Music is one of the greatest forms of art. It inspires many individuals and generations. As music continues to develop, so will society. As of today and what has been going on for decades is rap music and how it portrays women. Rappers often use females as a way to gain success and fame. Although rap is extremely popular and obtains a lot of attention, especially from teenagers, it is causing a lot of negative attention towards females. Younger generations are looking up to rappers and feel what they are rapping about are true. Because of this, women all over the globe are outraged at the fact that they are being portrayed in such a derogatory manner.
Rap artists’ using women in an offensive way in the lyrics and videos is something that has recently been taking affect. Many decades ago, rappers did not rap about women the way rappers
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are making music about females currently.
It is clearly seen that rappers are only doing this to achieve success and of course the great amount of fame. When composing raps, “it is painfully clear that women are mere sex objects” (Bobo 1). In the rap world, and even in the hip-hop world, women are viewed as accessories and are not given the respect they deserve. The single reason this is done is simply for the rappers to make money. Many songs in 2015 clearly, with no shame, violate women. In Kendrick Lamar’s famous interlude rap “Buried Alive”, he says “We talk casually about the industry and how the women be the taste makers for the shit we making”. That visibly shouts women how extremely useable women are when rapper create their lyrics. That rap was featured on Drake’s album Take Care. Drake is one of the most famous and well-known rappers of today. That album made millions and Drake gained so many fans. That is just one of the many ways famous people can easily get the human populations attentions and support in what they are
trying to achieve. Anything rappers rap about, fans automatically follow those lyrics and see it being accurate. There is a famous song by Dr. Dre and Snoop Dog named “Bitches Ain’t Shit but Hoes and Tricks”. Just by the name, listeners already know what the song is going to be about. It is true when Luke Bobo says in his article that, “In the rap world, women represent success, and they are treated almost as accessories: a means for rappers to prove that they have made it to the top. It is not that rappers feel that women are inferior, but they feel treating women like a collector’s item is how they should go about displaying their new-found success” (1). Rappers do not realize the extent to which their music is affecting the younger generations. It is extremely easy to influence teenagers, specifically with music. Music videos have a huge part in swaying the kids. Anytime a hot, new song comes out, it’s an instinct for the listener to view the music video as well. Almost all music videos has women half-naked, all over the rapper. This already gives the image of women being “easy” and having no self-respect. It is believed that “when children watch television and see someone throw money in the air, with lots of cars and women, that image is stored in their minds as the definition of success. They begin to nurture the idea that in order to achieve success, you have to have beautiful women by your side” (Bobo 2). Seeing the gorgeous women, barely having any clothes on and being treated such as a “collector’s item” shows that it is normal and teenage boys are allowed to view females such as they see in the videos.
In his most recent album, Kanye West raps, “Now if I fuck this model/ And she just bleached her asshole/ And I get bleach on my T-shirt/ I 'mma feel like an asshole.” He suggests that it is the girl’s fault for getting bleach on his tee shirt, which she only did to make herself more sexually appealing. This misogyny in hip-hop culture is recognized to bring about problems. For instance, the women around these rappers believe they can only do well in life if they submit themselves to the men and allow themselves to be cared for in exchange for physical pleasure. In her essay, “From Fly-Girls to Bitches and Hoes”, Joan Morgan argues that the same rap music that dehumanizes women can be a powerful platform for gender equality if implemented correctly.
In the article “ From Fly to Bitches and Hoes” by Joan Morgan, she often speaks about the positive and negative ideas associated with hip-hop music. Black men display their manhood with full on violence, crime, hidden guilt, and secret escapes through drugs and alcohol. Joan Morgan’s article views the root causes of the advantage of misogyny in rap music lyrics. In the beginning of the incitement her desires shift to focus on from rap culture condemnation to a deeper analysis of the root causes. She shows the hidden causes of unpleasant sexism in rap music and argues that we need to look deeper into understanding misogyny. I agree with Joan Morgan with the stance that black men show their emotions in a different way that is seen a different perspective.
Will sexism ever come to an end in today’s society? Are women going to let men step all over them? Jennifer Mclune discusses in her article, Hip-Hops Betrayal on Black Women, how black male singers objectify and degrade black females in the music industry. The purpose of this article is to show how black women are being deceived in the hip hop industry and being used as sex symbols instead of showing them for their true colors. Mclune (2015) voices her strong argument in attracting her audience by using ethos, tones, and the use of word choices.
Hip hop is a form of art that African Americans have been using to get away from oppressions in their lives and allowed their voices to be heard in some type of way. As soon as big corporations seen the attention hip hop brought to the scene, they wanted to capitalize on it. These corporations picked specific types of attributes that some hip hop artists had and allowed it to flourish. The attributes that these artists carried were hypermasculinity, homophobia, violence and sexism. In the book, Hip Hop Wars by Tricia Rose discusses some of these specific attributes. One of the most damaging attribute is when hip hop is used to sexualize and demean everything about being a woman. Tricia Rose writes about this issue in chapter 5 of her book
Artist are not shy about their misogynistic lyrics, one example from Tupac, who some would classify as a legend, was very vulgar in his lyrics, for example in his song Wonder Why They Call You Bitch, he raps:
In many music videos, one can see the way in which women are displayed. Even in society, women are put down by men and seen as inferior to men. Many of these songs don't focus on changes the injustice of society. From rap, hip hop, and R&B, many artist rap about drugs and the display women half naked in their music videos. Even though most hip hop music is said to be about sex, drugs, racism and violence, there are many hip hop songs and raps that can have a positive impact on the person and that are used as a way to communicate a message. Many feminist rappers influence their audience by the lyrics and also according to their music video.
This article is titled “Rap music is harmful to African American communities” and is written by E. Faye Williams. Williams is a chairwoman of the National Congress of Black Women (NCBW). The national congress of black women is a non-profit organization dedicated to the educational, political, economic, and cultural development of African American women and their families. Williams’s article “Rap music is harmful to African American communities” makes her qualified and a credible source to be writing on this question: If rap music and other media is harming the African American community? In her article, she states her side of the argument of how rap music and media are indeed harming the African American community, using the context, and reasoning,
A race issue that occurs within the rap and hip-hop musical genre is the racial stereotypes associated with the musical form. According to Brandt, and Viki rap music and hip- hop music are known for fomenting crime violence, and the continuing formation of negative perceptions revolving around the African-American race (p.362). Many individuals believe that rap and hip-hop music and the culture that forms it is the particular reason for the degradation of the African-American community and the stereotypes that surround that specific ethnic group. An example is a two thousand and seven song produced by artist Nas entitled the N-word. The particular title of the song sparked major debates within not only the African-American community thus the Caucasian communities as well. Debates included topics such as the significance and worth of freedom of speech compared with the need to take a stand against messages that denigrate African-Americans. This specific label turned into an outrage and came to the point where conservative white individuals stood in front of the record label expressing their feelings. These individuals made a point that it is because artists like Nas that there is an increase in gang and street violence within communities. Rap and hip-hop music only depicts a simple-minded image of black men as sex crazed, criminals, or “gangsters”. As said above, community concerns have arisen over time over the use of the N-word, or the fact that many rappers vocalize about white superiority and privilege. Of course rap music did not develop these specific stereotypes, however these stereotypes are being used; and quite successfully in rap and hip-hop which spreads them and keeps the idea that people of color are lazy, all crimin...
The most popular new music to emerge from the ‘80’s was rap music. It first developed in the mid ‘70’s in New York City, and soon in other urban areas, primarily amongst African-American teen-agers. It became very popular with the urban public that it soon began to spread throughout the United States and much of the world. It replaced rock music as the creative force in music of the ‘80’s and ‘90’s. However, as popular as it was then and it is now, the lyrics of many rap songs have caused controversy. Many believe and have charged that these lyrics promote racism and violence and show contempt for women.
Women have consistently been perceived as second-class citizens. Even now, in times when a social conscience is present in most individuals, in an era where an atmosphere of gender equality 'supposedly' exists, it is blatantly apparent that the objectification and marginalization of women is still a major social issue. In reality, progression in terms of reducing female exploitation has been stagnant at best. Not only is the degradation of women a major problem that to date has not been eradicated, but it is actually being endorsed by some music celebrities. There are a growing number of people who purchase rap albums that support the fallacy that women are mere objects and should be treated as such. As the popularity of rap continues to climb at unprecedented rates, so too does its influence on the perception of women. In the vast majority of hip-hop songs, the depiction of women as sexual objects, the extreme violence directed towards them and the overall negative influence these lyrics have on the average adolescent's perception of women make rap the absolute epitome of female exploitation.
It has been over three decades that all this madness has been going on. We are in the year 2016 and these rappers still disrespect women like there is no tomorrow. Every hip-hop song talks about sex, drugs and money like it always has. There are many songs that talk down on women throughout the entire song here is an example:
Misogyny and degradation of women is present in almost every genre of music, yet the one genre that completely revolves around demeaning women is rap. Over the years rap and rap music videos have continually become more sexual and degrading towards women. Rap has been criticized numerous times for this reason, and that is because rap is one of the most popular genres of music for the younger generations. It is more than a genre of music, it is a complete industry filled with clothing and other merchandise. The reason this constant demeaning of women exists is because rap as a genre that rewards the objectification of women. The excuses used to justify the misogyny in rap are incomplete and lack accurate support. The most effective way for this continuous cycle ends, is if the fight and protest comes from the women themselves. Men are the problem in the objectification of women but in order for it to stop, women need to step up and take control of the situation.
Hip-hop and rap music are commonly criticized for its anti-feminist lyrics and degrading exploitation of women in music and music videos. (Sharpley-Whiting ) Many feminists have taken action against the music industry, which produces these messages in the music they release. However, in the hip-hop genre there are plenty of successful female rappers promoting feminist views, artist such as Queen Latifah and Mary J. Blige have made the choice to condemn the derogatory culture towards women. (Oliver, 382–384)
They not only use visual images in music videos but also through explicit lyrics and speeches. The common use of insulting expressions like “bitch” or “hoe” are thrown around loosely in an insolent manner. Rappers get blamed but women don’t make an effort to state how they feel about the statements being made through the songs. In most cases where a song may discredit their appearance and call them out of their respective names. Such as rapper Dr. Dre that has a song entitled “Bitches ain’t shit” which clearly sends a direct message to women stating how worthless they are. The main lyric is “Bitches ain't shit but hoes and tricks.” (Dr. Dre) The song was so populated it was later remixed by rappers YG, Tyga, and Nipsey Hussle. Another song that degrades women to be nothing more than sexual objects is “No Hands” by Waka Flocka Flame. “Girl drop it to the floor I love the way your booty go. All I want to do is sit back and watch you move and I’ll proceed to throw this cash.” ( Waka Flocka Flame The song is about tossing money at a female while she dances for the guy provocatively. Rappers should realize how insulting their lyrics are. These songs create an image that poses a threat to women of all
Similarly to other industries, females are unequally represented within Hip Hop culture across the board. From the start, emcees were traditionally males, proving the struggle for a woman to pursue a career in Hip Hop difficult. In modern society, it seems the culture is obsessed more with how a woman is portrayed rather than if she is a talented artist. For advertising and recognition, it is almost imperative that a female artist wears tight, skimpy clothes and “give the audience a show” with provocative dancing and lyrics. For women, beauty is basically expected by society. Keyes might refer to most of today’s female artists as “fly girls” (2016). Salt N Pepa and TLC are prime examples of prominent female figures within Hip Hop culture that dressed in a way to attract attention. For these women, the outfits merely grab the attention of the audience so they can then focus on the message behind their lyrics. While women are already underrepresented in the field, they also have to work harder for the same success that male counterparts