Hip Hop and the Media

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.