigm founded on the notion that for African people to gain sanity they must re assert a sense of agency. The concept was first discussed through the social change theory. Later Molefi Asante published a book with the same title. Afro centricity is recognizing the ideals of Africans and making them the focal points of analyses that involve the culture of African people. Molefi Asante (1998 pg 17) in his book “The Afrocentric Idea” says it is a way through which African Americans can get in touch with Africa. This is meant to give them some pride in their race and for development self esteem. The concept presents a revolution in the way of thinking that seeks to bring about adjustments in the lack of agency, decenteredness and disorientation among the black people. Black people have sought to express this idea through many ways including art and speech Molefi (1998). Music is one such way that has been employed by many black people to reassert their self identity, self worth and value. It has also been used a vehicle through which Africans express themselves and carry their culture from one generation to the next. This paper presents an analysis of the song ‘I am not my Hair’ by India Arie and Akon. The analysis is carried out with the Afrocentric idea and method as the principal focal point Molefi (2003). The song ‘I am not my hair’ talks about black people and how they ought to look like. Akon and India’s composition uses the hair and skin in the song to redefine what Africans should be and look like. Akon sings about the things he has tries to do with his hair in order to make it more presentable and acceptable to people. He sings of the styles he made on his head but he went flat because he has always been a black person and his hair being that of an African could not look better with those strange hair styles. The African people have been made to think that they are not good looking and attractive in their color and culture. Slavery and colonization were two major historical happenings that did much to destroy the African society. As a result the culture of African people was infiltrated by strange teachings which tore through it. Those carried into slavery were stripped of their culture and in the process lost their identity Howe (1998). Many stereotypes have in the course of time been created to destroy the confidence and self esteem of the African man and woman. Consequently black people have had a rough time trying to assert themselves as capable human being with no deficiency despite their history, race and skin color. Akon and India seem to be addressing the issue of loss of self identity, self worth and self esteem in the African person (Arie, Akon 2006)They present a person with a lot of discontentment about his hair and dark skin. This is the story for many Africans especially African Americans who live in a country dominated by the white people and their culture . The song brings out the idea that the black person is better off in his natural look and appearance. Making dreadlocks on his head made the singer fail to get a job. This was in spite of the fact that he had done some crazy hair style that could win him favor in the eyes of ladies. Seeking to be appreciated created for him another problem of joblessness (Howe 1998).Lack of employment according to him has forced others into stealing and robbery. Success came to him when he decided to shave the whole of his head. At this he possibly got job and the ladies he was looking for. This song presents a poetic way of reaffirming the value and worth of the African people and culture. It is not the borrowed cultural practices or the hair styles and dressing styles that gave black people value(Ronald and Elain 2003).Their original form and appearance has the potential to give them victory and success in everything without seeking to ape the white people. Shaving the head for instance could bring back the original identity of the black person as seen in the song and give him whatever he wants if only he can believe in himself . India in her part sings of the hair styles she had such as relaxer, press and curl and jheri curl all which made people laugh at her. She says that her peace came when she decided to do what she thought was best to make her the woman she is on the inside. She is not her hair neither is she her skin. The value and description of the African person cannot be ascertained by looking at the outside image. The hair and skin do not present a true reflection of he person who is inside. What India is seeking to emphasize is that the African woman is beautiful not from what she looks like but what she is in the inside Howe (1998). Putting on another image may create a different impression but fails to define the real person. The natural look of he black person should be the ideal since it the best form the African can take. Trying to ape other people is the reason for the loss of African culture, identity and self esteem. India reinforces the fact that the African culture is suited to nurture these things in Black people since their value is not in the skin, hair, outside looks but in the soul that is found in the inside Arie, Akon (2006). India goes on to undo the lie that for hair to be good it must have curls and waves. She says bad hair is not supposed to make one look as if they were slave. According to her, black people need to redefine who they should be. Redefining what one is to be must take Black people to their culture and the traditions of the original African. In this culture dressing and hair styles were not what is seen today in blacks who have lost their identity. Natural hair was the ideal and that is what should be upheld. However India thinks that one deserves the freedom to choose what she has to put on her head to give her self esteem and worth. She proposes the straight style by Oprah, dreadlocks by Bob Marley or shaving like the South Africans (Ronald and Elain ,2003).At the back of her mind the freedom for choice is what matters and not doing something for the sake of what others think or believe. The culture of the Black people was characterized by freedom of being themselves, asserting themselves and believing in themselves. This should be restored if the black person is to get back his identity. The value systems of the Black people have been eroded over time due to exposure from the white people. This has resulted into the Black person wanting to look like, appear and live like the white person. With the stereotypes about Africans drummed into their heads these people think the white person’s life is the best and should be emulated Howe (1998). Molefi Asante does not agree with the fact that the African has an inferior culture and that he should ape the culture of the White person (Asante 1980). The African culture is complete in itself and has enough to offer to its people to make them prosperous, successful and with self identity just like other people. The ideals found in the African culture have the capacity to make Black people lead morally upright lives that are devoid of the corruption found in other cultures Arie, Akon (2006). India says in the song that her hair style cannot determine her integrity, make her a friend nor make her a better woman. She also sings about the negative effects of trying to change one’s image such as breast cancer. Integrity, friendship, goodness cannot be cultivated by wearing different hair styles that are meant define a person. They lack the power to define or the change the inner person. Therefore according to India they are unnecessary. Baldheadedness could be better than all this. Baldheadedness defines the original black beauty and has no “side effects.” It is being elevated as a better thing to do than have other hair styles which are seemingly being presented as originally not African Arie, Akon (2006). Self esteem, respect for others, hard work, success, hospitality, generosity, love among many others are the values that define the African culture. They are supposed to be entrenched into the character of the inner person and not the external image. Identity that India talks about in the song is a central value in the African culture. Many people who have adopted foreign culture miss out on this since they have lost their identity and therefore are trying to assert themselves through appearances that do not reflect their true character. Having lost the ideals of their original culture Africans Americans on their part have found themselves in a fix. They are forced to adopt foreign values which do not work for them. Akon and India use their song to call on such people to accept themselves naturally as beautiful and complete people and live their lives without a trace of worry or embarrassment of what they look like. This will give them joy and enjoyment in being Black Arie, Akon (2006). Afrocentric method has heavily been applied in the song By India and Akon. They are seeking to reinstate the lost glory of African beauty in its natural form. They also seek to reaffirm the Black person and qualify the African culture as complete. They seem to suggest that adopting foreign practices and hair styles is not the solution to any problem that an African person can have. The solution lies in rediscovering the real identity of the Black person. The African needs to know who he really is and live accordingly without trying to meet the expectations of other people of him. Afrocentricity is the major theme of the song as the lyrics revolve around the black person discovering the value in being himself Molefi (2003) What comes out clearly from the lyrics of the song is that the original culture, image and form of the Black person is superior to anything that he can want to create or wear on himself. The original form brings success, joy, beauty, self respect and confidence. Trying to copy brings failure, ridicule and lack of self confidence. Akon and India are afrocentrics who believe that the position of the African values should not be lost since they define the real person and give him a complete successful life. The two artists focus on the African person in the song and the lifestyle that that person needs to adopt Arie, Akon (2006). In Africa and among Africans, songs are an integral part of their culture and have been used for centuries as a way of self expression, communication, entertainment, education, religion and many other ways. In the present times songs have continually occupied a central part of the African culture and lifestyle. They serve as a major way of self assertion especially among the black community in America. They are used to express emotions such as love and hate. Taking the example of the song ‘I am not my hair’ by India and Akon, we see an avenue through which they are trying to educate their fellow blacks, entertain and also assert themselves. They are undoing the long held stereotypes about Africans and their culture. Songs in the African perspective can therefore also be taken to be a vehicle through which the Black person’s culture is carried over to the next generation. They are important in keeping and nurturing culture to be passed to the younger generation Arie, Akon (2006). Conclusion In conclusion, an analysis of the song ‘I am not my hair’ has been done. This analysis was based on the Afrocentric method which seeks to centralize the African cultural ideals in the analyses. According to India and Akon the image of the African person is not defined by hair styles or the skin color. The real person is the one inside and not what people see from outside. The secret to a successful person lies in the person discovering that the original form and creation of the Black person is the ideal one and not what people think it is. One should discover what he really is in the inside and live by that and not by seeking to emulate other people. Akon and India sought to apply the Afrocentric method in their song through lifting the natural African beauty above the artificial hair styles and make up. The place of music in the African context has also been enlightened. Africans value music as a way of expression, communication and perpetuation of cultural practices. Music occupies a central place in the Black person’s culture. Music has existed for centuries and is the most visible cultural expression among the Africans since it features in many public events and religious ceremonies. References Molefi, A.  (1998). The Afrocentric idea. USA Temple University Press Molefi, A. (2003). Afrocentricity: the Theory of social Change, African American Images, New York. Ronald J. and Elain R. (2003). Understanding African American Rhetoric; London Routledge  Howe, S. (1998). Afrocentrism: mythical pasts and imagined homes. London: Verso. Arie, I. and Akon, 2006. I am not my Hair song. [video online] Available at: [Accessed 23 June 2009]. Read More