I said a hippity hop

For this blogpost chosen to discuss rap music as a hegemonic ideological critique:

Hip-hop music first gained mass popularity in the late 1980’s and since then, it has evolved its style, method, and message into what we call Rap music today. The original intention of hip-hop music was a to lash out against the establishment in an effort to give a voice to the African-American youth culture. Songs such as, “The Message,” written by Grandmaster Flash represented a longing for change in society. “The Message” represents a struggle going on between criminal activity and danger on the streets and the longing for peace and opportunity. The opening line to the song reads, “It’s like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder how I keep from going under.”

            Grandmaster Flash’s ideological “message” is basically exemplifying a meaning that helps define and explain a common perception of the world and makes value judgments about that world. Society is a jungle and the individual African-American is surrounded by predators. The simple fact of the matter is that reality is subjective, and although Mr. Flash is referring to the class struggles that exist in the dangerous neighborhoods or “the hoods” of New York City and Las Angeles, his lyrics are subject to interpretation and, as a result, transcend the cultural barrier granting Mr. Flash with social and ideological credibility affirming hip-hop’s hegemonic ideology of the time.

            The reason I have been discussing this topic of hip-hop of the past is because, as my professors have explained, we can be unaware of the ideological positions of contemporary media and it’s effect on our lives and worldview. It is easier to recognize ideological media content by looking at older media.

            Contemporary rap music presents a vastly different ideological critique of society. At some point in the mid to late 1990’s the style, method, and message of hip-hop was altered, transforming the genre into rap music. What was so different? To start, the beats became a bit more creative and played on different time signatures. The main difference however, was that rap had been taken off of the streets and placed into the riches. Unlike Grandmaster Flash who presented himself as a man from the streets appealing to others alike, now we have Jay-Z, who writes about being on top and the money and women that come with his success. The song, “99 Problems” is a song about how white culture oppresses rap music because of its crude lyrical content and discouraging forces on women. The song explains that people have problems and that Mr. Z himself has 99 problems, but “A bitch ain’t one.” He goes on to say that he attracts “Money Cash Hoes” as a result of his success in the rap business.

            The overall message of this song plays upon the degradation of woman as objects used for sex and that all they want is money. In discussing ideology, the primary question about such images is not whether or not they were realistic reflections of society, because clearly they are not, but instead the ideology examines the messages these images send about the nature of the world, how it works, and how it should be. It seems that the imagery in rap music during this current period reflects an ideology that describes beliefs about who is and who isn’t worthy of inclusion, what roles are appropriate for different groups, and what is just. This counteracts a hegemonic ideology because the masses of human society in the United States today understands that there is no numerical value that one can place on any one or group of human beings. These images are souly tools for entertainment and hopefully will never be understood as the truth.