Just last week, the hip hop community lost half of the duo Kris Kross. Chris Kelly was pronounced dead after being found unresponsive in his hotel room. The toxocoly reports are not conclusive but it is believed that his death was drug related. As I listed to the news of his passing, I reflected on the time the duo burst onto the music scene with their hit "Jump". Parents loved the music, but they were frustrated by the fact that their kids were buying into the Kris Kross phenomen and started wearing their clothes backwards. For those of you that don't know, that was their signature look. They would be arrayed in colorful outfits but they would always have them on backwards; shirts and pants. This was the beginning of the influence of hip hop on the commmunity that listened to their music. Looking back, I'm certain that parents would love it if the only influences of hip hop was the fact that their children are inspired to wear their clothes backwards. Which led me to this post. The influence of hip hop has drastically changed the mannerism of those that listen to the lyrics. The influence is not only seen in their manner of dress but their behavour as well. Many in the hip hop commmunity have rejected the origin of the sagging pants. Time and time again, it has been told that this form of dressing originated within the prison system. It was a style that was adopted by homosexual inmates as a way to let other inmates know they were open for business; so to speak. The homosexual inmates wore their pants, exposing their underwear, to let the "manly" inmates know they were available for sex. Somehow, this style of dressing transcended the prision system and has become a mantra among individuals that are unaware of the culture they are perpetuating on a daily basis.
I remember when hip hop was in it's stages of infancy. It is a constanly evolving genre. Hip hip didn't garner my attention until N.W.A. came onto the scene. I was not a fan of the New York rap scene. Maybe I was rejecting their music because most of my family was from New York and I didn't like their attitudes; therefore, I refused to accept their music. Now, that later changed when Notorius B.I.G. came onto the scene. As hip hop looks graps it's footing, the evolution is clear and the demographics of those listening to this form of "entertainment" is changing as well.
The lyrical vemom that suffuses rap had little place in black popular culture before the 1960s. The hip-hop ethos can trace its genealogy to the emergence in that decade of a black ideology that equated black strength and authentic black identity with a militantly adversarial stance toward American society. In the angry new mood, captured by Malcolm X’s upraised fist, many blacks (and many more white liberals) began to view black crime and violence as perfectly natural, even appropriate, responses to the supposed dehumanization and poverty inflicted by a racist society. Briefly, this militant spirit, embodied above all in the Black Panthers, infused black popular culture, from the plays of LeRoi Jones to “blaxploitation” movies.
It's interesting to see groups of young men aspiring to become rappers, but are not inpired enough to finish school. There are some rap artist that have made it, despite not having an education. But then there's always been exceptions to the rules. I am not trying to blam hip hop for the ills that plague many of our communities, but I think there is a direct correlation between the misgynistic lyrics of rap and the lack of respect within certain communities. There was a time when it was unheard of an underage person using profanity in the presene of an adult. Today, they blast profanity ladden songs as they drive; without any regard to the person that's within earshot. Now, that's one of the reasons why I support the noise ordinance. But the rap/hip-hop community cannot be blamed for the decay of the parental system. Parents are not being parents. Today it is normal to party with your children; to allow you children to do all manner of things within your household (drinking, cussing, fornicating, etc.) but you want people to honor and rever you on Sunday because you're a ?hristian (the ? was intentional because so many so-called Christians permit so much and condone so many un-Christian activites that it's hard to know where they stand). I am sadden by the passing of Chris Kelly and I hope that others learn from his errors. I'm also saddend by the lack of pride within certain communites. It can't all be blamed on hip hop but every one must realize, at some point, the doggereal you espouse on a daily basis, whether it's standing on the corner using excessive profanity, trashing your communities, or your lack of respect for other's when you're blasting your music, is your message to the world. So ask yourself, what message are you sending?
Just last week, the hip hop community lost half of the duo Kris Kross. Chris Kelly was pronounced dead after being found unresponsive in his hotel room. The toxocoly reports are not conclusive but it is believed that his death was drug related. As I listed to the news of his passing, I reflected on the time the duo burst onto the music scene with their hit "Jump". Parents loved the music, but they were frustrated by the fact that their kids were buying into the Kris Kross phenomen and started wearing their clothes backwards. For those of you that don't know, that was their signature look. They would be arrayed in colorful outfits but they would always have them on backwards; shirts and pants. This was the beginning of the influence of hip hop on the commmunity that listened to their music. Looking back, I'm certain that parents would love it if the only influences of hip hop was the fact that their children are inspired to wear their clothes backwards. Which led me to this post. The influence of hip hop has drastically changed the mannerism of those that listen to the lyrics. The influence is not only seen in their manner of dress but their behavour as well. Many in the hip hop commmunity have rejected the origin of the sagging pants. Time and time again, it has been told that this form of dressing originated within the prison system. It was a style that was adopted by homosexual inmates as a way to let other inmates know they were open for business; so to speak. The homosexual inmates wore their pants, exposing their underwear, to let the "manly" inmates know they were available for sex. Somehow, this style of dressing transcended the prision system and has become a mantra among individuals that are unaware of the culture they are perpetuating on a daily basis.
I remember when hip hop was in it's stages of infancy. It is a constanly evolving genre. Hip hip didn't garner my attention until N.W.A. came onto the scene. I was not a fan of the New York rap scene. Maybe I was rejecting their music because most of my family was from New York and I didn't like their attitudes; therefore, I refused to accept their music. Now, that later changed when Notorius B.I.G. came onto the scene. As hip hop looks graps it's footing, the evolution is clear and the demographics of those listening to this form of "entertainment" is changing as well.
The lyrical vemom that suffuses rap had little place in black popular culture before the 1960s. The hip-hop ethos can trace its genealogy to the emergence in that decade of a black ideology that equated black strength and authentic black identity with a militantly adversarial stance toward American society. In the angry new mood, captured by Malcolm X’s upraised fist, many blacks (and many more white liberals) began to view black crime and violence as perfectly natural, even appropriate, responses to the supposed dehumanization and poverty inflicted by a racist society. Briefly, this militant spirit, embodied above all in the Black Panthers, infused black popular culture, from the plays of LeRoi Jones to “blaxploitation” movies.
It's interesting to see groups of young men aspiring to become rappers, but are not inpired enough to finish school. There are some rap artist that have made it, despite not having an education. But then there's always been exceptions to the rules. I am not trying to blam hip hop for the ills that plague many of our communities, but I think there is a direct correlation between the misgynistic lyrics of rap and the lack of respect within certain communities. There was a time when it was unheard of an underage person using profanity in the presene of an adult. Today, they blast profanity ladden songs as they drive; without any regard to the person that's within earshot. Now, that's one of the reasons why I support the noise ordinance. But the rap/hip-hop community cannot be blamed for the decay of the parental system. Parents are not being parents. Today it is normal to party with your children; to allow you children to do all manner of things within your household (drinking, cussing, fornicating, etc.) but you want people to honor and rever you on Sunday because you're a ?hristian (the ? was intentional because so many so-called Christians permit so much and condone so many un-Christian activites that it's hard to know where they stand). I am sadden by the passing of Chris Kelly and I hope that others learn from his errors. I'm also saddend by the lack of pride within certain communites. It can't all be blamed on hip hop but every one must realize, at some point, the doggereal you espouse on a daily basis, whether it's standing on the corner using excessive profanity, trashing your communities, or your lack of respect for other's when you're blasting your music, is your message to the world. So ask yourself, what message are you sending?
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