The Origins And Misrepresentation Of Hip-Hop Music

Hip hop emerged as a music and cultural art form in the late 1970’s, due to deindustrialization, in the inner cities of New York city and served as a platform for poor Latinos and African Americans ( Clarke, 2007, and Jefferies,2011). Hip Hop is believed to have four major elements which includes breakdancing, rapping, graffiti and DJing. Rapping is an African tradition which is liked to the expression of frustration, anger, poverty and joy of inner city youths (Clarke,2007). It’s stories tells tales of crime, violence and corruption which has lead the genre to have an important place worldwide (Clarke,20007).

Hip hop was created to as a way to express the lived experiences of youths growing up in underrepresented neighborhoods which brought forward the constant struggle for respect and recognition in the world (Speer, 2014). Some studies suggest that hip hop emerged as a result of a search for black identity which had its roots in enslavement and transport of Africans into the America’s. Africans were stripped of their culture which included their language and religion and forced to adapted to a foreign culture and hip hop emerged as an instrument of the search for an identity of the African-American race as it was disconnected from its African roots.

The original goal of hip hop was to draw attention to and make clear political statements against social issues that were plaguing the American society such as racism and the distinct socio-economic differences between communities (Speer,2014). However, hip hop has transformed over time losing sight of its original purpose. Today hip-hop music has taken the form of “Thug rap” which is promoted by main stream artists whose lyrics sends mixed effects in youths today. Thug rap promotes materialism and misogyny which displays a lack of understanding and also the undermining of the African and African-American history and culture and what hip hop was intended (Speer, 2014). This undermining and misunderstanding of history and culture continuously fails to successfully bridge the gap between black culture or black identity with that of hip-hop culture. There is a continuous degradation of black identity because of the messages that are being spread through thug rap as it continues to produce and promote negative concepts such as violence, materialism and a general negative regard for blackness.

The most popular songs and the most popular artists in hip hop do not create or encourage positive images of black culture or black identity. Inspire of this hip hop is still accepted as an expression of African-American culture and some studies suggest that because of the repetition of the negative messages associated with the genre the black culture has adopted the mindset (Loflin,2012). Thug rap now represents a major part of what it means to be black in the American society and is greatly personified in the inner cities. This close association gives the impression that the black identity is violent and materialistic which is a result of the lyrics of rap songs. If rappers were to have a real or deeper understanding of African and African-American history, it would have a major impact on the message that is sent through the lyrics of rap music making it more positive and a true reflection of what it means to be black. Hip hop music has been proven to have a powerful influence on African-American youths as they feel a connection to not only the music, but they aspire to be as successful as many of the artists. If rappers were to change both their image and the message they portray through their music it should result in a more positive representation of the African-American race and it should also result in positive behavior among youths particularly those in the inner city.

In conclusion it is important to recognize the power of the influence of hip hop in the African-American community, youths in the inner city. The image of black identity that is now portrayed by hip hop music is one that sends negative messages about the black community, if the individuals who practice the art should get a deeper understanding and appreciation of African and African-American culture and history it would lead to a shift in the message that is sent through the hip hop medium which should result in a shift in the way the African-American race is represented.