"While these images might not have been created as explicitly homoerotic,
hypermasculinity in hip-hop, sports and fraternity cultures serve to bond
men together, often at the expense of women, gays and men who do not meet
strict gender-based roles and expectations"
Like Hurt, I love hip hop myself. In fact, I'm big fans of Talib, Russell
Simmons, Mos Def and Busta Rhymes. So it was shocking to me when I saw that
not one of them had something conscious or respectful to say about the
subject matter. Simmons responded that he simply did not have the
"equipment." Go figure. Don't get me wrong, I still got respect for him,
though, I really want to smack him with my shoe and scream, "Racism isn't
the most important discrimination issue!"
Hurt does recognize that it is not all at the fault of the individuals - the
rappers. He does not forget to include the overwhelming influence of the
white supremacist capitalist culture - a term coined by bell hooks. In one of my readings
for class, it makes the comparison of how black rappers today are still
enslaved by the superior white capitalist culture. Money is just the
diversion. They are trapped in the box and imprisoned to demean other black
men and women through their lyrics.
The slaughter of hip-hop began during its establishment in the mainstream
"growing increasingly limited and one dimensional." When Hurt confronts the
aspiring rappers about their unoriginal lyrics, they immediately respond
defensively that its what "they" want to hear. It's how to get a record
deal.
A good friend of mine once told me that if you wave a million dollars in a
poor man's face, they'll do anything you want to get it. It sure looks like
he's right.
Hurt explores how white-owned record labels run their businesses. In 2003,
the U.S. Federal Communications Commission lifted the bans on media
deregulation, allowing media corporations to own multiple radio stations,
television networks and other sources of entertainment (around the time when
Def Jam was bought out). These corporations in turn have expanded their
buyers to white consumers, raking in millions more.
A while back, I watched Oprah's Town Hall Meeting on Hip Hop. A guest compared today's
rap videos to the Birth of a
Nation. If you've watched it, I hope you hated it. The film was made in
1915 after the Civil War depicting black men as hypersexual, dangerous
animals (especially to white women). It was highly racist and was used to
recruit Ku Klux Klan members, which worked. When I heard that comparison, I
was appalled.
In Hurt's documentary, he shows clips of Birth of a Nation.With no surprise, I was disgusted.
I don't normally watch a lot of music videos unless I youtube them myself to
specifically watch one. So, when I watched Nelly's Tip Drill video for the first time in the documentary, my
jaw dropped. The man who made the comparison was right. Nelly is a victim of
white supremacist capitalism.
Byron Hurt brings both academia and well-respected artists together, merging
both paradigms collectively into a greater understanding for the world. The
moment I finished watching the documentary in class I bought it and I encourage every one who has love and respect
for hip hop, hyper-emasculated or not, to watch it. It's one to keep in your
collection.
