Hip-Hop as an Integral Part of African- American Culture - Essay Example

Hip-Hop as an Integral Part of African- American Culture Introduction African American music has a great history rooted in the brutal treatment of slaves during shipment from West Africa back in the 1600s. The basic form of the music was a simple rhythm characterize by beating of rudimentary drums and other simple percussion instruments. In Africa, music and associated rhythms were the common daily lives of people and were incorporated in the music. Music was very important in the traditional African culture. The African American music shares many similarities to African music where it was rooted in the sense that it reflects the cultures and the ways of life of the African-American community. There is a wide range of African-American music for instance gospel, jazz, blues, soul and hip-hop. However, hip-hop is the most important music genre that has greatly influenced the culture and identity of the African American people. To the African American people hip-hop is encompasses more than music to include other components such as language, clothing and way of life. African Americans use hip-hop to express black culture and identity in society. To the African American community, hip-hop is part of the black identity and culture. History of hip-hop Hip-Hop originated in the African-American community in the late 1970s as a form of music as well as an artistic culture in New York City. The late 1970’s was an important time in the history of the African American people as it marked a period when both the black middle and working classes were struggling to move out of poverty. Hip-Hop originated from other traditional forms of African American music such as jazz, soul and gospel. It was created by African Americans like Herc who were working and had the ability to create a form of music and culture that expressed and shaped the culture of black people in New York City in the 1970s. However, since development of hip-hop culture the society associated hip-hop with negative messages from the American urban streets such as drugs, violence and crime. Hip-hop's representation in the media and the society is contrary to the original purpose that was to offer black people a forum to express personal feelings in an artistic and rhythmic manner (Reese par. 5). Hip-Hop culture The different elements of hip-hop culture provide avenues and creative outlets through which African American people can practice and express the black culture. Most people use hip-hop to express their political and emotional feelings to the rest of the world. There are four forms of hip-hop namely, emceeing (rap music), turntablism, Graffiti art, and breaking. All the four elements of hip-hop culture are important to the African American people because they represent different manifestations of the culture. As the hip-hop is growing and flourishing globally, the four elements of hip-hop are central in providing stability, identity and coherence to the African American culture. Turntablism involves manipulation of sounds and creating music that appeals to an audience. People use this element of hip-hop culture to express their skills and creativity regarding music. Emceeing is an element of hip-hop that involves chanting rhythmic lyrics. It is a form of spoken poetry that people use to express their inner feelings, emotions and identity. Emceeing is a common form of expression with roots from an ancient African culture. African American culture borrowed emceeing from the African culture as a form of expression for the African people. Graffiti became popular as a form of expression among the African American people in the 1960's because it was used by political activists to express their political views. Graffiti art is a strong component of the hip-hop culture. Among the African American people, graffiti is a visual and artistic expression of rap music. The fact that graffiti enables an individual to use art to express identity and personal views makes it an important component of African American culture. Today, graffiti increases its significance in the art world as an important art genre. However, graffiti remains one of the best ways through which the African American people express their feelings especially political views. Breaking (break dancing) is the other important element of hip-hop that expresses the African American culture. Breaking is an important nonverbal form of communication uses in most occasions for physical expression. The four elements of hip-hop culture are strongly related to the culture of the American people. Hip-Hop and the African-American culture Most African-American people especially the youths use hip-hop to express traditional cultural identity and cultural capital. Hip-Hop and rap music originated at a time when the African-American community was struggling to come out of poverty. During this time, hip-hop emerged as an important component of the black identity. The black identity present in hip-hop included economic restructuring and a resurgence of racism. The evolution of Hip-Hop and rap music in cities such as New York gave hope and recognition to the African American people most of who were struggling with obsolete jobs and vocational training (Clay 1348). Hip-Hop was used as a tool to create awareness of the values and virtues in society. In a society filled with the influx of drugs and other social injustices, hip-hop culture was used as a tool to speak to the African American community about the importance of abstaining from drug abuse and economic empowerment. Hip-Hop gave the African American people an opportunity to express their personal experiences and identities to the rest of the world. Hip-hop was important in the culture of the African American people because it offered a form of freedom to youths struggling to find their identities. Hip-Hop reflected the African American culture and identity and offered a voice to the African American people. Significance of hip-hop in African American society Much of the current significance of hip-hop among the African Americans comes from African oral tradition and the relationship with black oral historians and political advocacy. The importance of hip-hop in the African American society also stems from the functions of its predecessors, the African American rhyming games. The rhyming games acted as forms of resistance systems for oppression and slavery. The games allowed the African American slaves to scrutinize and pass their messages to the white masters (Blanchard par. 8). Hip-Hop is significant for the African American community and the black racial identity. Though the hip-hop culture is expanding across the world and gaining popularity among all races, it remains closely associated with the African American community. The African American people used hip-hop to create awareness on social injustices in the society. The values, attitudes, and activism embedded in hip-hop emphasize on the importance of social justice and the ability to promote the needs of the underprivileged in the society. Hip-Hop originated among the African American people situated in the poorest and most neglected neighborhoods. People in these areas used hip-hop to express personal grievances and fight for the freedoms and social rights. As such, hip-hop remains an integral part of the African-American people because it reminds these people of the struggles for freedom and human rights. For many years, the Africa American community has been using hip-hop as a political tool. Hip-Hop texts and culture are related to identity politics by many people in the African-American community. Hip-hop also involves specific issues in the politics of a particular community. Many participants within the African American community and hip-hop culture emphasize on the traditional role of hip-hop music and culture in promoting voting and communicating other political agendas. Hip-Hop culture offers a platform through which the voice of the marginalized persons can be heard by the world. Hip-hop gives voice to the interests of Black Americans who suffer oppression and injustices in the world filled with racism and other forms of discrimination. In this context, hip-hop culture particularly hip-hop music describes and contest racism and its effects in the society. It also offers a positively defined form of blackness to the African American people. It contributes not only to the individual black identity of its participants but also to the overall identity of the African American community and culture (Bartlett 401). Hip-Hop plays a crucial role in developing black pride among the African American community by promoting the specificity and beauty of the black people. Hip-Hop music is related to the African American culture because it borrows the traditional ways of African storytelling characterized by boasting and toasting. In addition to the fact that early hip-hop music was escapist, focused on dancing and rapping, other social and political themes that identified the African American community became eminent. Hip-Hop is increasingly influential in determining African American youth subculture. The role of hip-hop in the youth subculture is evident in the fashions and hairstyles won by an African American youth. According to Baxter and marina (99), hip-hop provides an alternative ideology and path to identity and social status to the African American youths. Hip-Hop also combines fashion, music and creativity to confront a dominant culture that limits these youths a life of poverty and crime. Conclusion There has been a strong relationship between hip-hop and the African American culture. From its origins hip-hop in the poor American urban neighborhoods, hip-hop acted as a channel for African Americans to voice concerns regarding oppression and other injustices. Hip-Hop culture is popular among the African American community because it allows these people to communicate their political and social views to the world. The various elements of hip-hop all combine to express black culture and identity. Hip-Hop gives the African American community especially the youth subculture a sense of belonging to their roots, culture and identity. Hip-Hop offers a special feeling of “blackness” among the African American community by developing black pride and social identity to these people. Therefore, it is impossible to separate hip-hop and the African American culture. Hip-Hop is African American in all aspects. The origins, characteristics, elements, and significance of hip-hop all portray the beauty and value of the African American culture. Works Cited Bartlett, Andrew. "Air shifts, Loudspeakers, and the Hip Hop Sample: Contexts and African Amerian Musical Aesthetics." Murray, Forman and Antony, Neal. Mark. That's the Joint: The Hip-Hop Studies Reader. New York: Routledge, 2004. 393-406. Baxter, Kenneth and Peter Marina. "Cultural meaning and hip-hop fashion in the African-American male youth subculture of New Orleans." Journal of Youth Studies,Vol. 11., No. 2 (2008): 93-113. Blanchard, Becky. "The Social Significance of Rap & Hip-Hop Culture." 1999. Clay, Andreana. "Keeping it Rea: Black Youth, Hip-Hop Culture, and Black Identityl." American Behavioral Scientist, 46 (2003): 1346-1358. Reese, Renford. "From the Fringe: The Hiphop Culture and the Ethnic Relations." Popular Culture Review, Vol. XI, No. 2 (2000). Read More