While The Debates Over Hip Hop Continue….
With all the debates surrounding the impact of Hip Hop, one has to wonder if people really remember were hip hop came from. The following are excerpts of lyrics which derive from an era when Hip Hop was considered to be positive, political, or at the least extremely versatile. Please take a moment to analyze them.
“Well, today’s topic, self destruction
It really ain’t the rap audience that’s buggin”
– KRS ONE, Self Destruction
Written by Nika AKA Whateva…
“Broken glass everywhere
People pissing on the stairs, you know they just Dont care”
– Grandmaster Flash, The Message
“Pop pop pop
when it’s shot who’s to blame?
Headlines, front page, and rap’s the name
MC Delight here to state the bottom line
That black-on-black crime was way before our time”
– MC Delight, Self Destruction
“There’s oh so many teachers, yet a lack of manifestin’
Teachers oughtta teach if they be teachers
Educate the weaker”
- Poor Righteous Teachers, So Many Teachers
As you read through the lyrics you might feel a sense of familiarity. The same issues these lyrics speak of are the same issues that are tormenting our youth of today. Yet, these lyrics are all positive. When are we as a people going to stop playing the blame game? As someone who prides herself as being an intelligent black female, I could never solely go against the grain of positive change. However, to say that if you change Hip Hop to a domain from which it has already conquered, it will bring about a social change, is like not seeing reality for what it is. So let’s remember to live in the here and now.
With that said, those of you who are waiting on Hip Hop to change, I implore you to invoke change now. There are plenty of neighborhoods where children play in dirty parks and streets right now, not if and/or after Hip Hop changes. There are children who need positive mentors now. In every urban area you visit the Big Brother; Big sister programs will tell you they do not have enough Big Brothers and Sisters. There is a Keisha, Tasha, or Toya in a lower socio - economic area right now who is not receiving enough positive attention at home, and who will soon take attention in any manner she can receive it. Our children are still receiving sub standard educations via the American inner city school systems right now. Therefore, there are plenty of children who need someone to assist them with supplementing their daily education right now. While we are debating, our children one by one, are continually, “headed for self destruction.” So I will say it again. While you are waiting on Hip Hop to change, I implore you to invoke change NOW.
Written by Nika AKA Whateva…
Suggestion Box
October 12th, 2007 at 11:49 am
LOL 1ST!!! … MAN KRS ONE NEEDS TO SHUT UP .. HE SAID KANYE NOT HIP HOP … WOW!!!
October 12th, 2007 at 12:01 pm
This is a good article and it bears to ask the question, if Rap was so consicious back then, it didn’t help one bit… its not up to rappers to fix whats wrong wit society, they certainly can help with charities and shit, but if we don’t have any strength in politics we aint ever gonna fix this shit.
October 12th, 2007 at 12:02 pm
i like Nika its good to see a writer on RTNY who is an intelligent black female.
i agree with this post 100. what more can i say?
October 12th, 2007 at 12:07 pm
^^^^^you know people do not stay on topic!!! LOL
October 12th, 2007 at 12:08 pm
I HOPE THIS DON’T TURN INTO ANOTHER KANYE & 50 DEBATE THAT IS PLAYED OUT DAMN!
October 12th, 2007 at 12:10 pm
krs is confusing but he is right hip hop hasnt been the same since tupac moved to Cuba and when it began to be about money around 2000-present is when hip hop began to die its not dead but nobody wants to hear real shit.its more about simple rhyme & rhythm. rapper/people today to dumb for complex rhyming that why retards listsen to soulja boy yuull !!! thats more there level
October 12th, 2007 at 1:02 pm
No Disrespect intended but tell Nika that it is MC Lyte and not MC Delight.
On Blast - 7 City
October 12th, 2007 at 2:41 pm
ther half assin there lyrics these days
October 12th, 2007 at 2:48 pm
This is a real positive article that I don’t even think the people who posted comments even read because their posting comments that have nothing to do with the post. If we change Hip Hop that does not mean thst anything in our neighborhoods will change. Our people have been living in poverty way before there was Hip Hop.
October 12th, 2007 at 5:19 pm
yo honestly self destruction was 1 of my favorite songs of all time.and it kills me that when a rapper or singer has an album coming out and they do a B.E.T. top25 countdown that video never makes the cut. that video would be in my top 5 of all time. just becouse of the message it sent out, all of your favorite rappers coming together for a positive cause, ego’s aside.
do u know what kinda impact a record like that would have today with the worldwide status of these rappers today. it would be a 08 we are the world or sumthin, and these rappers influence soo much of todays youth it would definetly effect our community in a positive way…………………..as long as someone doesnt get shot during the video shoot.
October 12th, 2007 at 7:22 pm
as a lover of most music, and a person that grew up with parents that really, really love music (records played all night long on weekend basement parties and friday fish fries, the good ol days)I know that there hasn’t been any other genre of music that has sparked the most controversy over it’s lyrics.
Believe it or not, and it is a little known fact, hip hop was not the first type of music where it’s content had lyrics of profanity and vulgarity…although hip hop is the music with the most excessive profanity and vulgarity…
I don’t want to get off my initial point which is, when did ANY music define it’s people…I think it’s the other way around…people define it’s music…with that said I support ALL forms of it, because if everything, or everyone was the same it would be boring and there would be no progress…Whateva is right, Hip Hop music or any other music, can’t change society due to the content of the lyrics…change happen when people change and not by giving lip service but by doing something. Go out, help a child learn how to read, go out you multi-billion dollar celebrity type, go out you middle-class professionals, go out, you at home moms who don’t know what your own kids are doing in school or what the kids are doing in your community, go out and devote yourselves to some sort of tangible, visible work…the Bible says Faith without works is dead! And without faith you cannot please God and so that means you can’t do a work with no faith…it’s one in the same. Had to go to church for a minute…had to go to the source of the truth! Do some work ppl get off your soapbox and DO something!
October 12th, 2007 at 7:26 pm
I don’t think rappers influence society, society influences rappers. The way they lived their lives,all they.Some people takes the messages too seriously.Try to be too much like the next person let what the artist say dictate how they live. I swear after Pac everybody was on some thug shit.Game a blood everybody wanna be blooded.But it is about time for some concious ryhmes. No more snap, poplock and drop party like a rockstar with your lipgloss on in the club with no shoes on with your man bay bay doing the superman.
October 12th, 2007 at 11:08 pm
them songs did send a positive vibe towards hip hop now mufuckas is just sayin anythin to make ringtone money thats y i respect a nigga like 50 just because he makes violent music does not mean he is the source of niggaz takin out they problems on the street he is just talkin about wat he been thru in life and i can honestly relate to 50 then niggaz like kanye and thats real talk…
VITAMIN WATER PEOPLE TRY IT…
October 13th, 2007 at 3:34 am
I have no respect for KRS 1
October 13th, 2007 at 3:36 am
Hey FUCK KRS He is a fool for what he said about Kanye not being hip hop. Have you heard track ten of his album? If that ain’t traditional hip hop I don’t know what is. Bring back the 90s!
October 13th, 2007 at 3:48 am
I used to respect KRS until he said what he said. Even he forgot what hip hop is! I hope he apologizes for that shit. Everybody crticises the south but at least they brought the fun back into hip hop and I think they innovated even more than the east coast guys personally (last 8-10 years). At least they have unity and they never criticized anybody, they just did their thing. The east coast simply should have stepped their game up, but they didn’t. Nice article btw, but hip hop won’t save us- society is in an ignorant phase right now
October 13th, 2007 at 3:46 pm
i seen people on these blogs get a kick outta bein’ “1st”…thats’ cool…but why make a stupid comment if you have the oppertunity to be “1st”.
I can’t believe KRS used “ain’t” in a sentence
October 13th, 2007 at 3:53 pm
most of Kanye’s album IS NOT HIP-HOP! it’s more like Hip-Pop. if a song came out like that in the “golden era” it would’ve be shitted on by real hip-hoppers. even Planet Rock had the electronic music thing goin’ on but the song didn’t go in the direction of a pop song like ‘Flashing Lights’..even MC Hammer didn’t stoop to Kanye’s lows when he 1st came out. but I guess he did it to widen his market…do doin’ it for money = sell out?
October 18th, 2007 at 10:52 am
I meant to been have come here to say…
@7 No disrespect taken.. but no those lines I quoted are from MC Delight of Stetsasonic part in that song. However, yes MC Lyte was on Self Destruction too.
Peace