Kendrick Lamar is an African American rapper from Compton, California, known as one of the roughest cities in the United States. Lamar is widely considered one of the best rappers to date and, according to Rolling Stone, he is “the greatest rapper alive” (Hiatt). He is also one of the most political rappers alive and challenges his audience to face uncomfortable truths. John Haltiwanger of Elite Daily writes that Lamar’s album To Pimp A Butterfly “is a politically-charged response to the racism, violence, and police brutality that continues to plague society.” Lamar’s song “Hood Politics,” from To Pimp A Butterfly, gives listeners an inside look into Lamar’s experience growing up in Compton. In addition to dealing with drugs, violence, and gangs, Lamar felt as if he and his community were pitted against the Los Angeles Police Department: “The LAPD gamblin', scramblin', football numbers slanderin.’” Lamar addresses the fact that the LAPD often gambles by making risky decisions and then scrambles to cover up or fix the consequences of their actions, while the football numbers in the song refer to years spent in prison. Here Lamar is shunning the LAPD and criminal justice system, pointing out that these incarcerations are defaming minority communities. At the 2015 BET (Black Entertainment Television) Hip Hop Awards, Lamar performed on stage with vandalized police cars. Although it may have been startling and uncomfortable for some, this was a provocative performance designed to trigger discussion, not simply to scare viewers. In response to the performance, Geraldo Rivera of Fox News stated, “Hip hop has done more damage to young African Americans than racism in recent years” (qtd. in Haltiwanger). Lamar, unfazed by any criticism, refused to let discussion cease. At the 2016 Grammy awards, Lamar performed in a prison uniform with chains around his wrists and ankles. His band played behind jail cell doors set up on stage. These politically motivated performances sparked conversations on race and other societal problems in the United States. Lamar’s powerful performances, coupled with his stimulating lyrics, opened discussions about mass incarceration and reform in the criminal justice system, racism in America, violence in inner-city neighborhoods, and more. Kendrick Lamar shows how rap and hip hop can be catalysts for change. Haltiwanger comments, “When injustice permeates society, sometimes the only way to accurately convey the array of emotions it catalyzes among people is via song. Music is a potent and indispensable form of protest.” This held true in the 1960s with the help of artists like Bob Dylan and Nina Simone, and it still holds true today. Lamar’s song “Alright” is widely considered to be a modern-day protest anthem. The pre-hook goes as follows: "Ni**a, and we hate po-po / Wanna kill us dead in the street fo sho' / Ni**a, I'm at the preacher's door / My knees gettin' weak and my gun might blow / But we gon' be alright." The hook comes in, repeating the lyric, “We gon’ be alright” ("Alright"). This song details the discrimination and oppression felt by people of color in the United States, but is also an anthem of hope and inspiration. Aisha Harris writes that the song “[offers] a kind of comfort that people of color and other oppressed communities desperately need all too often: the hope—the feeling—that despite tensions in this country growing worse and worse, in the long run, we’re all gon’ be all right.” Since its release, “Alright” has been used as a rallying cry in protests all around the nation, from Lamar’s performance at the 2015 BET awards, to the city streets of Cleveland protesting police brutality.
Lamar received both applause and criticism for his performances in 2015 and 2016. That is because through these performances he made the public aware of what has been called a “racial catastrophe in the 21st century” (Brooks). Lamar highlighted injustice against Black people within the prison systems and touched on what they face in the United States. Forbes magazine reported that the 2016 Grammy’s had over 25 million viewers. Coupled with 7 million BET award show viewers, this means that over 32 million people that had heard Lamar’s message. Lamar used his influence and fame in the best way: as a platform to speak out for those who cannot speak for themselves. Between the millions of viewers at the Grammy's and BET awards, and millions of listeners who purchased his many platinum-certified albums, it is hard to argue that Kendrick Lamar is not making a political impact. Through his music, Lamar is doing exactly what McWhorter said rap could not do. He is increasing awareness of the problems that African Americans live through.
Movements and change start with leaders and their words. One problem McWhorter has with rap is that even if the message is received, what now? Just as political leaders must campaign, raise awareness, and speak about issues before they can act on them, hip hop artists are campaigning for social change and communicating a message toward action with their lyrics. For example, Beyoncé, a recognized leader in the hip hop and music world, performed for the NFL Super Bowl halftime show in 2016, putting on another politically-charged performance. She performed her song “Formation” which has since been identified as a Black power anthem, calling on Black history, culture, and women. She sings, “I like my baby heir with baby hair and afros / I like my negro nose with Jackson Five nostrils” (Knowles). Here, Beyoncé plays with African American stereotypes, telling everyone she is proud of her heritage. Beyoncé’s “Formation” is a powerful song that encompasses many issues, and Jenna Wortham of the New York Times asserts, “‘Formation’ isn’t just about police brutality — it’s about the entirety of the Black experience in America in 2016” (Caramanica et al.). Many of the issues Beyoncé presents are analogous to the ones that the Black Lives Matter movement is fighting for. At the Super Bowl, Beyoncé and her backup dancers performed in attire that paid homage to the Black political activist group known as the Black Panthers. Her aesthetic, along with her politically charged lyrics, shed a new light on what it means to be Black in America. She ignited debate concerning Black feminism, institutional racism in America, and the injustices society commits towards all people of color. The morning after the Super Bowl, the Black Panthers were trending across social media. There was also a movement to #BoycottBeyonce. Leaders of this movement were offended by her “hate speech and racism” at the Super Bowl (qtd. in Blair). However, this movement did not go unnoticed. Counter-protesters fought for Beyoncé and the issues she brought attention to. Beyoncé made America aware of societal issues plaguing Black America and motivated people to take charge of the situation, something McWhorter believes is not possible to do with rap and hip hop.
Even rap and hip hop that seems to have no educational value at all can be meaningful and important. Take, for example, Atlanta rapper 21 Savage. When asking the average person to describe today’s rap music, an artist like 21 Savage, a rapper known for vulgar lyrics, may come to mind. If you pay attention to his lyrics you may notice some common themes: sex, drugs, money, and murder. It is hard to believe that lyrics like, “Keep shootin' until somebody die, / So many shots the neighbor looked at the calendar, / Thought it was Fourth of July” have any value at all (“No Heart”). Upon further examination, it is evident that 21’s lyrics and songs have deep meaning. In Elias Leight's Rolling Stone article “21 Savage: Talking Honesty, Politics and 'Mumble Rap' With Atlanta's No-Nonsense MC” 21 is quoted as saying: It's hard being Black, I don't think people really understand how hard it is to be Black. Especially when you coming from nothing. In the hood, there's already a lot of hate just amongst us Black people. We killin' each other and everybody else killin' us too. We poor. And the world hates us.
It becomes clear that he is not rapping about drugs and murder to show off to anyone or prove anything: he is doing it because that is what he knows, and he is sharing his personal life and experiences through his raps. 21 Savage’s lyrics are explicit, provocative, gut wrenching, and sometimes hard to listen to — but have you ever questioned why some rap and hip hop artists like 21 Savage choose to write these songs? Through his music, 21 Savage is giving society a firsthand look at the problems African Americans face — the very thing McWhorter said rap and hip hop fail to bring to light. 21 Savage recently released his debut album Issa in which he raps primarily about money, sex, and drugs. However, he also challenges and opposes controversial topics permeating society today. At one moment, you can be listening to the seemingly one-dimensional song, “Money Convo” detailing all the money and women 21 Savage has gained through fame, and at the next, you can be listening to “Nothin New,” a song that leaves the listener heartbroken and angered after being taken on a detailed journey showing them what it means to be Black today. Through artists like 21 Savage, society can become more informed about the real-life experiences and hardships African Americans face. 21 Savage is a great example of an artist within the rap community whose music contains vulgar themes and is used as a source of entertainment, but also advocates for societal change.
While it can be true that a lot of rap and hip hop is created and tailored specifically to entertain and serves no other purpose, is that not the purpose of most music in every genre? I think John McWhorter is setting a double standard by saying that rap and hip hop have no educational value. Is he saying that songs such as country singer Sam Hunt’s hit “Body Like A Back Road” — which only serves to compare a woman’s body to the curves of a backcountry road — or Calvin Harris’ pop hit “Slide” — which talks about drugs, partying, and frivolous spending — prove there is nothing educational or constructive in the entirety of those country and pop genres? No matter the genre, there will be artists who create music with no true value and no educational or constructive purpose. Likewise, no matter the genre, there will be artists who create powerful music, music that has purpose. Music that is educational, constructive, and beneficial. I think McWhorter is unfairly singling out rap and hip hop music by failing to acknowledge that other genres can be just as superficial and meaningless.
In his article, McWhorter asks his readers to fill in the blank in this sentence: “In a history book 100 years from now, we will see it written that ‘Because of hip hop raising consciousness of ghetto poverty starting in the late 1980s, _________.’” He also asks his readers to “note the difficulty” of that task. Because of artists like Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar, and others engaging in musical protest, I think that blank is relatively easy to fill. The sentence could end with “it created the biggest revolution in American music” — at least, that is what Helen Regan for Time magazine claims hip hop has done. Better yet, a history book could read: “Without the influence of rap and hip hop music in the late 20th and early 21st century, political revolutions such as #BlackLivesMatter would have never gained as much attention or political traction.” Haltiwanger claims that, “His [Kendrick Lamar’s] album, To Pimp A Butterfly, has emerged as the unparalleled soundtrack to Black Lives Matter.” It is evident that artists like Beyoncé and Lamar are catalysts for political action that validates rap and hip hop as “constructive.” John McWhorter claims that hip hop and rap lyrics have no value, cannot be educational, and cannot increase awareness of the problems African Americans face. He is wrong. Artists like Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar have a prolific effect on society by bringing to notice difficult topics such as institutional racism, police brutality, suicide, feminist issues, and many more. Even artists like 21 Savage, who doesn’t have an overt political agenda, provide the public with a firsthand account of what it means to be Black in America. Every single one of these artists did this through their music — through rap and hip hop. Without a doubt, rap and hip hop can be educational, constructive, and increase awareness of the struggles Black people living in America must endure.
Works Cited
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