My Family and Hip-hop

            My family is really close, and we share so many things and ideas with each other. One of the things we share is music, and hip-hop is one of those genres that we like. My family stretches among the three generations that hip-hop has been around. The conversations about hip-hop artist can go from the Sugar Hill Gang to Lil Wayne. I know several of my relatives are true hip-hop fans because they are in their 40s and are listening to today’s hip-hop artists. When I asked several of my relatives about their view on hip-hop, I got several answers to this question. When I asked my uncles and aunts they say they like it and it’s mostly because they grew up with the Sugar Hill Gang, Grandmaster Flash, DJ Kool Herc, and so many others. They also listen to artists from the 80’s, 90’s, and today, and they can tell that the music has changed so much. They see the good and the bad that comes along with the changes of the music. I know my aunt and uncle are hip-hop fans because it was their music that they danced to when they won all their dance competitions. They were the brother and sister dancing duo that no one could beat. They know that my cousins and I listen to the good and the bad of hip-hop and they are glad that the bad has not had a negative effect on us.

            With my cousins, they really love hip-hop. Most of us grew-up during the golden age of hip-hop, and it’s no surprise that their kids are big hip-hop fans. Every time we got together for a family gathering, we always have music playing and most of the time it was hip-hop. It was because of my cousins that I learned some of the earlier hip-hop dances. During our last family reunion, we had hip-hop music playing and everyone was on the dance floor, both young and old. So if someone asked me about my family’s view on hip-hop I would tell them that they love the music, all three generations.

            When hip-hop began it started as a voice for the youth of the Bronx, New York to tell the country what was happening to their neighborhoods. Today, hip-hop still talks about the issues of the poor neighborhoods but unfortunately the audience doesn’t always get that. The owners of these record labels only want to put out the songs that give men and women of color a negative image. The documentary, Hip-Hop: Beyond the Beats and Rhymes, talks about the whole spectrum of hip-hop. The two things that stuck out to me about the documentary are the labels put on our men and women. With the women, they are sometimes treated as less than a person. Some videos have women walking around in nothing but bikinis shaking their behinds. They a get called such things as b***hes & hos. They are seen as things to have sex with and not to be respected. All the things that these women are called, they are still by these artists’ CDs and going to their concerts. Something that is really surprising is that women are called b***hes by other women more than men.

            Hip-hop personifies the idea of man that is already set by American media. These guys are portrayed to be the ideal of manhood for black and brown men. They are not to show any type of emotion or weakness. If you show any type of emotion or weakness you are consider a b***h a** n**ga, a p***y, or sometimes, gay. A man has to look like a thug with his pants hanging below his waste and their bodies covered in tattoos. The media doesn’t want to show that several of these artists have their college degree. The record labels don’t want to put out the songs that make the men think what they are doing with their lives. They only want to show black men killing each other and disrespecting women.

            There is more to hip-hop than men acting like thugs and women standing on a video shoot half naked. Hip-hop still tells a story that about the struggle of the black people.  http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.wallpaperbase.com/wallpapers/music/50cent/50_cent_11.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.wallpaperbase.com/music-50cent.shtml&usg=__pf7wGltYNluYbwpBozyBQ20zvQY=&h=768&w=1024&sz=84&hl=en&start=0&sig2=5uSXY3PbYZfUtPAoeM66DA&zoom=1&tbnid=nw54Grd1B6VWxM:&tbnh=157&tbnw=208&ei=jbjdTJnSA4KBlAfkvvWZDQ&prev=/images%3Fq%3D50%2Bcent%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26rlz%3D1T4TSNA_enUS381US384%26biw%3D1345%26bih%3D493%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=618&vpy=243&dur=561&hovh=194&hovw=259&tx=153&ty=115&oei=jbjdTJnSA4KBlAfkvvWZDQ&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=14&ved=1t:429,r:10,s:0

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://blogs.smarter.com/blogs/guests/Candy%2520Girls.jpg&imgrefurl=http://blogs.smarter.com/fashion/2009/03/31/rock-candy-or-lets-put-a-ring-on-it/&usg=__Ep43QJu1AZKQZGngRppT85BB8PI=&h=343&w=374&sz=31&hl=en&start=0&sig2=pEzoGl4UsSwHlHvS2_zGkA&zoom=1&tbnid=woMS1Hc_cAHWaM:&tbnh=106&tbnw=109&ei=xLfdTNmsCsOBlAeXyejVDA&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dhip-hop%2Bvideo%2Bgirls%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DG%26rlz%3D1T4TSNA_enUS381US384%26biw%3D1345%26bih%3D493%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C64&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=894&vpy=127&dur=515&hovh=215&hovw=234&tx=139&ty=85&oei=qrfdTJWWK8WAlAevycmWDQ&esq=10&page=1&ndsp=20&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:0&biw=1345&bih=493

When we think of music in the African American culture, we usually think of stories told through music. During the days of slavery, the slaves sang hymns of how they would escape the master’s plantation, and the grounds men never knew what was happening. Today, gospel, r&b, and hip-hop are the three genres of black music that have entered mainstream America today.

Gospel music was the first black music genre to come out of slavery. It started out as just church music, and has expanded into mainstream America. It started in Philadelphia with Thomas Dorsey who is considered the “Father of Gospel Music.” Some gospel artists that help start gospel’s transition into mainstream music were Mahaila Jackson, James Cleveland, the Ward Sisters, and Sam Cooke. Thanks to pioneers we now have artists such Kirk Franklin, Yolanda Adams, Fred Hammond, Bebe and Cece Winans, etc.  Today, gospel music is the type of music that makes you feel good while you are giving thanks to God. It has survived many generations by taking on the characteristics of the other genres of the time. Gospel music has been here since the beginning, and it is here to stay.

From gospel music, came the rhythm & blues or r&b. R&B music is considered blues music with a lot more energy. It was nicknamed “jump blues” because it is an energetic form of the blues. This form of the blues still told a story, but it was a lot more fun. This is a form of the blues that people can dance to. We begin to hear more vocals in this form of the blues. During the time of WWII, music of other races began to be distributed across the U.S., which helped R&B music reach the masses. Some of the greats of this music are Patti Labelle, Gerald Levert, the Isley Brothers, Luther Vandross, etc. It is because of these artists that we have artists such as Mary J. Blige, Trey Songz, Toni Braxton, BoyzIIMen, and many more.

The church and the Blues helped to create the form of music we know as hip-hop. It started out in the streets of New York City as a way for the urban youth to speak their minds. These young people who just wanted people to hear their problems had no idea the revolution they had begun. Hip-hop also brought in an art form called graffiti. Graffiti is when people drew different figures on walls in very unique styles. The fashion that came out of this movement include the baggy clothes, the gold chains, and fitted baseball caps. The music is performed by reciting a form of poetry to a beat. Hip-hop has had such an influence that we hear similar beats in R&B and gospel songs. Hip-hop has made a really big impact on the world, and it will continue to influence the music world.