Define hip-hop in your own words.
I think Hip-hop is a genre of music, primarily started and dominated by what are U.S. minorities, that has turned into a culture. This culture seems to include mostly those of darker skin color only (Blacks, Hispanics, Indians, etc.).
Please listen to five hip-hop artists that you have not heard before. Please list them on your blog.
“Le Bien, Le Mal” – by Guru
“Join The Dots” – by Roots Manuva
“Communicate” – by New Flesh
“Dy-na-mi-tee” – By Ms. Dynamite
“Makeda” – by Les Nubians
Please watch five hip-hop videos that you have not seen before. Please list them on your blog. Give details about the video: name of the song, artist, what is the focus of this video.
1.
Song – “Witness”
Artist – Roots Manuva (Rodney “Roots” Manuva)
Plot – Roots is shown working out in a variety of locations, wearing numerous different athletic outfits. The camera is within 4 feet of Roots the majority of the video and he sings straight into the camera.
2.
Song – “Dy-na-mi-tee”
Artist – Ms. Dynamite
Plot - A non-visible host introduces Ms. Dynamite and she’s seen on stage, from which she performs her song. Though she’s on stage and people’s arms waving the air are seen, she’s really the only person you see. There are close-ups of her face when she’s singing on stage. She’s also pictured singing to the camera from a lounge chair. There are several groups of club dancers shown as well.
3.
Song – “Makeda”
Artist – Les Nubians
Plot – First a television newscast is shown, as in the video appears to literally be filming a television while the evening news is on. Then the camera shows a neighborhood, a skyward view of a cherry tree, an urban city and the singers are in a limo singing with each other, sort of to the camera and mostly to the people. The flim shows the singers driving around town singing, different people and places in the city and the general day-to-day life of the city.
4.
Song – “A Lo Cubano”
Artist – Orishas
Plot – Orishas group members are shown on a beach, singing to the camera, with lots of girls in bikinis playing in the water and dancing on/around the singers.
5.
Song – “Paper Planes”
Artist – M.I.A.
Plot – The female artist is shown primarily working at a fast food/food truck making money. She’s also shown in a black jacket with the hood pulled up singing to the camera (the background is plain black). On beat with the gun shot sounds of the song different images of city scenes are shown. M.I.A. is also shown singing to the camera in a video store, in a convenient store and walking down the street. The video begins and ends with an image of a flock of paper planes flying around in the city.
Please listen to two different radio stations that broadcast hip-hop.
Oklahoma City: KVSP Power 103.5 (Slogan – “#1 Blazin Hip Hop & R&B”)
Dallas: KBFB 97.9 The Beat (Slogan – “The Hip Hop Station”)
What corporations have utilized hip-hop to advertise their products? Excluding Nike (or other shoe companies), McDonalds’s (or other fast food organizations), Target, and Freecreditreport.com. You should be able to find a minimum of two.
Pepsi
Gap
iPod/iTunes
Bally
Where else can you find the influence of hip-hop in the media?
I think certain channels, like MTV, VHI, MTV2, are exemplary of how much Hip-Hop culture is influencing the media. In my opinion, Hip-Hop culture influences it to the extent that these such television stations are created. (These channels do not feature only music videos.)
What things if any have come from hip-hop and become part of mainstream culture?
I think the attire of featured Hip-Hop artists has become mainstream, especially in the minority population of the country. For instance, the baggy pants, sideways baseball cap, chains around the neck, etc. Also, the way people of a certain age envision a party/social gathering… similar to the portrayals of parties in many Hip-Hop music videos, young adults and teenagers tend to envision a really happening party one in which the music is really loud and everyone’s grinding/dancing on each other. That’s another thing in itself too, the way people dance. The dancing for younger people is now more like what’s featured in Hip-Hop videos rather than particular dance steps of former generations (i.e. the waltz, the twist, etc.).
What music did your parents listen to when they were young? Ask them to give you three different genres and examples.
Genre: Rock and roll (Artist example – ZZ Top)
Genre: Country & Western (Artist example – George Strait)
Genre: Jazz (Artist example – Manard Ferguson)
Please reflect on the state of hip-hop in reference to representation and images.
I think the culture of Hip-Hop is fascinating. It’s fascinating just in the fact that it’s an entire culture, social scene, etc. that stems just from a genre of music. When I think of Hip-Hop I primarily think of Black rappers and Justin Timberlake. From this blog’s research into different Hip-Hop songs I hadn’t heard before and music videos I hadn’t seen before, my impression of the Hip-Hop culture being mostly targeted towards minorities seems true. This seems true, in fact, internationally, not just here in the states. I say this because all of my mentioned videos and songs feature non-Caucasian artists. Though the artists seem to be mostly non-Caucasian I think the music is very popular with my generation of white people as well as non-whites. I really did enjoy the international Hip-Hop artists I listened to… Les Nubaians, Ms. Dynamite and M.I.A. (I’d heard of her but never saw her “Paper Planes” video) is a particular favorite, probably because that song is really popular. The only thing I really don’t like about Hip-Hop culture is when videos promote violence and casual sexual interaction. This is sort of evident in the “Paper Planes” video when M.I.A. holds her hands as guns and pretends to shoot along with the gun shot noises of the song. The violence is certainly evident in the background noises of the song, ie the gun shot noises, however the lyrics don’t really encourage violence to the extent that I feel uncomfortable.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Friday, April 3, 2009
4.3 Blog - Advertisements
From Television:
ABC – Special K Commercial
Characters: 1 Caucasian Male, 1 Caucasian Female, 1 Asian Female
The women collectively speak about ¾ of the speech during the commercial and of this the Asian woman speaks one line versus the Caucasian woman’s 10 lines.
Tru TV – NetFlix Commercial
Characters: Multiple Movie characters of various ethnicity, both males and females, 1 Caucasian Male main speaker
The majority of the “characters” are Caucasian. The only predominant black character (a male) is shown at the end and is from what seems to be a scary movie role. He is not the aggressor, but rather the victim. His clothes are dirty and his expression was zombie like, void of emotion. The romantic comedy couple, who is seen kissing throughout the commercial, is of two Caucasians.
FOOD Network – Special K commercial
Characters: The only character is a black, female.
The woman is shown in a nice apartment/home, in professional/classy attire, heading to work. There is a commentator speaking over the video so it’s as if the woman’s thoughts are audible.
From the Internet:
McDonalds Television Ad – c. 1970’s
Characters: 5 McDonald’s workers, 1 Manager
All the characters are males. The manager is Caucasian, three workers are Caucasian, one appears Italian, two are black. All the workers are shown cleaning various surfaces and appliances in the restaurant’s kitchen.
Wendy’s Television Ad, 1984 – “Where’s the Beef?”
Characters: 3 elderly, Caucasian females
All three characters are shown interested in a big fluffy hamburger bun. When they discover the beef patty, which is about ¼ the size of the bun, the women become curious, looking around for the beef. One of the women appears more agitated, yelling out the question, “Where’s the beef?”
Classic Budweiser Commercial
Characters: 4 black males, 1 Hispanic or black male (I can’t tell)
Two characters are initially shown drinking a beer, watching a game on television while lounging on the couch. Then the other characters come into play as each says “wusaaaap” to the other. There is domino effect and everyone’s shown with their tongue hanging out, saying the greeting and then everything goes back to how the scene is initially shown… two talking on the phone, the rest going about their business.
From The Oklahoma Daily:
Student Research + Performance Day Advertisement/Promotion
People: 1 Caucasian male, 1 Caucasian female, 1 male of unknown ethnicity, 1 Hispanic or Caucasian female
Of the photographs that have people in them… a Caucasian male is shown in a laboratory setting, micropipetting, the female of unknown ethnicity is playing the piano, the male of of unkwon ethnicity is doing a science problem on a dry-erase board and the Caucasian female is doing something with soil, presumably botany-related research.
From Magazines:
House Beautiful, National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA) Advertisement
There are four photographs. In descending order (literally, from top to bottom) the first picture is of a young, black family, including a dad, mom and son. The second photo is of an elderly Caucasian male, the third of a young Asian female with a young boy who is presumably her son. The final picture is of a Hispanic or Indian looking young female. All are pictured naturally, smiling and/or laughing.
Budget Travel, Los Cabos Advertisement
The main, largest photograph is of a young, Caucasian family. The family is running along the beach at sunset and the family consists of a mom, dad, two young daughters and a young son. The other photographs are much smaller. The first is of a Caucasian female receiving spa treatment. The second is of a couple, one male and one female, walking in the water of an ocean cove; the picture is too small to determine their ethnicities. The third is of three Caucasian males, a dad and his two sons and they’re pictured fishing. The fourth photograph is of a Caucasian male golfing.
Cooking Light, Dixie Advertisement
The photograph is of a Caucasian mom pouring gravy onto her kids’ dinner plates. The kids are both under 12, one female and one male. All are shown happy and smiling.
REFLECTION:
I feel that I gave an in depth description of the characters and plot of each of the advertisements to the extent that a reader can accurately ascertain a feel for the genderism or racism present in the commercial, that is of course, if either one is present at all.
About the Budweiser commercial (viewed online), I think some people may interpret racism in that the characters are portrayed as lazy. I, personally, don’t think there’s any racism or genderism displayed. I think the advertisements are trying to reach a specific target audience… young, males of the bachelor status, and in particular, those of minority ethnicities.
About the “Los Cabos” advertisement, I do think that the advertisement does a poor job of targeting ethnic minorities. However, the advertisers may base their assessment of target audiences on the demographics of visitors to Los Cabos… in other words, most people that choose to vacation there, from the United States anyway, may be Caucasian and therefore it makes sense for the advertisements to target Caucasian families and couples.
For the Dixie advertisement, I think genderism is portrayed more than racism. My question is, why can’t an obviously husband/father figure be shown serving dinner to the children? I think the advertisement furthers the “woman’s place is in a kitchen” mentality.
For the Wendy’s advertisement, if anything I think it discriminates against the “minority”. I say this because it makes elderly, Caucasian women out to be the typical nosy, old person… always seeking to be in the know. I think this advertisement is more an ageism exploiter than anything.
Finally, the Netflix commercial… I believe this commercial does portray a slight element of racism, only in regards to blacks. The only black character is seen as emotionless, and with a “duh” expression. The vast majority of the characters are Caucasian and I think this should be altered. The romantic comedy couple, for instance, could easily be a minority couple.
ABC – Special K Commercial
Characters: 1 Caucasian Male, 1 Caucasian Female, 1 Asian Female
The women collectively speak about ¾ of the speech during the commercial and of this the Asian woman speaks one line versus the Caucasian woman’s 10 lines.
Tru TV – NetFlix Commercial
Characters: Multiple Movie characters of various ethnicity, both males and females, 1 Caucasian Male main speaker
The majority of the “characters” are Caucasian. The only predominant black character (a male) is shown at the end and is from what seems to be a scary movie role. He is not the aggressor, but rather the victim. His clothes are dirty and his expression was zombie like, void of emotion. The romantic comedy couple, who is seen kissing throughout the commercial, is of two Caucasians.
FOOD Network – Special K commercial
Characters: The only character is a black, female.
The woman is shown in a nice apartment/home, in professional/classy attire, heading to work. There is a commentator speaking over the video so it’s as if the woman’s thoughts are audible.
From the Internet:
McDonalds Television Ad – c. 1970’s
Characters: 5 McDonald’s workers, 1 Manager
All the characters are males. The manager is Caucasian, three workers are Caucasian, one appears Italian, two are black. All the workers are shown cleaning various surfaces and appliances in the restaurant’s kitchen.
Wendy’s Television Ad, 1984 – “Where’s the Beef?”
Characters: 3 elderly, Caucasian females
All three characters are shown interested in a big fluffy hamburger bun. When they discover the beef patty, which is about ¼ the size of the bun, the women become curious, looking around for the beef. One of the women appears more agitated, yelling out the question, “Where’s the beef?”
Classic Budweiser Commercial
Characters: 4 black males, 1 Hispanic or black male (I can’t tell)
Two characters are initially shown drinking a beer, watching a game on television while lounging on the couch. Then the other characters come into play as each says “wusaaaap” to the other. There is domino effect and everyone’s shown with their tongue hanging out, saying the greeting and then everything goes back to how the scene is initially shown… two talking on the phone, the rest going about their business.
From The Oklahoma Daily:
Student Research + Performance Day Advertisement/Promotion
People: 1 Caucasian male, 1 Caucasian female, 1 male of unknown ethnicity, 1 Hispanic or Caucasian female
Of the photographs that have people in them… a Caucasian male is shown in a laboratory setting, micropipetting, the female of unknown ethnicity is playing the piano, the male of of unkwon ethnicity is doing a science problem on a dry-erase board and the Caucasian female is doing something with soil, presumably botany-related research.
From Magazines:
House Beautiful, National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA) Advertisement
There are four photographs. In descending order (literally, from top to bottom) the first picture is of a young, black family, including a dad, mom and son. The second photo is of an elderly Caucasian male, the third of a young Asian female with a young boy who is presumably her son. The final picture is of a Hispanic or Indian looking young female. All are pictured naturally, smiling and/or laughing.
Budget Travel, Los Cabos Advertisement
The main, largest photograph is of a young, Caucasian family. The family is running along the beach at sunset and the family consists of a mom, dad, two young daughters and a young son. The other photographs are much smaller. The first is of a Caucasian female receiving spa treatment. The second is of a couple, one male and one female, walking in the water of an ocean cove; the picture is too small to determine their ethnicities. The third is of three Caucasian males, a dad and his two sons and they’re pictured fishing. The fourth photograph is of a Caucasian male golfing.
Cooking Light, Dixie Advertisement
The photograph is of a Caucasian mom pouring gravy onto her kids’ dinner plates. The kids are both under 12, one female and one male. All are shown happy and smiling.
REFLECTION:
I feel that I gave an in depth description of the characters and plot of each of the advertisements to the extent that a reader can accurately ascertain a feel for the genderism or racism present in the commercial, that is of course, if either one is present at all.
About the Budweiser commercial (viewed online), I think some people may interpret racism in that the characters are portrayed as lazy. I, personally, don’t think there’s any racism or genderism displayed. I think the advertisements are trying to reach a specific target audience… young, males of the bachelor status, and in particular, those of minority ethnicities.
About the “Los Cabos” advertisement, I do think that the advertisement does a poor job of targeting ethnic minorities. However, the advertisers may base their assessment of target audiences on the demographics of visitors to Los Cabos… in other words, most people that choose to vacation there, from the United States anyway, may be Caucasian and therefore it makes sense for the advertisements to target Caucasian families and couples.
For the Dixie advertisement, I think genderism is portrayed more than racism. My question is, why can’t an obviously husband/father figure be shown serving dinner to the children? I think the advertisement furthers the “woman’s place is in a kitchen” mentality.
For the Wendy’s advertisement, if anything I think it discriminates against the “minority”. I say this because it makes elderly, Caucasian women out to be the typical nosy, old person… always seeking to be in the know. I think this advertisement is more an ageism exploiter than anything.
Finally, the Netflix commercial… I believe this commercial does portray a slight element of racism, only in regards to blacks. The only black character is seen as emotionless, and with a “duh” expression. The vast majority of the characters are Caucasian and I think this should be altered. The romantic comedy couple, for instance, could easily be a minority couple.
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