Hip-Hop's Influence On African-American Culture

Words: 989
Pages: 4
Open Document
Boomboxes, breakdancing, and bumptious young guys with bling. Dig deeper and you’ll discover there’s more to just the materialistic objects: beatboxing, sampling, and juggling beats on turntables, followed by layers upon layers of sound, rhyme and free floating verse- this is what hip-hop stood for. It was a cool underground movement of groundbreaking music and self expression that blossomed from the African American community in the 1970s, and distinctly marked its diversification in the late 1980s. Today, it was become a highly influential style of music that has been majorly commercialized and popularized across the world. And personally? I think that it has lost much of it’s original value. Hip-hop is considered to be a dying trend because …show more content…
This politically argumentative and highly influential album focused on topics such as self-empowerment for African Americans, criticism against white supremacy, and challenged the extortions that the music industry withheld during it’s time. In one of their songs listed, "Caught, Can We Get a Witness?" Public Enemy vocally addresses the issue of sampling music in the hip hop industry and copyright violation from a standpoint that supports the practice and claims ownership due to, "black ownership of the sounds in the first place" (Eglash p. 31). Chuck D’s influential hip hop style of rap that intertwines between dynamic dance funk and authoritative cultural assertion also reveals itself in, “Night of The Living Baseheads”, where the lyrics deal with the serious effects of crack cocaine in the African-American communities during the 1980s, “Sniffin', riffin' / And brothers try to get swift an' / Sell to their own, rob a home / While some shrivel to bone”. As Public Enemy produced several other noteworthy hits that shed light on the struggles of the black community such as, “Don’t believe the Hype” and “Bring the Noise” the overall theme of It Takes A Nation of …show more content…
Much like public enemy they exploited the truth behind the the alarming lifestyle for Blacks areas of Compton, California, and South Central Los Angeles. But as Public Enemy neglected to use lyrics that displayed extreme language and sexual context, N.W.A. did just the opposite. Straight Outta Compton was stuffed full of lyrics concerning the gangster lifestyle and the violence and profanity that came along with it. Often critiqued as preacher-provoking and mother-maddening, it was simply reality! And N.W.A wasn’t sugar coating it for the public ear, which enticed listeners to hear more. In their song, “Fuck Tha Police”, rappers Bone Thugs-n-Harmony highlight the tensions between black urban youth and the police through fast paced rap and multiple sampling, “Fuck tha police comin straight from the underground / A young nigga got it bad cause I'm brown / And not the other color so police think / they have the authority to kill a minority.” N.W.A. enforced the idea of every man for himself, a different concept from Public Enemy, but still clearly highlighted the idea of self expression, just as they state in their song, “Express Yourself”, “But you know it ain't all about wealth / As long as you make a note to / Express
Show More

Related Documents: Hip-Hop's Influence On African-American Culture

paper2 12 10

Parham African American Literature 12 December 2014 Hip Hop Then Vs. Hip Hop Now Hip-Hop has changed tremendously since the earlier years when it first started and emerged on the scene. Since hip-hop’s origins during the mid ‘70’s it has expanded from a small urban arts to a multibillion dollar a year production. Hip hop comes from many categories of different music, for example; funk, soul, rhythm and blues, jazz, heavy metal, reggae, pop, salsa, disco, techno, etc…and now hip hop’s is the…

Words 1410 - Pages 6

Hip Hop Research Paper

Abstract This research paper examines the hip-hop subculture, following its beginnings, examining its development, and assessing its social effects. In addition to conducting interviews with three people who have contributed to this sector, I also looked through credible materials, such as books, scholarly publications, and trustworthy websites. This essay seeks to thoroughly understand hip-hop as a cultural phenomenon. History of Hip-hop Hip-hop is more than a musical genre; from…

Words 1178 - Pages 5

Hip Dance Research Paper

Hip-hop Dramatically Changed the Idea of the Consumer into an Active Producer of Culture. Music genre varies from alternative, jazz, blues, rock, and punk to hip-hop. Hip-hop culture is widely known in conjunction with the existence of African American working-class people. It was emerged in mid 1970’s in New York when rock and alternative music genre dominantly popular in the USA. However, Its popularity rose around a decade later not only from the music, but also from the contribution of movies…

Words 1933 - Pages 8

Essay on The Golden Era of East Coast Hip-Hop

era of east coast hip-hop This piece will demonstrate an understanding of the golden era of East coast hip-hop, from 1986 to 1993, focusing and analysing the historical roots, influences and inspirational individuals, giving reference to musical examples that shaped East coast hip-hop. Attention will also be centred on the legacy left, concentrating on the music that was influenced as well as the resulting change in fashion and political views. Historical roots & influence The East coast…

Words 2057 - Pages 9

Hip Hop Shaped American Culture

The Hip Hop culture emerged in the 1970s and served as a way for individuals to flee their misfortunes. With the influence of American culture, politics, and economics from the 1960s to the 1990s, Hip Hop was shaped into a tool for social commentary instead of entertainment. Thus, the complicated truths in the world began to unfold through Hip Hop music. Today, Hip Hop is an artistic and cultural movement that has the power to influence American culture, politics, and economics. This essay will examine…

Words 971 - Pages 4

MUS 407 TERM PAPER ADDISON KOGAMI

Frederick Lau Music 407 23 June 2014 Hip-Hop Music This research paper will be discussing the origins and development of hip-hop music, some of the characteristics that define hip-hop as a musical genre, and the social significance of hip-hop from its creation up until current day. The purpose of this paper is to inform and enhance the understanding of hip-hop music, drawing connections between musical stylistic origins and social influence throughout history on hip-hop music to create an unbiased,…

Words 2675 - Pages 11

Hip Hop History

The History of Hip Hop The first time I heard hip hop was when I was in 6th grade. I was grounded, sitting in my room with my little portable radio sitting on my window sill, and I was listening to (at the time) my favorite station, KSHE 95 and I hit a block of commercials and all of my other favorite stations were on breaks too, so I started scanning, and I hit 100.3, they were in the middle of their throw back block, that’s when I heard the all too familiar intro to the Notorious B.I.G.’s Juicy…

Words 1540 - Pages 7

Essay about Macklamore and Rap

definition is different. Rap to me is a special type of music, combining hip- hop and poetry. When used in the correct way, it is a beautiful phenomenon (ex. When Maclemore does it). It can have a beat, not have one, do a bunch of things at once, etc. It could be about anything really. I love it, but I hate when other rappers ruin it. Anyway, let’s move on. The roots of hip hop are found in African-American music and ultimately African music. The “griots” of West Africa are a group of traveling singers…

Words 871 - Pages 4

Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers: The Story Of Success

Culture Uplifts Us The definition of success can vary from one individual to the next. For instance, a student may view success as receiving a scholarship to attend an Ivy League school, such as Harvard or Yale. To a mother, success may be living to see her child become an influential member of society. Thus, success is the accomplishment of a goal, regardless of its complexity. Once attained, success elicits feelings of completion and happiness. But how can someone reach his or her destination…

Words 1483 - Pages 6

Essay about Collaboration Potential and Hurdles of Greater Collaboration Between China and India

Hip-hop is a cultural movement best known for its impact on music in the form of the musical genre of the same name. It has its origins in the Bronx, in New York City, during the 1970s, mostly among African Americans but with some influence from the Latin American population of the area as well. The culture has gone from being a relatively underground style to being a major style throughout the world, and it has been commercialized and popularized, especially in the United States. Hip-hop music incorporates…

Words 5684 - Pages 23