cross pollination

I read a blog post about how BET and rap is turning into a minstrel show, the line that stuck out to me was "I want us to take personal accountability for how we are seen and depicted". I feel like this is a very true concept and that hip-hop fans of all races and especially African-American need to accountable. The change in the sound and appearance of hip-hop wouldn't be possible without cooperation from the African-American community. This is because hip-hop artists are primarily African-American and it is widely known that many people make assumptions about black people based on what is seen on television stations like BET, MTV and VH1. However, unlike other stations, BET is Black Entertainment Television, therefore the aim is to televise black culture. But hip-hop is a genre that isn't limited to race. I am glad to say, hip-hop is a music genre that everyone can enjoy, partake in and relate to their personal lives. That is why the disintegration of hip-hop and rap is more than just a racial issue, it is about preserving a genre and producing music that has substance. Unlike other styles of music, hip-hop is primarily about conveying emotion about personal experiences. Currently, rap music is filled with simplistic song about drugs, money and sex. Recently there has been a wave of songs that create new dances, but they tell nothing about the personal experiences of the "musician". The art of storytelling has definitely been lost in mainstream rap, but many underground artists are keeping it alive and cater to an audience that appreciates thoughtful lyrics, truthfullness, the ability to show vulnerability and amazing beats.

This evolution of rap music has created new subgroup of rap that is targeted to an alternative audience. Artists like Brokencyde and MikeyWhiskeyHands have the traditional look of a pop/rock or hardcore group except they also rap and wear fitted caps and chains. The catchy lyrics are about sex, money, alcohol, guns, and other material things like typical gangster rap music. The music is created for a myspace generation that has rock artists that have looks that easily distinguishes the type of music they produced due to the practice of perfecting your image via pictures on myspace. This also creates artists that play shows along with alternative and hardcore bands based on their image rather than the genre of their music. These types of artists have never been seen doing traditional hip-hop activities like freestyling or battling. Also unlike real gangsta rappers, these new school "scene kid rappers" don't associate themselves with dangerous criminals or partaking in the criminal activities they rap about. This allows for the same escapism suburban white youth sought in mainstream rap music. Not all of this music is bad, but it definitely proves how much rap has been ingrained into American culture that is now supersedes race. However when rap turns into ignorance its still negativity. When rap first started, I was explained gang life, but it had a realness that is rare to see nowadays.

Luckily, I can't group all rappers in this category, rappers like The Knux and Bobby Ray (or B.O.B) who actually began their career playing guitars during their set and add authentic elements of alternative music to hip-hop music. Also artists like Kid Cudi, Pharrell, Kanye West, XV, Team Robot, Vyle and Alex Ludovico have shown that they have musical interests outside the sound of rap music. These are the type of rappers who are influenced by classic hip-hop but have the ability to perform a huge festivals like Lollapalooza, SXSW and Cochella as one of the only hip-hop acts to a crowd that mainly listens to indie music.