what moves the masses?

that is the question i beg of you. by now, we should all understand that hip hop has not only provided the disenfranchised with an outlet against social prejudices, it has affected middle-america and those spared of violent lifestyles in which hip hop was birthed. in little more than thirty years, hip hop has grown into a forceful and unavoidable voice which has taken over the world. anyone who suggests that hip hop is a voice of violence and disrespect fails to realize that though its origins were birthed in a time of violence and despair, it has successfully transformed into an art form that transcends all races, regions, religions, and generational gaps.


hip hop music has been an influential form of expression for over thirty years, but let's face it, in the last decade, hip-hop has lost some of its validity. commercialism has transformed it into a commodity rather than a platform for political expression. some rappers, though their initial intention is to stay true to hip hop’s classic form, are too willing to conform to industry standards, standards that are not in keeping with traditional hip hop. therefore, they compromise the art form or genre in order to ‘make it’ in the music business. significantly, commercialization has marginalized, or completely excluded, hip hop’s political platform.

in the time leading up to hip hop's explosion in the fall of 1975, new york city was a sad mega-city consumed in government corruption, crime, and poverty, and drugs and gangs were found on almost every block in the ghettos of every nyc borough. however, for every thorn there is a rose, and from the streets that spewed grime and immorality, came the foundations of hip hop, which spread by way of block parties and gym/park jams.

the idea of hip hop, as it is known today, is dominated by the dream of big houses, fancy cars, women, and money, all components necessary to making it ‘big’ in the business. however, hip hop IS a culture, a way of life, not a measure of material goods. the culture of hip hop is now becoming absorbed in the commercialization of the art form that started as a means of communication, not profit. what was once a voice of political advocacy and social change is now used for personal gain at the expense of the ‘little people’ that made hip-hop a lifestyle.

so where did we go wrong? when did the MCs stop MC-ing? rapping and MC-ing are, in fact, different. the past decade has shown that anyone can rap. not everyone is an MC. MC-ing consists of being able to convey a feeling to your audience. if your audience feels your pain or your joy, then the artist has MC-ed his rhymes to you. jay-z, nas, wu-tang, scarface, black moon, mos def & talib kweli, tupac, and biggie are just a few of the handful of rappers who could, in fact, MC, unfortunately many of the best MCs will not get their time to shine because they are not ‘commercial enough for big labels to market, like say...50 cent (i'm tryin hard not to be a hater, but he makes it so easy).

the cultural movement has not fallen to the wayside. it is in fact strong and the movement is going to come back stronger than ever. as poet-griot-author gil scott-heron said, “the revolution will not be televised. the revolution will be live.” but maybe i'm buggin in thinking we can go back to good ole days, but as always these are just my thoughts ladies and gentlemen.