Program Length: 1/2 hour
Produced: 2001

This video presents a variety of opinions on the purposes of hip hop. All the opinions are those of artists rather than critics, academics or fans. Short examples of hip hop songs punctuate statements from many major hip hop artists.

The following discussion activities appear chronologically as they occur in the video. Discussion leaders may use them all, or select those that best suit the group and the time frame.

A challenge for viewers will be to keep up with and consider the opinions in order to assess and reflect on their relevance and meanings. This study guide provides several printed quotes that might be replayed or handed out to students. Ample time must be taken to discuss and process the statements. Pause the program frequently.

There are also several opportunities to research artists and issues, listen to their work, and discuss their political positions and contributions to hip hop music.

Students might first consider the differences, if any, between rap and hip hop. Christie Z-Pabon (Tools of War? hip hop Activism) suggests that rap refers to a musical artist, but hip hop refers to a cultural movement. Many artists in the video provide very precise, but not always consistent, definitions of hip hop, which provides students with opportunities to research and discuss.

1. The host states, "Hip hop is a music with a message and music with a mission."

"Everybody's coming with the same old same old monotonous-ass rap. Oh! I got this I got that! I got women! I got a cast! I got cars! I got all that! But do you have a mind?! Do you have something that can progress us on to the next level?" Sunspot Jonz - Mystik Journeymen

Jonz' statement suggests that artists should 'progress us on to the next level.' Do artists have an obligation to progress us on to the next level? How can they do that? What is the next level?

2. Guru sites two influences, Melle Mel and Gil Scott-Heron ("I can't pay no doctor bills cause Whitey's on the moon. Ten years from now I'll be payin’ them still while Whitey's on the moon")

To learn more about Gil Scott-Heron, visit
www.gilscottheron.com/
and
www.soul-patrol.com/funk/rev.htm

3."Our people are painting us out to be just hoods and criminals and gangsters. I advocate a whole different kind of hip hop which I feel is the legitimate hip hop which is self-creation, self-love, self-evidence." KRS 1

Which artists are 'painting us out to be just hoods and criminals and gangsters?' Which of KRS 1's songs promote 'self-creation, self-love, self-evidence?'

4. "Art is something that should progress society at the same time that it reflects. If it only reflects society without progressing it then what you got is a different type of slavery." Chuck D

How might an artist who only reflects society be considered a 'slave?' How might an artist whose art progresses society be more free?

5. "Bling Bling: to floss, to show off excessive material goods such as jewelry, cars and cash."

"You have to stay in tune with what young people are about, and it just so happens that “bling bling” is what young people are about right now." Hype Williams (video director)

"The world is all about get money and I don't care -- power over people, you know what I'm saying? So we're just a mirror image of our society." Akil - Jurassic 5

Hype Williams attempts to justify the presence of “bling bling” in his videos, while Akil understands why “bling bling” is popular. How would Chuck D respond to those assertions?

6. "Ain't nothing wrong with living lavishly but make sure you're in tune with your spirit and put your spirit before art or any material things." Common

Is it possible to live lavishly while simultaneously being 'in tune with your spirit?' Is the power of money and bling bling stronger than the power of the spirit? What examples of the power of the spirit in hip hop can you provide to support your decision?

7. "The kids see it, the kids get it, the kids take it for what it's worth: nothing." Eminem

Does Eminem's art support his statement that hip hop is worth nothing, or do his songs and videos suggest that his music is part of a cultural movement? What evidence can you suggest to support your decision?

8. "You can't have all party records; you can't have all conscious records. There should be a variety." Mos Def

Should there be a balance between party and conscious records? What should the proportion be of each? Why? Does Much Music provide a balance? How might the balance be improved?

9. Several hip hop artists have supported social programs.

Dead Prez have created the People's Army, a unit they call "freedom fighters dedicated to uplifting and defending the poor and oppressed."

Common Ground is Common's organization dedicated to raise funds and awareness for political prisoners and community projects.

Mos Def and Talib Kwell put together Hip Hop for Respect with other artists to raise awareness and funds for the Amadou Diallo Foundation and other organizations fighting social injustice. The Wyclef Jean Foundation was created to donate musical therapy and instruments to underprivileged kids worldwide.

Wyclef has also been involved with projects for his native Haiti.

Are these projects good examples of hip hop Consciousness? What other examples can you name? What other examples can you suggest as worthwhile projects?

10. "Everything is political, from the way we have sex to the way we talk about having sex to the way we drive our cars is a political statement. All that work is guided by liberation and freedom." stic.man - Dead Prez

How can having sex and driving cars be political statements? If they are political statements, then they can be conscious. How can someone have sex and drive cars with consciousness? Describe some other activities that can be done with consciousness.

11. During Common's statements, we see news footage of many Black leaders, including the Black Panthers, Malcolm X, Nelson Mandela, and Martin Luther King.

How do the images change the meaning of Common's statements? Are these images appropriate? Why? Is hip hop as political as Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King, or do these images make it more important than it really is? Explain.

12. "What are you saying at the end of the day? Who's giving the message? You got the privilege to get up there and speak to hundreds and thousands and sometimes millions of people. What're you going to do with that time that you got in the light for people to pay attention to you? What are you going to do with that?" PSC - Mystic Journeymen

"I feel like I'm a spokesman." Wyclef Jean

PSC and Wyclef Jean suggest that hip hop artists have a social responsibility to use their privileged positions to condemn injustice, to be good role models and to use their wealth to help those less fortunate. Is that a fair expectation? Is it fair to condemn artists who do NOT do these things? Explain.

13. "hip hop will always be around and that's because America ain't finished oppressing its people yet. The more we are oppressed, the stronger hip hop gets." KRS 1

What role did oppression play in the creation of hip hop? What role does oppression play in the continuing evolution of hip hop? Will the end of oppression be the end of hip hop? Why?

For a transcript of this program, visit www.thenewmusic.net/nmtranscripts/NM13-839.htm

For more information on this aspect of Hip hop try: http://past.thenation.com/cgi-bin/framizer.cgi?url=http://past.thenation.com/issue/990726/0726ards.shtml and www.daveyd.com/

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