A Bit of Culture with a Hint of Hip Hop (Very Rough Draft)

    What exactly is hip hop? Recently, I read the article Why White Kids Love Hip-Hop by Kitwana that proposed a very interesting question of what is exactly is hip hop? Is it the music or a lifestyle? Even though I felt that points of this article mainly focused on the history of hip hop than the racial issue that the title offer, some very valuable points were made. Some may feel that it is the actual music that brings in the crowd. However, the live style associated with the music may seem appealing or drawling audiences. The article mentions about the violent and fight for equal rights during the 80s when rap and hip hop was mainly underground. The hip hop culture then took a turn for either better or worst in the 90s with Tupac and Biggy Smalls feud. But with this lifestyle and enjoyment of the genre of music, does race have a role with in it?

One of the very compelling arguments that was made during the article was if someone is of a white skin color, is it acceptable for them to enjoy the music? A very excellent point was brought up when the writer mentioned a young white man, Matthew, who thoroughly enjoyed hip hop that had only white friends as well as lived in a central America. Since the culture of hip hop tends to be urban, does this mean that it is not “right” for this individual to enjoy this type of music? I feel that this over arcing argument is just a silly thought. For example, would it be wrong for an African American who lives in the city to like country music? I would most certainly hope not. I think that race should not have an impact on people’s entertainment. 

I went through a very interesting phase in my life where I liked rap music. What I think was most appealing to me about the music was that it was a form of hearing stories whether they be made up or about what the artist was undergoing. I will be honest, it was also a way of rebelling because most of the CDs that I owned had a Parental Advisory on it. I do agree with the article when it discussed the impact that the artist Eminem had on the rap culture because I felt that his CD was the stepping stone to other artist. In other words, I guess subconsciously, I felt that he was a rapper that intrigued me because he stood out from the rest of the rap community. This is where I agree with the article when it says, “Part of Eminem is selling is whiteness”. He is the second most famous white rapping artist outside of vanilla Ice. Emininem was actually very smart with the way that he came into the rap culture because of his very distasteful lyrics, he was able to get publicity for his second album as well as be backed by a very famous record producer Dr. Dre. Those elements are what helped him stand out from other artist at that time. It also allowed and made it socially acceptable for a white audience to like this sort of music. I am not saying however, that he is the sole reason why the white community is becoming more and more apart of the hip-hop culture, but what I am saying is that he opening the door.   After listing to his CD “the Marshal Mathers LP”, I went out and bought a Dr. Dre CD and then Snoop Dog. I then went into more of the classic artist of Natorous B.I.G and Tupac. 

Race and Women in the Magazine Industry

  I read the article Get Real! Cultural Relevance and Resistance to the mediated Feminine Ideal by Lisa Duke, and I found it thought-provoking. Duke talks about how women are portrayed in magazines. However, unlike other blog entries that I have posted about women, she also discusses the topic of the race of the models in popular women’s magazines. She goes into great detail of how teenaged aimed magazines (Seventeen and YM) are some of the more acclaimed of the industry. She also discusses the different way that women read magazines such as having a few magazines for a couple of years to look at every once in a while or skimming the entire magazine and then reading it. One of the aspects of this article is that she quotes people of multiple age groups and their views on the topic. For example”Tonya, 17: I like reading the magazine, but it doesn’t have any African American or Hispanic or Asian models...So even though I like reading it, sometimes I can’t relate to all the things that they put inside. They could make it more realistic, with more culture” (288), and helps give more strength to the argument that there needs to be more of a racial diversity in the magazines. I wanted to apply what I have learned from this article by giving visual examples of the three types of models that she mentions:

1) The super model: an older woman with a lot of makeup and “almost a retouch to present an almost otherworldly beauty”. They have gained a reputation for the way that they look.

2) The fresh model: The less famous but still beautiful. Much younger but seem to look a lot alike. They are closer to the reader’s ages. The articles around them tend to be the advice theme. Another article I read, Just a Girl, Rock Music, Feminism, and the cultural Construction of Female Youth by Gayle Wald, may categorize this section for pop singers such as Gwen Stefani because it is glamorized women but still women taking pride in who they are as individuals.

3) The average girl or “the School Zone”: A much newer model. They are the “real girls who, though attractive, find their ways into the magazines because of their style and accomplishments” (290). I like to think of these girls as the “girl next story” because they are more of the type of girl that one will see on a daily bases.