Rap is Poetry... Hip Hop - A Way of Life!

The other day, I was inspired by a SPECial little sister to write this post:

She tweeted “Rap is poetry… Hip Hop is artistry. Please let me know if your feeling is otherwise. I’m curious”. I boldly retweeted letting her know that my feelings ARE otherwise. Between us two, there’s never a dull moment when we discuss music. There was no way I could let my fellow music consumers not be involved in our rich dialogue.

Poetry is defined as the art of rhythmical composition, written or spoken, for exciting pleasure by beautiful, imaginative or elevated thoughts. There is no doubt that rap is poetry. Whether you like it or not, you can’t discount the fact that artists around the globe put words & beats together, telling a story that we all “bop our heads” to. So yes, rap is poetry; poetry that has told stories relating to the masses.

But I do not agree with the statement that Hip Hop is artistry. Hip Hop is so much more than that. Hip Hop is an entire culture with various subdivisions (including rap) that allows our community to come together. I could not allow my little sister to limit Hip Hop to just artistry. Hip Hop is language, style, fashion, music. Hip Hop, whether some believe it or not, is a way of life.

So I blog: Rap is poetry… Hip Hop is a way of life. Please let me know if your opinion is otherwise. I’m curious

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised

Some of you know him as Gil Scott Heron. Some of you know him as a revolutionary artist and poet and some of you may even know him as the “Godfather of Rap”. Whatever you knew him as, it holds true across the board that he was a man who truly left his imprint on the world of Hip Hop. So when Friday, May 27, 2011 hit a lot of hearts around the globe were still as they heard of the passing of this phenomenal man.

Scott-Heron rose to the scenes in the ‘70s, the post-civil rights era – the moment where we were moving towards a new age but the same moment where everything was not answered from the civil rights movement. He took his artistry to another level where he discussed the social and political and what we faced as a country at the moment: racism, sexism and even classism. Although he had his own issues, crack addiction and being in jail quite a few times, he had a powerful voice that reached many.

His mark of Hip Hop will forever remain and his “revolution will not be televised”.

They Too Have Lupus

Lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease that attacks your immune system. Your immune system can’t tell the difference between foreign invaders and your body’s healthy tissues and your body begins to attack and destroy healthy tissue.

Lupus is a very serious disease that so many of us have a large connection to. Those we are close to, and even those within the industry, fight with this troubling disease. If you’re a lover of Southern Hip Hop and can’t get enough of hearing “Trick Daddy Love Da Kids”, know that the man behind this is fighting with Lupus. If the vocals of Toni Braxton can get you every time, know that she too has Lupus. And remember the man behind A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Busta Rhymes and Common??… Yes, J Dilla. He brought life to all that he produced and with his beats he formed an intangible sound. He was a musical genius that suffered from Lupus leading to his death in 2006.

A few hours ago, I walked for Lupus. Walking for my line sister, Tiearra LeGrand, and her sister who passed away two years ago from this chronic disease. And those like J Dilla, who contributed so much to the industry despite their illness. May is Lupus Awareness month and as the month closes and you sit rocking your head to the sounds of various artists, always remember those who fought and are still fighting this disease.

Super BASS

Two weeks ago I put my finishing touches on my research – Massive Attack: Nicki Minaj & Her Paramount Influence in the Male Dominated World of Hip Hop. Based on a thorough literature review, intense content analysis and an inter-textual approach it was obvious that Minaj established agency through her catchy words & creative images that allowed her to create modes of resistance.

But, about two weeks ago Minaj also released her SUPER BASS video. Although, I really like the song, I was highly displeased with the video content and the images she portrays. The moment I saw this video, I felt as though she threw away pages and pages of my research. Up until a few hours ago, I didn’t even want to publish the work anymore. But at this moment, I thank Nicki Minaj for the challenge, the BASS of her voice: telling me there’s much more work to do in searching the patriarchal sphere of Hip Hop.

Watch this video over and over and really take a LOOK at her video. Has she inhibited the voice that she created throughout her other songs? Or has she continued the work to really disrupt the male domain?

Ode to Hip Hop

Erykah Badu’s hit single “Love of My Life (Ode to Hip Hop)” was released in the summer months of 2002. As summer approaches, I could only do this song justice by writing my own ode to Hip Hop...

“This is street radio for unsung hero; ridin’ in the regal, tryin’ to stay legal… Yeah, you know how we do, we do it for the people”. Hip Hop spoke to me and while growing up I connected to this culture through its lyrical prowess; catchy beats and crazy but cool fashion. Hip Hop is meant for the people; Hip Hop is meant for me.

I grew up in a Christian-Caribbean household with a sister that’s 7 years older than me. Our father never really understood our love for the culture and he would constantly tell us “change that channel or turn that ‘rubbish’ off”. Little did my father now that we couldn’t just “switch the channel” on something that was so embedded in us; something that both him and my mother unconsciously invested in.

My sister and I would spend Saturday morning listening to HOT 97, writing down the lyrics to songs together. Whether the messages were positive or negative, we listened, wrote them down and just recited them for fun (weird, I know). At the age of five, my parents placed me in dance school and of course I enrolled in Hip Hop dance classes, moving to the beats and creating my story. “The karma of the streets is needs and takes. Sometimes, we find peace in beats and breaks”. Those dance classes gave me a sense of belonging and sense of peace, despite any crime my neighborhood was facing. I would walk into that wooden floor studio on East 92^nd Street and hear the beats of songs like “Momma Said Knock You Out” and know that I had entered my own little haven. I watched my sister get dress for school everyday wearing Perry Ellis flight jackets, timbs, cut-up jeans and plaid shirts. Once she left, I took her clothes to have the same image; the image that she replicated from those 90s videos. The daily routine in our house was Hip Hop and to my sister and I it wasn’t “rubbish”, it was just who we were. Hip Hop isn’t just a genre of music to me that so many people negatively criticize. Hip Hop was how I unconsciously grew up. As I observed the Eazy-Es and Run DMCs, I longed to be a part of that era when Hip Hop was born, but I never realized how much it was already apart of me.

Currently, we are in a more modern era of Hip Hop where some believe it has lost its way. The same love and passion I had for this global culture when I was younger has not left. At twenty-two years of age, though it has altered, Hip Hop is still very important to me. Like common so poetically said “vision realized, music affected lives”. Those Saturday mornings, dance classes, music videos and clothes I wore was such an important part of my upbringing. Although, my father didn’t like hearing the songs and seeing the videos, it affected my life; it allowed me to grow artistically and keep me heavily involved.

“Love of my life, you are my friend, love of my life, I can depend”. Erykah Badu, “Ode to Hip Hop” simply expresses what Hip Hop means to me. I look to Hip Hop socially, emotionally and academically. Listening to songs that evoke the same emotions I am feeling or playing and dancing to songs during get-togethers with friends. I did not grow up in the era of breakdancin’ outside in the park or MC battles on the streets (oh I wish I did), but I did grow up in the era where Hip Hop grew and became an international phenomenon. I couldn’t imagine my life without Hip Hop. Nas repeatedly said “save the music yall”, but I’m convinced the music saved me.

NOTORIOUS B.I.G

“Considered a fool, ‘cause I dropped out of high school. Stereotypes of a black male misunderstood, and its still all good”.

Once you hear these lyrics, you know its none other than…. NO-NO-NOTORIOUS B.I.G, a powerhouse rapper and one of the greatest this Hip Hop world has ever scene.

I grew up learning a lot from my older sister and when she introduced me to Biggie, I was hooked to Hip Hop. Sitting as a child spitting lyrics from Juicy, Hypnotize or Big Poppa (as if I even knew what the words truly meant), I connected with someone greater; someone who came from where I came from, and despite the money and fame, never forgot his foundation. Biggie placed Brooklyn on the map and we connected to the “Brooklyn way”. Whether he rapped about aspects we didn’t agree with or the change he was making for his family, no one could dispute the imprint he left.

So when March 9, 1997 hit, many people went numb. At the early age of 7, I didn’t fully understand the power of Biggie. But now, more than ever, I truly understand the depth of the NOTORIOUS B.I.G. A man, like he said, who took Hip Hop far. A man, who had so many rapping his lyrics and supporting him.

14 years ago today, Biggie passed away but he never left this world. For the rest of the day, continue to celebrate his legacy… “Cause if you don’t know, now you know”…

She's The Bestest...

This past summer, those in the Hip Hop world zeroed in on channel 54 (or whatever channel BET is for you) to watch “My Mic Sounds Nice: A Truth About Women & Hip Hop”. This was BET’s first-ever original documentary and it was time for the Hip Hop community to engage in dialogue on the ‘Female MC’ and how they largely impacted Hip Hop. BET was actually doing something right.

In the 1990s, women MCs exploded and what they had to offer wasn’t in comparison to what the male MC offered. Style, sexuality and authenticity caught our attention and we were hooked. The Lauryn Hills, Missy Elliots, Lil Kims, MC Lytes and Foxy Browns all provided some element to rap music that made many of us want to keep on listening. Whether it was MC Lyte’s lyrical prowess, Missy Elliot’s sick creativity or Lauryn Hill’s powerful & thought-provoking lyrics to educate, as consumers we couldn’t get enough. But we had reached a point where all these great female MCs were not in mainstream media and many people in the Hip Hop community began to raise questions: ‘where did the Female MC go?’

Onika Tanya Maraj, whom we all know as Nicki Minaj, came onto the Hip Hop scene during the late 2000s. Nicki was that typical young girl from Jamaica, Queens whom freestyled and had a dream. One day Lil Wayne heard her and her dream began to unravel into a reality. The BET documentary ended with Missy informing the audience that Female MCs are not going anywhere and they are still here. Nicki Minaj is a clear validation of Missy’s statement. Many people have criticized her work and whether she really contributes to Hip Hop or music as a whole.

Stay tuned every Monday as I dedicate it “Minaj Monday” where you and I can get into serious dialogue about Nicki Minaj and her success in the industry thus far.