Despite its complex and multifaceted origins, the variety within the rap genre today has been blurred together with similar beats, samples, and themes of sex and violence flowing throughout almost every discography of modern rappers. However, one artist and his Grammy-award winning album never fails to stand out in the crowd for its lyrical rollercoasters and one-of-a-kind voice. Artist Kendrick Lamar’s rise to fame and path through the rap industry is a unique progression incomparable to any modern rapper. A sound unlike any other, Lamar’s career kicked off with his second album, “Good Kid, M.A.A.d City”. The album held components of conscious rap and heavy alternative undertones, paving the way for his 2015 album “To Pimp a Butterfly”, which …show more content…
The title, “To Pimp a Butterfly”, serves as an overhead metaphor to illustrate the journey of an artist rising through the rap industry. The tracklist of the album is often compared to the stages of a butterfly, beginning with the caterpillar, then moving into the stage of a cocoon, and finishing off as the final product of a butterfly. The album opens with “Wesley’s Theory”, featuring a sample from the 1970s film, “Every N****a is a Star” that was intended to change the negative connotation of the word in Jamaica while promoting black pride. Genius Lyrics - "The 'Girls'" Going back to the metaphor of a butterfly’s growth, this first track as the introduction to the album resembles the “caterpillar”, or the beginning of the rapper’s career. we The lyrics, “When the four corners of this cocoon collide/You'll slip through the cracks hopin' that you'll survive/Gather your wit, take a deep look inside/Are you really who they idolize?/To Pimp a Butterfly” The metaphor to the cocoon refers to the “break out” that small artists endure when “making it …show more content…
The album cover itself gives a preview of "To Pimp a Butterfly”, representing the meaning of being black in America and the dynamics of race in American politics. The cover pictures a group of black men and children in front of the White House, holding cash and bottles in hand. With “To Pimp a Butterfly” being released during Obama’s presidency, it nods towards America’s first black president and the culture and black history that he brought into the traditionally white space. The White House historically is a symbol of black oppression, with the first nine U.S. presidents owning slaves and others actively enforcing the racist system and laws. He continues this theme with Lastly, Kendrick Lamar dominates the rap scene with his wide array of sound throughout “To Pimp a Butterfly”. Lamar’s album is the last thing from boring, as the sounds jump from jazz to funk, from dense spoken-word to dragged dialogue. He keeps us on our toes, as we never know what to hear next. His twists and turns, rapid changes of pace, and varying tones all come together to form a cohesive representation of black
In Adam Bradley’s “Rap poetry 101” he shows us how rap is more than just songs being sung, it is poetry; it is something that has an empowering ability to make the familiar unfamiliar.In this chapter Bradley creates a new viewpoint too rap. Bradley shows us how rap and poetry has become a very similar piece of art that should be further appreciated. In the chapter poetry 101 Bradley describes how rap is a form of public art, and how rappers have become our greatest public poets. The importance of rap as poetry is shown throughout Bradley's book as well as the evidence behind the reasons rap is poetry.
This metaphor is found through each track and helps Lamar navigate the listener through his experiences. The caterpillar represents an adolescent that consumes everything around it. The butterfly represents the talent and potential of the caterpillar. Society shapes or “pimps” the caterpillar, but the butterfly can blossom into something that sheds light on ideas the caterpillar never considered. This imagery soundly depicts the effects of America’s structural racism in the black culture. Racism has a long-lasting effect on adolescents and their future ways of life. They consume all the oppression around them, which creates a mold for their behavior. Once they experience life as an adult, they think back to their previous struggles with a new perspective or idea. This constant oppression of the black culture is a major issue in modern society. It limits the future success of African Americans and puts boundaries on what they are potentially capable of. A black child could have the aspirations of changing the world, but he will eventually realize how much more difficult his goals will be to achieve in comparison to his white contemporaries. The American Dream is built around the people of the white skin color instead of being a universal goal. Lamar puts his beliefs in the dreams of others for a better future rather than what society wants him to
When people hear the word rap, they think money and drugs. Unfortunately, every rapper falls in to that category however some rap can be more meaningful than any song could every be. Today, I’m going to show you one rapper who falls into this stereotype.
On a lighter note, he explains his inspirations for his dream of making music in the song ‘Juicy.’ Biggie’s writing went in depth to show his audience where he came from and to also inspire other artists working their way up in the music industry. Lastly, Kendrick Lamar’s piece Good Kid m.A.A.d City is a coming of age story from the perspective of teenage Kendrick living in Compton, California. This album shows the dark side of Kendrick’s life, as well as his lighter moments of aspiration. There are vivid depictions of violence that he endured as a teen, as well as the influence of money and power.
Hip-Hop became characterized by an aggressive tone marked by graphic descriptions of the harshness and diversity of inner-city life. Primarily a medium of popular entertainment, hip-hop also conveys the more serious voices of youth in the black community. Though the approaches of rappers became more varied in the latter half of the 1980s, message hip-hop remained a viable form for addressing the problems faced by the black community and means to solve those problems. The voices of "message" hip...
When looking at the landscape of Hip-Hop among African Americans, from the spawn of gangsta rap in the mid 1980s to current day, masculinity and an idea of hardness is central to their image and performance. Stereotypical to Black masculinity, the idea of a strong Black male - one who keeps it real, and is defiant to the point of violence - is prevalent in the genre. This resistant, or even compensatory masculinity, encompasses: the hyper masculinity rife in the Western world, misogyny, and homophobia, all noticeable in their lyrics, which is in part a result of their containment within the Black community. The link of masculinity and rap music was established due to this containment, early innovators remaking public spaces in their segregated neighbourhoods. A notion of authentic masculinity arose from the resistant nature of the genre, but the move to the mainstream in the 90s created a contradiction to their very image - resistance. Ultimately, this in part led to the construction of the masculinity defined earlier, one that prides itself on its authenticity. I’ll be exploring how gender is constructed and performed in Hip Hop, beginning with a historical framework, with the caveat of showing that differing masculine identities in the genre, including artists
Songs are one way of expressing feelings and emotion, many artist do this constantly in their music. To some it is why they make music. There are endless signs and verses that hint at many things such as problems, politics, living in racist era’s also places. I chose to focus on one main rapper and his music only. I chose to examine, review, and study a few of his songs. Kid cudi grew up in cleveland, Ohio. His father passed away when he was a young age which affected the kid ever since. He writes about living his life and having to go through many obstacles
If there was one defining characteristic to hip hop in 1997, it was the jiggy factor- an aesthetic of unapologetic flash, fashion and glamour that ruled everything around us and made hip hop life nice and organized. Of course, for each movement there always exists a counter-movement; for each yin there is a yang; and for each designer-label clad champagne sipper, there must be an uncompromised figure lurking in the shadows, ready and willing to reclaim rap from the penthouse to the pavement. Embracing this return to the anarchy, enraged and raw, Def Jam Records presents 1998 as the Year of Pandemonium. The human embodiment of such exhilarating and unadulterated chaos exists in none other than Ruff Ryders/Def Jam's very latest lyrical sensation, DMX. "I love to write rhymes," says the Yonkers-born MC. "I love to express what real niggas feel, what street niggas feel. They need to be heard. They need to know there is a voice that speaks for them, and I am that voice." Within the tumultuous annals of hip hop's dog-eat-dog history, second chance opportunities are few and far between. However, every now and then the experienced and distinguished bark of a particularly cagey canine re-emerges from rap's chaotic kennels, representing the triumph and perseverance inherent in true greatness.
From its conception in the 1970's and throughout the 1980's, hip hop was a self-contained entity within the community that created it. This means that all the parameters set for the expression came from within the community and that it was meant for consumption by the community. Today, the audience is from outside of the community and doesn’t share the same experiences that drive the music. An artists’ success hinges on pleasing consumers, not the community. In today's world, it isn’t about music that rings true for those who share the artists' experiences, but instead, music that provides a dramatic illusion for those who will never share the experiences conveyed. This has radically changed the creative process of artists and the diversity of available music. Most notably, it has called in to question the future of hip hop.
In ‘Gangsta Culture…’ bell hooks tells us that the ‘patriarchal ways of thinking…are glorified in gangsta rap’ (116) and I think she’s right. Although I do not think she is right in all that she says in this narrative. She also says that ‘young black males are forced to take the heat for encouraging via their music the hatred of and violence against women…’ (116), and this I do not believe it completely true. She believes that the black men of America have taken themselves to a new degree in order to make themselves ‘higher’ than black women – she believes that the black men should be equal to the black women and that the men should believe that as well. She talks about Calvin Broadus a.k.a. Snoop Doggy Dog (which he later changed to the current title ‘Snoop Dogg’) and his album Doggystyle. She tells us that the cover is degrading toward black women, which it is, but not just to black women, to all women.
Hip hop is both a culture and a lifestyle. As a musical genre it is characterized by its hard hitting beats and rhythms and expressive spoken word lyrics that address topics ranging from economic disparity and inequality, to gun violence and gang affiliated activity. Though the genre emerged with greater popularity in the 1970’s, the musical elements involved and utilized have been around for many years. In this paper, we will cover the history and
Hip-hop began in the undergrounds in Bronx New York in the early 1970s and has gradually grown to become mainstream music. According to Lori Selke a professional writer for Global post, “hip-hop is the term that refers to more than just a musical genre; it includes culture, dance, art, and even fashion” (Selke). Since it originated in the 1970’s, hip-hop has had profound influence on society, and has grown into the lives of listeners worldwide; hip-hop’s influential power is astonishing. Within the last decade, hip-hop artist like Jay-Z, Nas, and Young Jeezy helped to increase voting in the 2008 presidential campaign by informing a hip hop audience consisting of a majority of African Americans on soon to be 44th President of the United States, by using their voice and lyrics as their tool to encouraging people to stand up for a change by voting. According to Emmett Price in his book Hip Hop Culture (2006), “in the early years prior to the rise of recorded rap music via Sugar Hill Gang’s controversial “Rapper’s Delight” (1979) hip-hop was a growing culture driven by self-determination, a love for life, and a desire to have fun [through entertaining fans and expressing themself].” (Price) Although artists today accomplish the same things, the focus of the lyrics has changed consisting of “extolling violence, drug and alcohol use, and detailing sexual exploits” (Selke). If one were to observe the most popular music from artist in the 80’s until now, they would notice a definitive change in its overall message. If hip-hop continues on its current route it will become a musical genre known solely for its references to sex, drugs, and violence.
Rap is becoming more popular than ever, soon most of the world will have some type of knowledge of rap music. Rachel Sullivan from the University of Connecticut stated “White respondents in this survey had difficulty naming three rap artists, which indicated that they did not have a high level of commitment to the music.” This statement was produced in 2003, also seemed to be very one dimensional. Recently, rap music has been surging through the masses no matter the race. Furthermore, rap is becoming very prevalent especially in the youth of this era. Many trends, commercials, social media, etc. are revolving around rap music.
Lean thinking is focused on eliminating waste throughout the company. It also places emphasis on looking through the customer’s point of view and providing value to them.
Hip- hop is a standout amongst the most compelling musical sorts on the globe. There are rappers everywhere that know what amount of an impact their music can have. Some entertainers attempt to utilize that force of impact to do great (Ruiz INT).