Week One (Make-up Work): When hip hop grew too large - we created a class for it.

I'm a new blogger, so it's taken me a little more time to catch up than most. Here are my thoughts on week one's reading...

I like that Michel Eric Dyson writer of Know What I Mean? considers himself a cultural critic, but on the side of hip hop, not against it. He writes intelligently and regardless of stereotypes. Hip hop, like most beginnings, started out as a hobby localized in the streets of New York City. Dyson makes a good point when he argues that hip hop only started becoming controversial when it grew larger than the NYC block parties that started them. Anytime something outgrows itself, it seems that someone will find something flawed about it. In That's the Joint, it implies that hip hop is about passion. Hip hop is an art form. B-boying, graffiti, the style, the speech, it is all about being authentic.

I sense a lot of unity within the beginnings of hip hop community. Jay-Z uses "brothers" and "sisters" when addressing "we" the readers. It brings me into his world more by establishing a familial bond, while addressing his distaste for stereotypes. Murray Forman asserts that hip hop is "the social cohesion" from the neighborhoods in the projects.

Jay-Z is my favorite example of rap. I like Jay-Z's song, "Ignorant Shit"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ddf_NsBsUuU

Talking about "I got that ignorant shit you need....I'm only trying to give you what you want." He's mocking what rap is now. He goes on to state in his introduction that hip hop, came from America, yes, the good and the bad. It is essentially American. Hip hip is America. The rappers are American. Those who gave hip hop its start, are American. He argues that distaste for hip hop stems from fear. Those who don't understand hip hop, will fear it. It challenges the social norms of our society and the social contract that we follow. Hip hop supporters argue that their lyrics are works of art, much like MacBeth. Socially unacceptable ideas can freely form with our right to freely express.

I was really surprised when reading about the "graffiti wars." Grafitti artists "just do it" while NYC officials pour in $22.4 million towards cleaning up the tags (Castleman, 27). I've never been a huge fan of graffiti. I think it is a waste of human resources, but I can't help but smile a little reading about the "little guys who upset the social contract."