Hip-hop scholarly notes - Case Study Example

number 15 January Pick up and discuss three things from chapters 5, 6 and 7 of the book Hip Hop Wars written by Tricia RoseNameInstructors nameCourse number15 January 2015Pick up and discuss three things from chapters 5, 6 and 7 of the book Hip Hop Wars written by Tricia Rose Hip hop is one of the most controversial music genres of all times. Hip hop critics claim that it cultivates bad taste among youngsters, is too obsessed with violent narrative, and exploits explicit content and sexist ideas abundantly.

Some hip hop defenders, on the other hand, do not agree and accuse hip hop critics of simple-minded approach. Others insist that being incorporated into music industry commercial hip hop just caters to the public demand. Thus, it is not a source of the problem but rather an indicator that society is unwell. In this short essay I will try to find out if sexism has anything to do with hip hop at all, analyze what things hip hop artists tend to accentuate in their lyrics and, finally, touch upon the issues of responsibility of hip hop artists for what they do.

There is no doubt that sexism, which is typically more of a discrimination against women, is degrading. Unfortunately, there is ample evidence that sexist ideas are being exploited by hip hop artists to a certain extent. The harsh truth is that hip hop is mainly focused on sexist ideas because it sells well. And this, in turn, involves another issue, namely, the things that mainstream culture tolerates and things it rejects. The question is whether disruptive content is a problem of hip hop per se or simply a part of a highly commercialized music industry that is willing to accept things that may demean women, for instance (Rose 122).

On the other hand, one may assume that honest narrative of hip hop lyrics, which may turn to sexist motifs from time to time, is actually about freedom of expression that allows reflecting a real state of things within our society. In fact, hip hop relies heavily on sexism as one of its topics. Yet at the same time, it might as well help young people focus on the problem and realize how to deal with it in reality. According to Rose, it is much easier to fight sexist ideas in hip hop than tackling sexist culture as a whole (150).

In order to solve a problem one needs to identify it first, and hip hop serves this educative function pretty well. Obviously, hip hop is rather a consequence than a source of the problem here. Hip hop is, probably, the only popular music genre where autobiographical nature of lyrics prevails and is valued for (137). In their lyrics hip hop artists try to touch upon things they have been through themselves; in fact, hip hop is often perceived as an opportunity to speak up about the aspects of urban life that other music genres traditionally pay little attention to or none at all.

Bad social conditions, sexism, racial inequality and horrible grip that street life has on youth remain the most accentuated trends in hip hop lyrics to date. At the same time, it must be duly noted that commercial hip hop is pretty different from its underground variations that tend to rely on a wider range of topics. Yet, the freedom of expression that hip hop artists often brag about should not cause a vacuum of responsibility. The thing is that commercially acclaimed hip hop artists like 50 Cents or T. I., who rap about the hardships of street life, are leading or used to lead criminal life themselves.

And this fact allows them to enjoy more commercial success as compared to those who rap about things they have not experienced in real life (137). Unfortunately, this trend might have a huge destructive power in the long run as young people often perceive hip hop artists as a role model. This brings us to one of the biggest challenges that hip hop artists have to face in their career, which is coming up with sincere lyrics on the burning issues of our society without promoting a self-destructive behavior among youth and making criminal lifestyle sacral at the same time.

Work CitedRose, Tricia. Hip Hop Wars. New York: Basic Books, 2008. Print.