Kendrick Lamar is known for his controversial lyrics discussing popular and historic political issues. Recently winning the Grammy for best music video of the year, he typically uses his music videos as a paratext to further elaborate on his thought provoking songs and to point out issues in society. His Grammy winning video, “Humble,” does an exceptional job of highlighting the increasing conformism in society and suggests nonconformity as a way in which an individual can rise above it. The increasing conformism that Kendrick Lamar is critical of is a type of ideology. An ideology is a system of values upheld by a group and the values effect the group’s actions and goals. A conformist ideology can be defined by one following the popular route …show more content…
laid out by society and one flaunting their abilities or material possessions with the goal of seeking approval from others. In Kendrick Lamar’s music video “Humble,” he shows criticism towards conformist ideologies through his use of religious allusion and photoshop comparisons; Lamar then suggests following a nonconformist ideology as a way to take a stand against this societal issue by contrasting his visual appearance with extras. Throughout the music video, Lamar makes several allusions to Christianity, the first appearing in the introduction of the video. Lamar is seen dressed as The Pope as the song begins, and this scene is directly followed by him laying on a table shooting money into the air. This stark contrast between Lamar being a man of the church and a greedy and gluttonous man sets the tone for the remainder of the video. Literature researcher Siebe Blujis explains: “Lamer is known for his use of split subjectivity to emphasize corruption,” and while “Humble” does not use split subjectivity heavily within the lyrics of “Humble” as Blujis suggests he typically does, it is clearly seen within the video (Buijs 79). By using this method in this video to highlight the “most humble” as a member of the church and the “least humble” as a person taking on two of the deadly sins (greed, gluttony), the video reiterates the different approaches one can have towards their humility. Humility is directly related to conformity in that being humble is defined as not flaunting one’s abilities to others, while conforming to social norms involves one seeking approval from the masses. If one is not flaunting their abilities, then they could not possibly be actively seeking the approval of others. Therefore, someone who is less humble would be following a conformist ideology because they are adhering to the social norm that people often strive to conform to is flaunting their wealth, fame, or abilities with the goal of seeming superior to others. One method Kendrick Lamar utilizes in the first scene to share his opinion on these displays of humility and how they are representative of a conformist ideology is by representing different characteristics of each character with symbolic clothing colors.
When dressed as The Pope, Lamar is dressed in all white— typically representative of purity and good. However, when on the table throwing money, Lamar is dressed in all black— typically representative of evil and corruption when compared to white. This structure follows one of Kendrick Lamar’s popular methods of critiquing societal issues as identified by Graham: using binary themes to depict “clear-cut heroes and villains” within society (Graham 123). Out of the hero and villain that Lamar portrays within “Humble,” The Pope, the hero of the two, is marked as “good” through colors. Because The Pope is shown as noble and because he represents a nonconformist ideology, Lamar is stating that a nonconformist ideology is a positive attribute to hold. On the other hand, the braggart is the villain and more “bad” of the two as shown through colors, thus implying that the braggart’s conformist ideology is negative. This plays with color and religious allusion identifies that Lamar is attempting to get across to viewers that following a nonconformist ideology is good, while conforming is bad given that humility is related to the act of flaunting characteristic of a conformist
ideology. Another religious allusion made within the video is seen as Lamar and others sit at a table eating. This image shares an unmissable resemblance to the image of The Last Supper. Graham observes Lamar often uses “historic and hyperreal representations” similar to this while forming comparisons in his music videos (Graham 125). By using the historic and hyperreal image of The Last Supper in this song’s video to portray himself as Jesus surrounded by his disciples, Lamar puts himself in a place of power among his peers. As his peers indulge in the delicacies before them and act in an obscene manner, Lamar calls them out and encourages them to sit back down as the lyrics continue “Be humble, sit down.” Though this act is a direct reference to the lyrics, Lamar taking on the role of Jesus Christ adds significance to the scene in that Jesus is a divine being in history. Therefore, by being humble and thus refusing to conform to social norms one is assuming a characteristic of The Divine. Lamar continues to use the method of split subjectivity throughout the music video, and the most discernible place this method can be seen is when the divided screen is used to demonstrate the role that Photoshop plays in altering people’s perceptions of public figures. Photoshop is the most common program used for editing pictures and videos and is notorious for creating a false image of reality. Lamar has been observed “blurring the lines between the dominant power and its opposite image” in past songs, and by using photoshop in “Humble” to represent manipulated images of reality he critiques which of the displays the masses view as dominant— the more airbrushed, standard appearances (Bluijs 86). Lamar exclaims within the song: “I'm so f****** sick and tired of the Photoshop.” By being critical of the editing done to himself and the accompanying female that was done in order to make them conform more to social beauty norms and adhere to the “dominant power,” Lamar suggests that not conforming to these is a way in which one can combat the harmful conformist ideologies that he critiques throughout the song and video. Blujis exclaims, “To rap is to engage in political discourse in the eyes of Lamar” (Bluijs 82). By engaging in political discourse within “Humble,” Lamar is able to speak towards the specific issue of humility in today’s society. Through this platform, he encourages individualism and is able to take a stand against the conformist ideologies that tend to limit this virtue. The most common image within the music video is Lamar not following the lead of those around him, once again highlighting the “binary divisions within a social issue” that he is known for highlighting within raps (Bluijs 79). This suggests assuming a nonconforming ideology is a way of taking a stand against the societal issues that Lamar points out throughout the song, such as people’s problems regarding humility and obsession with presenting the perfect image. Lamar is seen going against socially acceptable actions and combatting social norms several times throughout the song, such as when he is the only head not shaven among the crowd, when he is the only person without ropes wrapped upon his head, and when he is the only person wearing white in a sea of black. Each of these images identify different benefits to showing deviance from society. The image of Lamar’s hair in a crowd of bald, black men shows that embracing individuality and refusing to conform allows one to develop unique ideas and see things in a way different from most. As the bald men bob their heads up and down in groups, mumbling the same words, Lamar can be seen in the middle with his braids singing his original lyrics, and observing things that the others are not able to. In a separate scene, the extras’ heads are wrapped in ropes and being burned: Lamar’s head burns without rope. This image of Lamar contrasting those around him suggests that following a nonconformist ideology allows one to think for themselves and not be plagued by the ideologies of the masses. Both of these scenes showing a similar benefit to deviance from the norm, Lamar displays that in order to form unique ideas and recognize things others cannot (both traits that are traditionally praised), one must resist a conformist ideology. The final image in the music video utilizes the same color imagery to depict traits of the individuals as is used earlier in the video with the colors used to display The Pope and braggart. Extras dress in black, as Lamar stands out in a stark, white suit. While they stand in unison at first, as the extras begin to walk away, Lamar remains where he is. This suggests that he holds a place of power among those dressed in black— that by refusing to confine himself to the norms of others, he retains individual power and choice. Graham observes that often times in Kendrick Lamar’s music, “Power is both a shield and a liability” (Graham 129). However, in the context of this specific scene in “Humble,” power assumes a liberating role. By taking on a nonconforming ideology within the video, Lamar gains power over those who choose to conform. The 2018 Grammy winning Music Video of the Year, “Humble,” by Kendrick Lamar, is critical of societies ever-increasing presence of people assuming conformist ideologies, while suggesting that one resists such issue by assuming the opposite: a nonconformist ideology. He accompanies the original song with the paratext of the music video and uses allusion and visual comparisons to further emphasize the importance of defying social norms. Lamar is no stranger to critiquing social issues and he expands upon his past political discourse with “Humble." By encouraging people to embrace their individuality, Kendrick Lamar combats conformist ideologies and helps people to find their own voice and power.
Conformity can be very crucial, infact a lot of people eventually start hurting themselves or doing drugs just because they don't feel themselves anymore.Why can't society change? why can't that one kid that always follows everyone in the back can turn into the kid that just hangs with the people they really wanna hang with?We need to embrace ourselves so we can stop all this conformity from consuming us.Tupac was a nonconformist, he always did what made him happy and always told the truth.
The movie, Cool Hand Luke, tells a story of a man named, Lucas Jackson, who is confronted with the challenges of authority after being wrongfully convicted of crime too petty and insignificant to equate to the large sentence he had received. Throughout the entire length of the film, Lucas is faced with tremendous physical and emotional torture in numerous and inhuman ways. Despite the astounding punishments Luke is able to endure throughout the film, he manages to gain the respect of the prisoners and guards’, as well as utilizing his tenacity, charisma, and wits to not only influence the prison chain-gang, but to gain the power in order to unmask and expose the authority around them. In the following essay, I will analyze and describe how
Many people have trouble being apart of a society. These troubles come from trying to fit in, which is also known as conforming. Another trouble is trying to express one’s own style with one’s own opinion. This is a trouble due to the fact that many people have the fear of being frowned upon when being the black sheep of the group if one’s opinion does not correspond with other opinions. This is where one’s own sense of who they are, individuality, and trying to fit in, conformity, can get confused. A nickname for conformity is “herd behavior” which is the name of an article where the author relates animals that herd with people that conform. Many people have a different philosophy of this topic which will be expressed in this essay. An important
Lamar has been successfully achieving his dream by rapping about the stress and difficult situations he has encountered but strongly claims that we will all be alright in his song, “Alright.” He released a song called “i” that reflects how violence has increased in the cities and how he wishes everyone should love each other as humans. His last song on “To Pimp A Butterfly” called “Mortal Man” he states “only because you don’t wear the same color as mine, that doesn’t mean I can’t respect you as a human being.” He clearly states how he understands the reputations of other gang members may seem important but should all still respect others as people. Lamar has been a role model to several students from the city of Compton that was able to create a scholarship called “Be Alright” that is based off the same song called “Alright.” Kendrick Lamar has been respectively producing music for his fans without a doubt of impressive beats and
“If I was gay / I would think hip-hop hates me / Have you read the YouTube comments lately? / ‘Man that's gay’ / Gets dropped on the daily / We've become so numb to what we're sayin.'” In these few lines, Macklemore brings up the fact that the genre of hip-hop has become one that is “anti-gay.” Hip-hop is a very common genre of music and it reaches a large population of people, mostly young people who will have an effect in the future of America. This is Macklemore’s target audience: the general public who can make a difference. Macklemore has surprised many by coming out with this popular, pro-gay, hip-hop song. It is rational to see that he took a stand against the issue as well as a risk in his career by supporting this idea. The listeners understand that those lines are very truthful; the hip-hop genre and most of society has become anti-gay. Almost all of his audience is familiar with YouTube and can understand where Macklemore is coming from in these lines. Most of his audience has seen comments on YouTube similar to “Man that’s gay.” Macklemore is bringing attention to the fact that his audience has become numb to harsh words like so and the general public has lost a sentimental feeling. Macklemore goes on to give an example of the desensitizing of society by giving the reference to “faggots”, “a word rooted in hate, yet our genre still ignores
Most rap songs about relationships are used as a way to preach about power, money and status. What makes Lamar’s video LOYALTY unique is that he took a different approach on the overused narrative. Kendrick Lamar’s video LOYALTY is a creative platform which uses movement through visual effects and camera angles to demonstrate hypermasculinity and active female roles through the scenes which together, tell a story of power and loyalty within a
In Kendrick Lamar’s song PRIDE, Kendrick shows the listener that for him, pride is one of a number of sins he finds it difficult to avoid. He hopes that the lyrics in his songs will make amends from the mistakes he has made. To enhance his message, he uses the literary devices personification, rhyme and allusion. Personification is giving human traits to inanimate objects. For example, in the song, Kendrick says, “Love’s gonna get you killed.
It goes without saying that hip-hop has changed. It began as a social practice of African-centered liberation to transform the black community or bring the youth together in unity, but towards the 90’s and onto the hip-hop scene in todays day and age, it is anything but that. The youth of today will know Tupac Shakur and beautify or streamline his self-destructive “thug life” but remain in the dark of figures like Mutulu and Afeni Shakur. Although this is a sad reality to live in, it is not hip-hops responsibility to change this. It is the responsibility of artists alike representing an oppressed populace to speak meaningfully in their art, in someway or another, for the liberation of their people.
While on a recent carefree jaunt throughout Harlem, I was introduced to the lyrical genius of one “Big L.” As is common of all true artists, Mr. L passed before his time, but not without a legacy. You see, it is the will of the Almighty Himself that I elucidate the meaning of Mr. L’s first major work, “Put it On,” in order for it to be made accessible to the common man and the upper crust alike, so that this truly majestic piece may live for eternity in the bosom of humankind. To this end, I have composed a line-for-line translation of the complex, sophisticated diction, which, I expect, will henceforth serve as the standard through which all scholars will study this master of the English language.
In contrast, today’s popular music is of a secular origin. Some types of contemporary music mirror the decline in our value system. The “pop” or “hip-hop” culture is characterized by explicit sexuality, habitual use of profanity, and depiction of extreme violence in music and all other forms of entertainme...
Whips and chains have played an important role in Black American’s oppressive history. In the days of slavery, chains were used to dehumanize us, restrain us and keep us from escaping our oppression, while whips were used to reinforce the oppression and our inferiority as a race. Today, literal whips and chains no longer represent the oppression of Black Americans; they have been replaced with the drive to obtain modern day “whips and chains”, or simply put, material possessions- a new, slightly self-imposed slavery. This is evident in the unifying factor of hip-hop music, which glorifies a lavish lifestyle sometimes at the cost of morals, values, and self worth.
These six words in many ways defined the late 1980s and 1990s, encapsulating the rise of hip-hop, NIKE, Michael Jordan, and the racial-class narratives embedded in each of them. The problem of such ethos are highlighted in a music video from Seattle’s very own Macklemore and Ryan Lewis.
Hip hop has permeated popular culture in an unprecedented fashion. Because of its crossover appeal, it is a great unifier of diverse populations. Although created by black youth on the streets, hip hop's influence has become well received by a number of different races in this country. A large number of the rap and hip hop audience is non-black. It has gone from the fringes, to the suburbs, and into the corporate boardrooms. Because it has become the fastest growing music genre in the U.S., companies and corporate giants have used its appeal to capitalize on it. Although critics of rap music and hip hop seem to be fixated on the messages of sex, violence, and harsh language, this genre offers a new paradigm of what can be (Lewis, 1998.) The potential of this art form to mend ethnic relations is substantial. Hip hop has challenged the system in ways that have unified individuals across a rich ethnic spectrum. This art form was once considered a fad has kept going strong for more than three decades. Generations consisting of Blacks, Whites, Latinos, and Asians have grown up immersed in hip-hop. Hip hop represents a realignment of America?s cultural aesthetics. Rap songs deliver a message, again and again, to keep it real. It has influenced young people of all races to search for excitement, artistic fulfillment, and a sense of identity by exploring the black underclass (Foreman, 2002). Though it is music, many people do not realize that it is much more than that. Hip hop is a form of art and culture, style, and language, and extension of commerce, and for many, a natural means of living. The purpose of this paper is to examine hip hop and its effect on American culture. Different aspects of hip hop will also be examined to shed some light that helps readers to what hip hop actually is. In order to see hip hop as a cultural influence we need to take a look at its history.
In recent discussion of hip hop culture, a controversial issue has been whether if hip hop makes people believe that money is everything you need to get respect and power. Some argue that you need to build respect and by building respect you become powerful and that will lead you to money. On the other hand, however, others argue that hip hop life helped them a lot by writing the lyrics and saying the things that they can’t do or say. One of this view’s main proponents, “money brings power, ” according to this view, people who have more money will get more power and then they usually use this power to do the most disturbing activities, such as crime. In sum, then, the issue is whether having too much power is good or it’s just a life destroyer.
>. Dixon, Travis L., TaKeshia Brooks. “Rap Music and Rap Audiences: Controversial Themes, Psychological Effects and Political Resistance.” Perspectives. 7 April 2009. .