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**Dre™** · 07-07-2008, 06:44 PM

So I was watching this gang documentary today...and it made me think about how ****ed up a situation it is out here.

They were talking about how the Panthers and earliest gangs of the 60s were started as something for blacks to belong to, to protect the community, and slowly over time, it devolved.

After the Panthers were hit hard by the government, and the voices instilling a sense of community and empowerment were silenced, kids basically took the leftover weapons and started killing each other with them, and then when coke and crack hit **** got even worse.

They made it seem like the absence of a voice to follow like a Malcolm or Martin or Huey P was really the death blow to that generation of youth. We have activists and such now, but I think its safe to say they don't have the same sway. Obama could in a couple years, who knows.

But I think the closest comparision of those men today are MCs. They are easily the most revered and listened to voices for black youth today, and how many of them really care?

I know violence and corruption has been around forever, but it seems like most MCs perpetuate/exploit the situation. A lot of them do have charities and such, but I'm not talking about that. I'm not talking about mere social commentary/"consciousness" either.

I'm talking about going all the way in, and having your actual art present itself to motivate change. I don't think mainstream artists (who are more easily accessible to the masses) do it enough. There are socially conscious MCs out there, but where is Tupac? Or Malcolm or Martin? Will anyone ever step up to that plate again?

Maybe you all disagree, and think an MCs place is to make good music and keep it going. I just think if we can't rely on the MCs to do this, the hood will never change. It'll probably never change anyway, but people could at least try. There's no real movement going on IMO.

ATLien · 07-07-2008, 07:34 PM

They don't have any.

**Dre™** · 07-08-2008, 12:39 AM

Damn y'all makin me feel like Talib Kweli right here.

essbee · 07-08-2008, 12:44 AM

Yea the breakdown of the Panthers is what led to a lot of the gangs not just b/c of leftover weapons but b/c the Panthers were training people on weapon use, so that and the end of the Wars and the drug problem all combined.

One of the complications is that it's hard to decide where a black entertainer should just be allowed to have the same freedom as white entertainers. so for instance Carrot Top is a hack and runs around acting goofy and grins but if the same were done by a black man it would harken back to the days of buffoonery.

The issue then becomes whether or not it represents progress to allow them a freedom that ignores history and the reality of their race or whether it's their responsibility to represent that race with pride knowing how much work remains to be done. The answer is the same as it is for any black man, which is that we all have times to party and and smoke weed and drink, but who you are as a black man simply includes that burden. It's not a matter of whether or not it's fair to hold them to that standard, it's simply about whether or not it's reality. A black rapper bears the same responsibility to his community as a black politician or a black plumber or a black teacher.

I do think there's a difference between people glorifying the lifestyle they lived and still having something to say (old mobb deep for example talked about the misery of it, beanie sigel talks a lot about the conflict, and rakim talked about bein' a stick up kid and transitioning to emceein') and stuff like Sheek louch which is just plain ig'nant. The answer though is complicated, because as a listener my first interest is always the quality of the music - I bump old 3-6 mafia constantly and they're ignorant as ****.

**Marcus13** · 07-08-2008, 11:02 PM

This is a subject that I don't like to focus on very often. When you think about it, hip-hop doesn't provide much good. I mean we should probably all be listening to christian music...but we don't. Should MC's be caring more about the urban youth and the role they play? yeah, they should, but they don't, and I'm not going to stop listening to hip-hop because of it. I still love it....sometimes I just don't know why

Chan · 07-09-2008, 04:17 AM

^That's true, but that applies to all media. I don't think seeing Wanted would provide much 'good', but I'm gonna go see it anyway because it's dope as ****.

HB · 07-13-2008, 10:43 PM

This reminds me of the BET Hiphop Vs America thing. I really dont know how to answer this one, but I think if you are in the spot light, to some certain extent, you have to use that to better others, especially if your a minority. Lets not act like things are fine and dandy in the inner cities of America.

Yes a lot of this rappers will say parenting is the biggest problem, but there are tons of kids out there that idolize and emulate these rappers. Considering 90% of rappers are lying about ****, its kinda disturbing.

On the other hand, if I am a successful black billionaire for instance, really do I have to start helping everyone, knowing damn well that when I was suffering and going it alone, no one was there to offer me a helping hand. Hope that makes sense

**Protein Data Bank** · 07-14-2008, 03:12 PM

as artists they have no responsibility to anyone

as human beings they probably do

**USSKittyHawk** · 07-15-2008, 10:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dre™

So I was watching this gang documentary today...and it made me think about how ****ed up a situation it is out here.

They were talking about how the Panthers and earliest gangs of the 60s were started as something for blacks to belong to, to protect the community, and slowly over time, it devolved.

After the Panthers were hit hard by the government, and the voices instilling a sense of community and empowerment were silenced, kids basically took the leftover weapons and started killing each other with them, and then when coke and crack hit **** got even worse.

They made it seem like the absence of a voice to follow like a Malcolm or Martin or Huey P was really the death blow to that generation of youth. We have activists and such now, but I think its safe to say they don't have the same sway. Obama could in a couple years, who knows.

But I think the closest comparision of those men today are MCs. They are easily the most revered and listened to voices for black youth today, and how many of them really care?

I know violence and corruption has been around forever, but it seems like most MCs perpetuate/exploit the situation. A lot of them do have charities and such, but I'm not talking about that. I'm not talking about mere social commentary/"consciousness" either.

I'm talking about going all the way in, and having your actual art present itself to motivate change. I don't think mainstream artists (who are more easily accessible to the masses) do it enough. There are socially conscious MCs out there, but where is Tupac? Or Malcolm or Martin? Will anyone ever step up to that plate again?

Maybe you all disagree, and think an MCs place is to make good music and keep it going. I just think if we can't rely on the MCs to do this, the hood will never change. It'll probably never change anyway, but people could at least try. There's no real movement going on IMO.

Good thread Dre. I always thought Public Enemy stepped up to the plate, not just on record, but was out there trying to make a change to the community. Kids dropped the jewelry for a time being and started rocking the African Medallions around their necks, but it sure didn't stop the crime rate from rising. Black on black crime was at an all-time high during that period, and no amount of Public Enemy, X-Clan, or KRS-One made a difference, except fashion wise. I still think your parents should ultimately be your role model, and we shouldn't rely on hip hop.

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