Image Credits- Pinterest
Role of Music in Human Culture
Elvis Presley once said “I learned very early in life that: ‘Without a song, the day would never end; without a friend, a man ain’t got a friend; without the song, the road would never bend - without a song.’ So I keep singing a song.”
Music is an indispensable part of our routine, it is used as a coping mechanism or as therapy which helps people both emotionally and mentally. Because of this, music has become an integral and essential activity for people. From time immemorial, music has also had a huge impact on society and its listeners, especially the youth, who can be incited and influenced by music. The Harlem Renaissance with the jazz and blues is one such example, along with rock music for resistance. I think, however, that this can be best seen through the genres of rap and hip-hop, which have often been referred to as the most impactful genres for change in contemporary times. The aim of this article is to talk about the influence of rap and hip-hop on its listeners and society in general and how it has impacted the socio-cultural dynamics in recent years in both a positive and a negative manner.
The Historical Underpinnings of Rap as a Medium of Protest
The historical context of this can be determined through the example of one of the most famous and earliest rap groups called NWA that was created in the 1980’s, a group of five members hailed as “The Most Notorious Rap Group”. They have written music about some of the most hard-hitting issues and have shown their problems through music. Some of the main issues being police brutality, explicit living style, racism, discrimination against other colours and so much more. Many other people like members of NWA have made music like this such as Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, J.Cole, Wu-Tang Clan, Tupac Shakur and The Notorious BIG. The amazing part about rap is how they used their music and turned it into something so much more than just good feeling music, that people supported them through their problems not just being faced by them but also by their communities and became some of the most impactful rappers and artists in the history of music.
Modern Lyricism as a Mirror of Social Realities
Many other examples of such issues are shown more prominently by Kendrick Lamar. He has used extreme lyricism to showcase murders, extreme usage of substances and how gangs (technically these rap gangs were just a group of rappers who were also doing illegal activities and rapping about it and why they needed to do such kinds of acts such as possession of guns and other arms, substances, prostitution which did affect society directly and indirectly, NWA was one of the famous gangs, who famously made gangster rap such as ‘Gangsta Gangsta’) were made to survive, make money and protect their families. The lyrics of one of his songs known as m.A.A.d City make it quite evident.
The Political Appropriation and Suppression of Hip-Hop
People to this date have used hip-hop as a tool which is affecting the social and political situations and aspects of the world in such a vast manner, since especially leaders and dictators are also using hip-hop to have bigger popularity. The autocratic leader of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow in 2018, made a music video rapping about its country and telling how beautiful it is. It has been even recognised by Russian President Vladimir Putin but instead of banning free speech and expression, he has tried to co-opt it and control it because even he has realised the extent of power and impact this type of music has on its listeners, which was seen when he attended a rap concert in Moscow in 2009.
Rap as a Global Voice of Resistance
Rap and hip-hop are now famously being used as a form of dissent to talk about problematic oppressive regimes in their country and spread the truth about it. Recently there has been an increase in arrests of rappers and musicians who have tried to be vocal about issues in Spain and have been arrested under Article 578 of the Spanish Constitution. According to a small report by Amnesty International in 2016, around 78 people were arrested under this article and next year in 2017, 12 rappers were also arrested for making music about concerning issues in Spain, like that of Joseph Miguel Arenas (Valtònyc). Spain isn't the only place - some other countries include Iran, Turkey, Malaysia and many more. Rap has been serious in some places showcasing the most extreme problems one could. If we take a look at Thailand, which has popularised usage of rap to express their socio-political concerns, it can more specifically be seen by the rap group ‘Rap Against Dictatorship’, their hard hitting music as the name suggests is against the idea of dictatorship and they have made several songs against the Military Coup of Thailand since 2014-2018. It was after their music got popular the coup’s response was to have strict censorship laws and started controlling freedom of speech and expression. The videos they have made have extreme symbolism, one of which shows a recreation of a 1978 photo. In that photo a pro-mob government attacks the body of a student social activist who is hanging from a tree. It was part of the Thammasat Military Massacre, in which the government killed at least 46 students. This video is highly adapted and even taken inspiration from Childish Gambino’s ‘This is America’ in which they showcase the same problems but through a more Americanised perspective. A major example of rap as a tool for change also comes from Macklemore’s song “Hind’s Hall” which has been a pro-Palestine protest song gaining immense popularity.
The Emergence of Indian Hip-Hop as a Platform for Social Critique
Now hip-hop and rap are becoming more and more popular in India as well. They are talking about social issues such as dowry, casteism, discrimination and bigotry. More specifically if we look at one of the most famous Indian Rap duo today known as Seedhe Maut, they have made a song called Nazarbhattu Freestyle in which they talked about black money usage, poverty and how middle-class people are suffering in India. More recently, rap is being used by people of the Dalit, Bahujan and Adivasi communities as a tool of resistance, and it is one that fights for liberation in a way that makes it accessible to young people who find it difficult to engage with theoretical texts because of how ostracisation from education is employed against them.
The Mainstreaming of Rap: Cultural Representation in Indian Media
The Casteless Collective is one such group, along with musician Sumeet Samos who now studies at the University of Oxford. There are many others like Harish Kamble, Ginni Mahi and Arivu who have cemented the fact that rap by marginalised communities is India’s new musical vanguard and is something that cannot be overlooked in the contemporary hip hop scene. This is not a novel intervention by any means, because the mainstream has proven time and time again that rap is an emerging genre that can be used as a socio-political tool and that the rap artist can very easily be described as an activist. The 2019 movie Gully Boy was also one such example. Artists like DIVINE who sing of Azaadi not just from poverty and corruption, but also with the deeper meaning of the Kashmir liberation have been increasingly gaining popularity. In the midst of all this, MTV launching a rap reality show called MTV Hustle has been of immense popularity and has captured the fury of the genre and pushes for social justice through sound.
Image Credits- Gully Boy, Excel Entertainment Production
Conclusion: The Enduring Legacy and Socio-Cultural Significance of Hip-Hop
Rap and hip-hop, created in a small place in the Bronx in the USA have become such a huge phenomenon that they are now impacting the geopolitics and social structure of the entire world. This type of music has now threatened and in some cases has been a form of speech and revolution against the oppressive rule of governments. Hip-hop and Rap have now become a sensational iconic piece of history not just for music and streaming but also for the socio-cultural and political changes in the world and it is important to use these tools to help the world escape from further turmoil.
By Yashowardhan Chaudhary
Yashowardhan Chaudhary is a first-year student of B.A Program (English and Economics) at Hindu College, University of Delhi. He is interested in writing about Culture Studies, Politics and Intersecting Identities.
References
Hip-Hop and Streaming, Patriot Act (Show on Netflix) by Hasan Minhaj
50 Years of Hip-Hop: Exploring the Transformative Influence of Hip-Hop on the Field of Social Work by Columbia, School of Social Work (Article)
Rap Songs That Talk about Social Issues by Abeer Anjum (Analysis of Music)
Impact of Rap Music on Youth by Weebly.
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