What happened to the glory days of Hip Hop?
Marcy Fitzpatrick
Issue date: 3/19/07 Section: Entertainment
- Page 1 of 1
| |
|
In a reaction against disco, the early 1980s reverted focus back to the roots of West Africa. By incorporating beats with lyrical stylings, block parties and DJs brought about hip hop culture and spread its influence. But take a look now.
The streets of the Bronx and the burrows of New York City are no longer filled with beat boxers, break dancers and scratching. The once invigorating and influential sounds of Harlem are more distant and seldom heard. Hip hop was a genre, a style, a movement and a culture. All of that is gone now. It has been replaced.
The substitution: commercialized rap. The media has taken over what was once referred to as hip hop. Lyrics once based on daily struggles or preaching now reflect three unemotional and materialistic elements: cash, cars and hoes. The quality of hip hop is diminished. "Ghost riding the whip" and "getting crunk" are being misconstrued as a model for hip hop and in no way are these representative of what the culture used to be or was ever intended on becoming.
Those who claim to be hip hop artists (this includes Lil' Wayne, Young Buck, Paul Wall…I think you can finish the rest of the list) are found in their videos weighed down by 10 pounds of gold around their necks (and in their mouths), are represented by drinking in the clubs, dancing with crowds of women and being surrounded by expensive cars. When did this become hip hop? When did a "grill" and a "white-T" become the hip hop attire? The loss of heart behind the music has led to the disintegration of the culture. With the strict desire to make the "C.R.E.A.M", artists have lost touch for what hip hop truly is.
So what do we do? Can we save this dying culture? Unfortunately, the answer may be "no." It seems that commercialized rap has left hip hop roots in the dust of it's 22-inch rims. Emerging artists in the industry no longer seem to strive for sending a message through their music and expressing themselves.
Past popular artists including A Tribe Called Quest, Kurtis Blow and Hieroglyphics are being overlooked by this commercialized rap and with the media's focus where it is now, and with the changes of the culture itself, it seems that there is no hope for gathering the remnants of hip hop.
In Nas' hit single "Hip Hop is Dead," he voices his opinion on what has become of the industry and the disgrace and disappointment it has caused: "Everybody sound the same, commercialize the game / Reminiscin' when it wasn't all business / Went from turntables to mp3s / From "Beat Street" to commercials on Mickey D's / From gold cables to Jacobs / From plain facials to Botox and face lifts."
It is clear that hip hop and rap have lost touch with their roots. What emcees strived so hard to build-up in a culture is deteriorating. Blame can be placed on the fans, the media or on the loss of old-school trends. Placing blame doesn't change the culture that we lost.
Every time we tune into MTV we are bombarded with commercialized rappers. Every time we turn on the radio, previous classic hip hop stations are now credited with playing abrasive lyrics with no emotive content. Every time a new song comes out, an old sample has been taken and the DJ is even closer to elimination.
There is still good hip hop out there, but it is not being heard. Underground artists including Defari, Afu-Ra and Atmosphere are striving to re-build this culture with meaningful lyrics conveying a message and with beats that take us back to the days in the Bronx. However, they are getting buried by the commercialization and it doesn't look like we can bring them back to the surface.
Hip hop is dead and gone. Unfortunately, unaware to many, we are all attending this funeral of the hip hop culture. This memorial is going to be a long one.