THE CHANGING LIFE STYLE OF AMERICAN YOUTHS WITH RESPECT TO HIP POP& RAP MUSIC.
Hip hop culture has come to constitute a major force in the contemporary American popular culture market, while simultaneously proliferating as an "underground" international net-work of loosely connected hip hop communities (Halifu Osumare Pg 30). “Let's take it back to the ‘70s. It was a time when Nixon scandalized a nation, women were fighting for equal rights (Arthur S. Miller), and disco was the preferred style of dance. But something else was happening on the streets of New York and California—hip-hop dance was born. The first black and Latino dancers were popping and locking on the West Coast while their East Coast counterparts, early b-boy's and b-girl's, were breaking and up-rocking. During this time Afrika Bambaataa[1], gangster turned DJ, also outlined the four elements of hip-hop as DJing, MCing, graffiti art, and breaking (Lauren Brown Feb 18, 2009). Thirty years later, we see a style of dance that has evolved so far from its humble beginnings.
According to Lauren Brown, Hip-hop dance has been able to monopolize another contemporary genre of mass media: the reality TV show. In particular, Fox's So You Think You Can Dance and MTV's America's Best Dance Crew have put hip-hop dancing out there in a big way. This essay will focus on the dominance that hip pop music has on Live TV shows. This research will cover “Americas Best Dance Crew” show, “So you think you can dance” show, and also the effects that hip pop culture brought to the American societies. The dominance of media by hip pop music has influenced society politically, socially, economically, and individually in the United States and the rest of the world.
“So You Think You Can Dance” premiered in 2005 and encourages dancers from all backgrounds, including street and hip-hop, to compete. Bringing these styles together in a competition that also features ballroom dancing, ballet, and jazz helps to legitimize hip-hop dance as a serious form of expression. The dancers on these shows are black, white, Latin, Asian and Filipino signifying just how far across cultural, social, economic, and geographical boundaries this style of dance has traveled (Lauren Brown).The final winner in “so you think you can dance” called America's favorite dancer wins an award of SUV $100,000 and also a dancing career in Celine Dion's show in Las Vegas worth $250.000. Similarly, “America's Best Dance Crew is American reality TV show featuring street dance. The show is produced by American Idol judge Randy Jackson and airs on MTV. The dancers chosen go through a thorough screening and they compete for a grand prize of $100,000. Both the shows enable youths to realize their talents and become successful individuals in the society.
Hip pop dance has raised the level self of esteem mostly dancers, listeners and the individuals who are hip pop fans. ‘It enables the dancers a sense of self expression' (Halifu Osumare pg 34). Whereby the dancers feel free to express their own ideas in society. As Halifu Osumare wrote on Pg 34, “Josiah simultaneously blended a perfected underground dance style with moves promulgated by the pop culture industry along with his personal local skills” we see that hip pop dance is the perfect way of self expression among dancers in Hawaii. Halifu further stressed that “The global reach of hip hop culture has spawned both a conscious and an unconscious cultural dialogue within societies far removed from its origins”. He gave an account of his encounter in Japan, which prove that Hip pop is rapidly spreading across the globalized world.
“When I was last in Japan, there were two kids battling. One kid came in and cut the other off before he was finished, and so they walked around in a circle looking at each other. And all of a sudden they jumped like this, boom, together, at the same time, knowing exactly what they were doing. It was the "Brooklyn rock." Do you know what a "Brooklyn rock" is? No, I can barely do it. These two kids, one from Japan, one from Hawai'i, never met each other before, got to the park not even an hour before, just started dancing, and cannot communicate [verbally] with each other. They walked in the circle, jumped at the right time together and landed at the same time together, and started Brooklyn rocking together. That is international communication. That is people of the same culture” (Halifu Pg 34) Halifu's encounter with hip pop dancers in Japan show how fast hip pop has spread to the rest of the world. Even though it originated in the United States, people in other parts of the world embrace it because they see it as a great way for them to express themselves in the society.
Furthermore, the evolution of Hip Pop music has created and increased the expression of black masculinity in main stream society. From their onset, Both Hip pop lyrics and rap lyrics challenged and broke down stereotypes that put down some group of people. Even though there were contents of violence expressed in hip pop and rap music it was more of a social revolution among the black youths and young men. The feeling of masculinity in the society makes Black youths look to hip pop music as a tool to resist self hatred of their lives in the United States where white racism against black was common as a feeling of ‘White Supremacy'. More so, hip pop is changing the smart thoughts of the youths in to strong anti racist activists. Henceforth, the youths tolerate to use the “N” word among themselves (Halifu pg 37) in schools or black neighborhoods more so; Tupac gave a distinction between Nigger and Nigga. The now commonly used Nigga refers to a black person with a golden chain around his neck (Urbandictionary.com) while Niger is the word that carries a dangerous history. It's all a result of Hip pop and Rap music that society is now tolerating to such sensitive words. Most people who say the “N” word are indeed black youths. They become free to express their thoughts through songs. As of recent, hip pop lyrics are changing, hip pop/Rap lyrics use express anger and grievances that the “youths/young men'' have about the treatment that they face in the societies in which they live. More than ever in the early 1970's and 80's hip pop and rap songs were meant to expose police brutality towards black males in city centers in the United States. “For example Ice Cube's (1991) “How to survive in south central criticizes Los Angeles Police department's treatment of African Americans” (Rachel E. Sullivan Pp 606)
As noted by Smitherman (1997), rap music has become a way for youth to voice their dissatisfaction with society employing the heritage of the Black oral tradition. Lyrics similar to those in the opening quote by Tupac, are just one way America's children, and urban Black children in particular, have chosen to articulate their anger and frustration with mainstream society (Jeanita W. Richardson, Kim A. Scott Pp 175)Unfortunately Tupac ended up a victim of the anger and open violence that he preached.
Hip pop and rap music has raised Political consciousness among the black community in the United States by exposing the acts that were perpetrated by the government in song lyrics. The political awareness came right during “the war on drugs and the criminalization of black urban youths” (George Ciccariello Pg 144). Hip pop bands and rap groups such as the Dead Prez “ allege that the U.S. government (via the CIA) has been central to the importation of crack cocaine and that the structure of laws and the economy provide a legal and financial incentive for the continued criminalization of Blacks via the war on drugs” (George Ciccariello page146). According to George Ciccariello Maher, Journal of black studies pp 144, resent studies shows 59% of Black Americans surveyed believe that it is a possible for the CIA to blame on the importation of crack aimed at destroying the black population while a quarter believe it to be truth. “This allegation is raised by Dead Prez a hip pop group in trade mark style:
didn't know drug-dealing was a government job . . .
illegal business controls America. . .
the White House is the [crack] rock house,
and Uncle Sam is the number one pusher-man……” (George C Page146-7)
This open opposition of the government through the use of the songs however shows the gangster like behavior of Dead Prez. Even though this allegation does not hold substantial truth and rationale in the minds of many people, it is important that the black community feels awakened and question the actions of the American government via the CIA.
From an economic point of view, hip pop music has greatly contributed to increase in the level of income of the artists and music record industry. Hip Pop music is now seen as a major source of generating money among youths and young men. Not only the prizes potential dancers win in the Live TV shows but a hip pop record produced artist earns substantial amount of money in sales. Hip pop Artists from Lil Wayne with to artist like Drake make millions of dollars from the sale of their song albums. These young people have become financially successful because of their Hip Pop songs. As so, many young people practice every day, rehearsing lyrics in their heads in order to produce hip pop songs. Hip pop has become an eye opener among youths in which they can develop their talents. Importantly, hip pop's acceptability by all people of all races Blacks, Latino, Asian, and White makes the music industry to experience increasing incomes despite decline in income levels of other industries.
With high incomes, hip pop artists are able to buy expensive clothes, durable jewelry and shoes. The way they dress sets them unique from the crowd. And the youths are lured to follow or copy this way of dressing. The influences hip pop on clothing among youths is significant compared to thirty years ago in the United States. As level of technology increases, artists are able to order jewelry from the factory designed in their name tags. Nowadays it is common to see a teenager moving with a long necklace written Akon, 50 cent, Tupac etc hanging from his neck. Even so, the factories make a lot of money from the sale of these necklaces. Not only do we find these hip pop related effects in the US but in other regions of the world too. The hip pop culture, which was once looked at from a racist lens has now deeply established its roots in the minds of the people and in all societies.
The dominance of the media by hip pop in the United States shows how acceptable hip pop is in the society. It has become a contemporary American culture that is spreading rapidly to other parts of the world. Even though some people argue that Hip pop is politicized to express the dissatisfaction about in the society, it has become more an entertainment than political movement. Henceforth dominating MTV's “America's Best dance Crew” and Fox's “So You Think You Can Dance”. These two shows has are some of the most popularly watched shows in the US and beyond. I watched the shows “So You Think You Can Dance” American Idol when I was in Norway, and Hungary. Beyond reasonable doubts, hippo music has shaped the lifestyle of youths in United States and the rest of the world politically socially and economically.
Work cited page
1à Osumare, Halifu. "Global Breakdancing and the Intercultural Body." Dance Research Journal 34.2 (2002): 30-45. University of Illinois Press. University of Illinois Press, Winter 2002. Web. 08 Dec. 2009. <http://www.Jstor.org/stable/1478458>.
2à needs reciting Miller, Arthur S., Donald R. McCoy, and Richard T. Ruetten. "Quest and Response: Minority Rights and the Truman Administration." Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 413 (May 1974): 214-15. Sage Publications, Inc. Web. 03 Dec. 2009. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/1040614>.
3à Brown, Lauren. "Hip to the Game - Dance World vs. Music Industry, The Battle for Hip Hop's Legacy Read more: Movmnt Magazine | Hip to the Game - The Battle for Hip Hop's Hip to the Game: Dance World vs Music Industry, The Battle for Hip Hop's Legacy Under Creative Commons License: Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike." Movmnt magazine. Movmnt Magazine, 18 Feb. 2009. Web. 03 Dec. 2009. <http://www.movmnt.com/monsters-of-hip-hop-2_003332.html#ixzz0YgOzqweH>.
4à Sullivan, Rachel E. "Rap and Race: it's got a nice beat, but what about the message?" Journal of Black Studies 33.5 (2003): 605-22. Sage Publications. May 2003. Web. 30 Nov. 2009. <http://www.Jstor.org/stable/3180978>.
5à Richardson, Jeanita W., and Kim A. Scott. "Rap Music and Its Violent Progeny: America's Culture of Violence in Context." Journal of Negro Education. 71.No.3 (Summer 2002): 175-92. Journal of Negro Education. Web. 2 Dec. 2009. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/3211235>
6à Ciccariello, George. "Brechtian Hip-Hop: Didactics and Self-Production in Post-Gangsta Political Mixtapes." Journal of Black Studies 36.No. 1 (Sep 2005): 129-60. Sage Publications, Inc. Web. 08 Dec. 2009. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/40027326>.
2à Arthur S. Miller Reviewed work(s): Quest and Response: Minority Rights and the Truman Administration by Donald R. McCoy ; Richard T. Ruetten Source: Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Vol. 413, Interest Groups in International Perspective (May, 1974), pp. 214-215 Published by: Sage Publications, Inc. in association with the American Academy of Political and Social Science Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1040614 Accessed: 03/12/2009 21:58.
[1] Afrika Bambaataa is an American DJ from the South Bronx, who was instrumental in the early development of hip hop throughout the 1980s. Afrika Bambaataa is one of the three originators of break-beat deejaying, and is respectfully known as the "Grandfather" and "Godfather" and The Amen Ra of Universal Hip Hop Culture as well as The Father of The Electro Funk Sound
