The Vision of the Hip-Hop Generation
The vision of the hip-hop generation and its young people was in full and glorious effect last night. While many older Americans -- who marched and struggled so hard so Senator Obama could run for president of the United States -- never dared to believe in his candidacy's real potential, young people, particularly the hip-hop community, had faith and their imagination became our reality.
The election of Barack Obama, a resounding progressive voice, is a clear reflection of hip-hop politics. It is a reflection of the 35 million people who downloaded Eckhart Tolle's The New Earth, and all of the other popular books espousing this new, emerging consciousness. Promoting love, compassion and generosity over fear, anger and greed; promoting lasting peace through dialogue and opportunity will be more economic to the American people in these troubled times than the promotion of war. Obama's election as president is a beautiful testament to the American collective consciousness that is flowering. This more loving consciousness will be necessary to protect us from some of our hurtful human choices and tendencies. We will need it to create balance with the constantly emerging advances in technology so, going forward, we can use these advances in a positive way to lift up Mother Earth and all her inhabitants.
I don't think I'm overstating it when I say that today, I feel like America has dodged a bullet. Let's support this beautiful leader to do the work necessary to promote and execute on the change agenda we all voted for. Let's each do our part to insure that this is a transformative time in America, where our country can be a leader in creating a positive and lasting change in the world.
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To a hammer, every problem looks like a nail. As hip hop is your profession and your life, it is perhaps understandable that you see this through the lens of your music.
I am not a fan of hip hop and know nothing about it, yet the candidacy of Mr. Obama moved me as few have done. It is his values, his beliefs, his passion and his eloquence that have moved me and millions others to support him. I applaud your post and the noble sentiments it expresses; I'm glad you think that "this is a clear expression of hip hop politics," but please don't think that is the reason he won.
I don't think he's trying to say it's "the" reason Obama won.
He says it's a reflection of hip hop politics - "promoting love, compassion and generosity over fear, anger and greed."
And keep in mind that hip hop and rap are two different things. Hip hop is a culture, a very inclusive one. Rap (acknowledging that some hip hop artists use rap as a form of expression) is a style of music.
Will we get to a time when color or gender is not a factor and and ability is all that matters.. Yes we will..
"Promoting love, compassion and generosity over fear, anger and greed;..."
Are you therefore saying that effective immediately, we shall see (at least the glimmer) of an emergence of a new consciousness within the hip-hop community... where personal integrity will trump material excess, or respect for self and fellow man will trump the perpetual images of blacks shooting blacks in videos and men salivating and slapping the backsides of women?
Will the images of men & woman in the hip hop world now project the images of mothers & fathers reading to their sons and daughters and taking the time to explain certain issues relating to their development?
Will their pursuit of shallow, vain, egomaniac thrills lose its luster because they now "see the light" having a clear understanding of the grave responsibility of power within each and every WORD that comes out of their mouths?
I think not Mr. Russell, and I assure you... for a genre of music that has already influenced millions of young children negatively, I will not hold my breath for the enlightened hip hop artists to come forth with renewed minds..
Why would you ascribe all these negative connotations to hip hop? Have you ever heard the term sex, drugs and ROCK N ROLL?
There are as many negative influences in this world as there are negative people, and I hate to have to tell you this, but you are one of them.
Hope is a requirement for change. When you completely deny that there is any hope for change, there can be no change.
Have faith, the world's consciousness is shifting. If you can't feel it, it's only because you are resisting it. Surrender to the moment and take a deep conscious breath. Become aware!
It's a beautiful feeling, I promise.
one thing missing from your hopeful projection is the fact that each and every one of us MUST accept responsibility for the consequences of our thoughts, words and deeds... and before we can do that, we must also understand the deep grooves of our conditioned thoughts....
All artist have the power to influence others' thoughts and beliefs... hip hop lyrics for the most part, project a very shallow, violent and materialistic culture... by their words you shall know them.
Do not be mis-lead by the notion that hope without undergoing the process of self-development with greater mental awareness and understanding means anything... because the real change comes when we undertake the difficult process of introspection followed by a discipline of re-conditioning our negative patterns to greater consciousness ultimately leading to positive changes within ourselves....
intentions without actions are all for naught... that's realism.
Russell,
You are a wonderful writer. Can I suggest a music topic that interfaces with our wrecked economy? Paul Gambacchini says Yankovic's "Whatever You Like" marks "the end of the Era of Bling." Agree?
As for Barack supporting Hip Hop, well, prepare for lecturing from him.
Uh... sorry to burst your hip-hop bubble. But it was ALL OF US working together that made this happen.
If the forty-something year old white guys (like me) failed to embrace Obama, he wouldn't have been elected. If the hispanic vote didn't turn out, he wouldn't have been elected. And so on.
To me, Hip Hop is to music what Etch-A-Sketch is to art. Self-aggrandizing thugs who can't play an instrument or sing are winning Grammies? To me, that's just not right. And I know that's a huge generalization... that hip-hop artists are thugs... but open a hip-hop magazine, read lyrics, watch their videos, and that's pretty much the impression that one is left with. Guns, selling drugs, the degradation of women, etc. It's not exactly something I can support.
Connecting Obama's righteous victory to hip-hop comes across as self-serving, considering your line of work.
Now, if you want to give accolades to the younger generation... that's a different story... and I'm right there with you.
I couldn't be happier that, working together, we ALL helped to make this happen.
Well said Trunfish
Well, when did you decide to be a part of the "all"? Was it necessary to display your profound ignorance of hip hop culture? Did you actually read the post? I believe the sentence read: "young people, particularly the hip-hop community...". Seems to me that your participation in the "all" comes with a price, and the threat of a flip if you're not satisfied. That is not the state of health and wellbeing that we are seeking.
So how much of that hip hop stuff do you indulge?
You are misinformed about this topic. I work for a group called the Hip Hop Caucus. You see there is a difference between commercialized hip-POP and gangsta rap and the real organic hip hop culture. When someone speaks about the hip hop generation, they are sopeaking about a generation of young urban youth who came of age during the rise of hip-hop. I would advise you to look it up before you make a comment.
That may be true, but what have they done to express to the community at large, that this dipiction of the female gender is unacceptable?
Thanks Mr. Simmons for the good words. Most of the time all the public hears about from hip-hop is the negative, but it doesn't get anywhere near the credit it deserves for the fact that it has been so helpful in breaking down racial barriers.
One thing about older Americans: we remember the Civil Rights Movement and heard Martin Luther King say that he saw the promised land from the mountaintop. The America of segregation was a different world from that of the last 30 years. For the current generation, it seems judging by the content of character rather than color of skin is much more natural, like breathing. For us, it required reprogramming of ingrained prejudice.
Did you notice last night that so many people "old people" - over 50 - black and white, men and women, were all teary or crying. Like Jesse Jackson in Chicage on national TV. We never really imagined that MLK's dream would come true so quickly and that a man of African American heritage could actually be elected President of the USA (though Bobby Kennedy predicted it almost to the date).
We really didn't believe it was actually happening. I'm white and the woman standing next to me in the cheering crowd last night was black, both with enough grey to show we were boomers, me blinking back tears, she crying unashamedly. Someone had the inspiration in the heat of this profound moment - BARACK HUSSEIN OABAMA PRESIDENT ELECT - to play over the PA system Ray Charles singing God Bless America, and the crowd sang along in unison. The woman,a complete stranger, turned to me and we bear hugged. And so did many others in the crowd.
I'm still feeling the chills. The dream had come true.
Great comment however I will like to advise you that MLK Jr did not only have a dream. He called for action. Action that has seemed to fall on deaf ears now that people have embraced a santized version of who he was and what he fought for. What MLK wanted to see manifest itself in America has yet to fully happen...in some cases, it has not even been considered.
With the exception of being black, Obama is almost completely opposite from King. Never has a candidate been so polarizing. He has divided America in two with his playing the race card so frequently throughout his campaign. He is as vacuous as outer space. To the left, He can do no wrong. But he's about to further America's slide into secularism, godlessness and socialism. But then again, that's exactly what the left wants. So congratulations. Enjoy.
So when was it that America has not been divided? Did that happen in your lifetime? Seems as though the election results themselves make you out to be a liar. At least, severely misinformed.
You can keep your congratulations. I'm sure you need them more than the winners.
So what happened on the Pettis bridge was a uniting incident?
The FBI files on MLK were in the name of bringing people together?
Your recall of history is a bit clouded, I think.
We will -- enjoy your self-imposed political exile as America rediscovers its greatness. Obama was elected by the foundation of that greatness, the middle class -- and we're taking our country back from the vestigial race haters, greedy wannabe robber barons, reflexively bellicose chickenhawks, and ignorant religious fanatics who've been stopped just short of destroying it!
Very well said Mr. Simmons. Thank you.
Absolutely, Russel, the key word is insure. We, as vigilant Americans, need to constantly impose our collective will on those in Washington who doubt that positive change is possible. We now have the leadership, and must be sure that those who think that they have any sort of a green light to pull any chicanery, just because we're busy being so happy and such, we need to underscore the principle that the people are in charge of the government, not vice-versa. I truly believe that this country dodged way more than a bullet. What we did was skinny-dip through a cesspool of hatred, despair, and false pretenses, and emerged from the curtained depths of the voting booths with the promise of new beginnings that ALL Americans can enjoy in equal measures. There is precious little in life that smells sweeter than the delightfully heady air we can all, at last, breathe in, at the precipice of this wonderful mountain we have climbed!
Let's hope that Obama's victory has nothing to do with an era in pop music that is about as creative as disco in 1978.
"idabamaho"
You may want to go on iTunes and listen to hip-hop created between 1988-1996, then maybe you'll change your misguided statement. And if you have kids, I'm sure they listen to it.
Disco in '78 was at least musical... You know, with notes and instruments? Yes, rap/hip-hop has evolved and today can be termed musical, but not back in '88.
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