Hip Hop Culture Research Paper

Hip Hop culture is a culmination of things, such as music like rap, graffiti, and all around attitude, that allowed for the self expression of people from the inner cities. Music has always been a way for people of all generations to voice their opinions on social issues. Same goes for rap. The creator of the genre, Kool Herc, used to have large parties where he would speak while playing different records, forming the most primitive form of rap. These gatherings were credited for helping teens stay off the streets and out of trouble by giving them a place to release all their pent up energy. “The Message”, by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five released in 1982, is considered one of the first songs to spread a message of the awful conditions

The new age of artists is where hip hop music starts to develop more materialistic and shallow message alongside ones that socially conscience. The first artist to bring hip hop into mainstream pop industry was LL Cool J, who produced songs that were not controversial and rough like most rappers at the time. While groups like Public Enemy still made music that called for the rise of poor and less fortunate, rappers were able to join the mainstream music industry and make huge financial gains off of something that was originally meant to be for self expression. This leads to some artists “selling out” in order to get as much money as they can and abandon songs that provide positive and somewhat controversial messages to shallow messages because that's what sells the best. In modern hip hop, there are many artists who try to draw attention to the issues in this country

This song by a group called the Wu-Tang Clan in 1993 speaks about the power of money. The song main message is that cash is the ruler of everything and if you don't have it you are nothing. However the song does not glorify money but instead takes you through the struggle of acquiring enough money to make a change in your life while living in the slums of New York. Each verse tells a similar story, a teen that turns to selling drugs in order to make money but each person has a slightly different outcome. This song message of the power of money shows why mainstream hip hop has been corrupted but this song is also a perfect example of what hip hop can really do. C.R.E.A.M. not only delivers a deep message about poor people have no power because of their class but it also tells the listener what's going on in the poorer sections of the United States. People are forced to turn to selling drugs to make a living in the inner cities. Most middle and upper class families do not know about this. C.R.E.A.M. is an example of what artists should do, rap should be a platform for them to spread political and social messages to parts of the country that were previously unaware of the conditions of