Hip Hop Blasphemy pt. 1

Hip Hop is as much a political affiliation, as it is a genre of music. This is something of which I have always been aware, but only as the romanticism and sensationalism fade do I see the political undertones for what they really are: veiled and coded authoritarianism.

The above statement might come as a real shocker (and probably downright offensive) statement to those who are immersed in hip hop culture or those who follow rap music on the radio, TV, and in magazines. But to those who are "outsiders" of hip hop culture, the dogmatic nature of hip hop is old news.

Hip Hop's true-school defenders make a big clamor about hip hop being misrepresented by the mainstream media, that it has been hijacked by corporate interests who are responsible for injecting hip hop with its sexist, homophobic, materialistic, ghetto-glamorizing, and race-mystifying elements. Granted, there are always exceptions. For every 50 Cent, there is a J-Live. For every Jay-Z, there is a J-Zone. But just because hip hop has a good side... that doesn't excuse its bad side.

Ultimately, what is so interesting about hip hop is that people take it so personally. Few people take the time to dis rock or punk (except maybe really old people). There's just no point. When techno is lambasted for its cold, heartless roboticism... there is no clamor among techno fans. They enjoy the music and that's what matters. But take a critical view of hip hop, and insult it as a whole... and you might as well step into the middle of a debate between Professor Griff and the Anti-Defamation League!

Because hip hop is so nearly inseparable from African-American culture, there is a not-so-subconscious, collective ego battle going on. Hip Hop essentially serves as a "best foot forward" for Black communities. Maybe we could think of hip hop as the HGIC, or "Head Genre In Charge". To attack hip hop is, thus, taken by many as an attack on Black people. Understandably, the result is that many people feel the need to come to the defense of hip hop when it is criticized as a whole, especially when people say that it is repetitive (which it is), that it is relatively unemotional (not too many hip hop ballads out there) and that it stifles individuality (it's a group thang ya'll).

Biting one's lip is a well-known practice amongst our country's Black political leaders. The only defense against divide and conquer strategies is solidarity. But solidarity requires tacit compromises. Some degree of individuality and personal autonomy must be sacrificed for the greater good. This is achieved and/or masked by a dominant culture which is composed of shared memes, which are essentially the values, ideas, and practices that bind a group and give it identity.

Rock is disparate. There is no attempt to consolidate the many styles and genres of rock under a single banner. Let us contrast this with the debate over the semantic differences between "rap" and "hip hop" which raged in inanity throughout the 1990s. People were so confident that the White Establishment would kill hip hop culture, same as it killed funk and other Black genres. Radio stations, magazines, and artists bemoaned the "Death Of Hip Hop", in spite of hip hop's continuing growth and creative relevance. But hip hop shows no signs of going anywhere.

This is where the authoritarianism steps on the scene. Because people feel they have something at stake with the reputation of hip hop as a whole, a not-so-subtle propaganda machine has armed young hip hop heads with all the tools necessary for a thorough cultural self-brainwash and ego inflation.

Everyone wants to be part of something larger than themselves. This is just how the world is. For hip hop heads, this has manifested itself in the rise of hip hop's widely accepted code of ethics. I was once told by the hip hop record buyer at a local record store that hip hop was all about being the best... Rule #1. To most hip hop heads, IT DOES matter who is the best. #2 You must pay respect to originators like Kool Herc, Bam, and Flash. #3 No biting. #4 No sissy shit or gay shit. #5 Act like you know... project an image of confidence or aloofness. The list varies, but people know what I'm talking about. It is an unwritten code.

Over the next few weeks -- and possibly months -- I will continue along this line of thinking and see where it leads. The goal is to get hip hop heads to question whether they are toting a line, whether they are spreading propaganda. And if they are... what is the content of that propaganda, who's interest does it serve, and does it benefit the people who spread it. And if hip hop has truly been hijacked by cultural ideologues... what can we do about it?

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Stay tuned for the next episode of Hip Hop Blasphemy....