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"Is hip hop corrupting us?
24/09/2007 12:01:00 AM
by Elizabeth Bromstein
"Hip Hop culture and controversy are familiar bedfellows," says the BET website. Ain't that the truth. And more recently, it goes on to say, "in the wake of the Imus controversy, hip hop finds itself under an exceptional amount of scrutiny," which is why this week BET will examine various hot button, hip hop related issues with the three part series Hip Hop vs. America, The first part of which airs Tuesday night at 8 p.m.
Topics explored will include "hip hop's relationship with criminality and law enforcement; the image of Black women in hip hop; and the pride, embarrassment and confusion Blacks often feel over hip hop's public airing of the community's 'dirty laundry.'" An esteemed collection of panellists will square off. These include but are not limited to: Nelly, TI, Mike Jones and Chuck D; authors Karrine "Superhead" Steffans, Nelson George and Keith Boykin; NPR's Farai Chideya and BET's Kim Osorio; civil rights leaders Minister Ben Chavis and the Rev. Al Sharpton.
Oh Boy! This promises to be exciting.
You know about all the stuff that's been going on right? (I got a succinct lowdown from a Newsday article by Rafer Guzman). After the whole Don Imus "nappy headed hos" debacle (seriously, I don't know if the guy should have lost his job but how exceedingly deluded do you have to be to think that's an acceptable thing to say on the air as a white guy???), the Rev. Al Sharpton started pressuring record executives to clean up the racist and sexist language on hip-hop albums, the hip-hop station Power 105 started trying to cut down on sexist material and the NAACP even held a symbolic ceremony in Detroit to "bury" the N-word. Congressional hearings into rap music's lyrical content titled From Imus to Industry: The Business of Stereotypes and Degradation begin today.
Interestingly, as BET is getting in on the discussion it's also being cited as part of the problem. Newsday tells us that, "On Sept. 15, a Maryland-based group called the Enough is Enough! Campaign held a rally outside the Washington, D.C. home of BET chairman and chief executive Debra Lee to protest the channel's 'derogatory media images of black men and women.' The rally drew about 500 people, according to news reports, and organizers have vowed to gather every weekend until BET addresses the issue. The group's leader, the Rev. Delman Coates, said there are plans to hold similar rallies in New York."
Such a heated debate this one and a tale as old as time isn't it? The hip hop version has a different twist, with the added weight of the subject of racism, but so many of the elements are eternal. Degradation of women. The question of artists as role models.
You know what this whole thing reminds me of? The PMRC and the Filthy 15. Remember that whole thing? Maybe you forgot or maybe you're too young...
In 1985 a group of four women calling themselves the Parents Music Resource Centre (PMRC) and spearheaded by Tipper Gore made it their business to try to ban what they deemed offensive music in America and sought censorship and ratings for the music industry. The hearings were absolutely fascinating and long story short that's why we have the Parental Advisory sticker (because your parents are always record shopping with you right?)
Yes, that Gore. Twenty years ago Al Gore's wife was at the forefront of the censorship movement and her ideas were being compared to the Orwellian state depicted in 1984. Megadeth, Sonic Youth, NOFX, Rage Against the Machine, Anthrax and more took on Tipper's PMRC with a venomous vengeance. Ice T wrote in his book The Ice Opinion "Tipper Gore is the only woman I ever directly called a b*tch on any of my records, and I meant that in the most negative sense of the word."
The PMRC had a list of 15 songs they found particularly offensive, 15 songs that were the absolute worst of the worst. Check out the list. I think you might find it riveting. Your history lesson for the day.
- Prince, Darling Nikki. Why? Sex/Masturbation
-Sheena Easton, Sugar Walls. Why? Sex
- Vanity, Strap on Robbie Baby. Why? Sex
- Motley Crue, Bastard. Why? Violence
- Madonna, Dress You Up. Why? Sex
- W.A.S.P., Animal (F*ck Like a Beast) Why? Sex/Language
- Def Leppard, High n' Dry (Saturday Night). Why? Drug and alcohol use
- Mercyful Fate, Into the Coven. Why? Occult
- Judas Priest, Eat Me Alive. Why? Sex
- Mary Jane Girls, In My House. Why? Sex
- Venom, Possessed. Why? Occult
- Twisted Sister, We're not Gonna Take it. Why? Violence
- Black Sabbath, Trashed. Why? Drug and Alcohol Use
- Cyndi Lauper, She Bop. Why? Sex/Masturbation
- AC/DC, Let Me Put My Love Into You. Why? Sex
It's amazing how incredibly tame the music of the eighties seems in retrospect and in comparison to what's on the airwaves these days. Hip hop lyrics can be seriously nasty. I don't think anyone would deny that. What this means for our society and culture I wouldn't begin to guess in this small space but it'll be interesting to see how this all plays out.
BET's Hip Hop vs America airs Tuesday September 25 at 8p.m. (ET/PT) and Wednesday September 26 at 8p.m. (ET/PT). The third episode will only be available on BET.com's Bet on Blast."
http://entertainment1.sympatico.msn.ca
"BET's Hip Hop vs America airs Tuesday September 25 at 8p.m. (ET/PT) and Wednesday September 26 at 8p.m. (ET/PT). The third episode will only be available on BET.com's Bet on Blast."
"Is hip hop corrupting us?
24/09/2007 12:01:00 AM
by Elizabeth Bromstein
"Hip Hop culture and controversy are familiar bedfellows," says the BET website. Ain't that the truth. And more recently, it goes on to say, "in the wake of the Imus controversy, hip hop finds itself under an exceptional amount of scrutiny," which is why this week BET will examine various hot button, hip hop related issues with the three part series Hip Hop vs. America, The first part of which airs Tuesday night at 8 p.m.
Topics explored will include "hip hop's relationship with criminality and law enforcement; the image of Black women in hip hop; and the pride, embarrassment and confusion Blacks often feel over hip hop's public airing of the community's 'dirty laundry.'" An esteemed collection of panellists will square off. These include but are not limited to: Nelly, TI, Mike Jones and Chuck D; authors Karrine "Superhead" Steffans, Nelson George and Keith Boykin; NPR's Farai Chideya and BET's Kim Osorio; civil rights leaders Minister Ben Chavis and the Rev. Al Sharpton.
Oh Boy! This promises to be exciting.
You know about all the stuff that's been going on right? (I got a succinct lowdown from a Newsday article by Rafer Guzman). After the whole Don Imus "nappy headed hos" debacle (seriously, I don't know if the guy should have lost his job but how exceedingly deluded do you have to be to think that's an acceptable thing to say on the air as a white guy???), the Rev. Al Sharpton started pressuring record executives to clean up the racist and sexist language on hip-hop albums, the hip-hop station Power 105 started trying to cut down on sexist material and the NAACP even held a symbolic ceremony in Detroit to "bury" the N-word. Congressional hearings into rap music's lyrical content titled From Imus to Industry: The Business of Stereotypes and Degradation begin today.
Interestingly, as BET is getting in on the discussion it's also being cited as part of the problem. Newsday tells us that, "On Sept. 15, a Maryland-based group called the Enough is Enough! Campaign held a rally outside the Washington, D.C. home of BET chairman and chief executive Debra Lee to protest the channel's 'derogatory media images of black men and women.' The rally drew about 500 people, according to news reports, and organizers have vowed to gather every weekend until BET addresses the issue. The group's leader, the Rev. Delman Coates, said there are plans to hold similar rallies in New York."
Such a heated debate this one and a tale as old as time isn't it? The hip hop version has a different twist, with the added weight of the subject of racism, but so many of the elements are eternal. Degradation of women. The question of artists as role models.
You know what this whole thing reminds me of? The PMRC and the Filthy 15. Remember that whole thing? Maybe you forgot or maybe you're too young...
In 1985 a group of four women calling themselves the Parents Music Resource Centre (PMRC) and spearheaded by Tipper Gore made it their business to try to ban what they deemed offensive music in America and sought censorship and ratings for the music industry. The hearings were absolutely fascinating and long story short that's why we have the Parental Advisory sticker (because your parents are always record shopping with you right?)
Yes, that Gore. Twenty years ago Al Gore's wife was at the forefront of the censorship movement and her ideas were being compared to the Orwellian state depicted in 1984. Megadeth, Sonic Youth, NOFX, Rage Against the Machine, Anthrax and more took on Tipper's PMRC with a venomous vengeance. Ice T wrote in his book The Ice Opinion "Tipper Gore is the only woman I ever directly called a b*tch on any of my records, and I meant that in the most negative sense of the word."
The PMRC had a list of 15 songs they found particularly offensive, 15 songs that were the absolute worst of the worst. Check out the list. I think you might find it riveting. Your history lesson for the day.
- Prince, Darling Nikki. Why? Sex/Masturbation
-Sheena Easton, Sugar Walls. Why? Sex
- Vanity, Strap on Robbie Baby. Why? Sex
- Motley Crue, Bastard. Why? Violence
- Madonna, Dress You Up. Why? Sex
- W.A.S.P., Animal (F*ck Like a Beast) Why? Sex/Language
- Def Leppard, High n' Dry (Saturday Night). Why? Drug and alcohol use
- Mercyful Fate, Into the Coven. Why? Occult
- Judas Priest, Eat Me Alive. Why? Sex
- Mary Jane Girls, In My House. Why? Sex
- Venom, Possessed. Why? Occult
- Twisted Sister, We're not Gonna Take it. Why? Violence
- Black Sabbath, Trashed. Why? Drug and Alcohol Use
- Cyndi Lauper, She Bop. Why? Sex/Masturbation
- AC/DC, Let Me Put My Love Into You. Why? Sex
It's amazing how incredibly tame the music of the eighties seems in retrospect and in comparison to what's on the airwaves these days. Hip hop lyrics can be seriously nasty. I don't think anyone would deny that. What this means for our society and culture I wouldn't begin to guess in this small space but it'll be interesting to see how this all plays out.
BET's Hip Hop vs America airs Tuesday September 25 at 8p.m. (ET/PT) and Wednesday September 26 at 8p.m. (ET/PT). The third episode will only be available on BET.com's Bet on Blast."
yup
They not gonna put anyone with intelligence on that show, because they know they will get called out as a network promoting ignorance.
