Hip Hop: an American Culture

Hip-Hop Over the course of history music has been a center piece in every culture. Every genre of music can be linked to a specific culture or demographic group. Within that link one can look at music beyond the sound of it. Music can be seen as an emotion, an inspiration, and a tool for communication.
Within the last 50 years music has become a great unifier of diverse populations (www.csupomona.edu). This is evident in the songs that are written by music artist and groups. Their songs express various societal problems that audiences are living with or can relate with. Music has also become a tool for communication to the masses of a certain demographics. This is extremely evident in the music genre hip-hop.
Since the emergence of hip-hop in 1979, when the Sugar Hill Gang produced the enormously successful song entitled Rapper 's Delight (www.csupomona.edu), hip-hop has become a dominant culture force in politics, and marketing by corporations. Recently, hip-hop has become the playing field used by corporations to sell their products and services through hip-hop artist. Hip-hop has also recently become the arena for political issues to be addressed. Considering these two factors one must analyze the outcome of having politics and marketing involved in the hip-hop culture. This analysis should determine whether or not the involvement of marketing and politics is good for hip-hops audience, which contains mostly young teenagers and adults. The effects of hip-hop being used in politics and marketing plays an important part in shaping the minds of these young teenagers and adults. This is because they 're involved in hip-hop on a daily basis. It is a culture that young teenagers and adults have come to adopt. A culture that shapes and molds their life in areas such as: their language, clothing, personality, and ideology.
Some of the most important aspects that contribute to a culture are the products and services that are used amongst the members of the culture. In hip-hop culture the products that are associated with it are being mentioned in the songs of the hip-hop artist. This has been a normal routine of rhyming about the products or service artist use, ever since hip-hop groups from the 80 's like Run-D.M.C. in their song entitled "My Adidas"
Now
me and my Adidas do the illest things we like to stomp out pimps with diamond rings we slay all suckers who perpetrate and lay down law from state to state we travel on gravel, dirt road or street
I wear my Adidas when I rock the beat on stage front page every show I go it 's Adidas on my feet high top or low
My Adidas..
My Adidas...

To artist of today like Nelly in his song entitled "Air Force Ones"
[Chorus]
I said give me two pair
(cause) I need two pair
So I can get to stompin in my air force ones
(Big boys) stompin in my air force ones

[Nelly]
I like the all white high top strap with the gum bottom
(Big boy) there 's somthin bout dem that 's dirty why I got em
(Big boy) I leave um strapped and laced and come up out um
(Big boy) the last person that touched um I been shot um, (big boy)

Hip-hop artist have been known to flaunt about what shoes are on their feet, what car they are driving in, and what alcoholic beverage they 're getting "tipsy" off of. One of the most widely know songs that portrays alcohol is the chorus in Snoop Doggy Dogg 's "Gin And Juice",
Rollin ' down the street smokin ' endo sippin ' on gin n juice
Laid back--with my mind on my money and my money on my mind

While early hip-hop artist rapped about products and services but were against becoming an icon for companies ' products and services, the artist of today are doing the exact opposite. Before only athletes were getting endorsements and shoe contracts, now hip-hop artist have joined athletes in endorsement deals. This is because companies have seen how the younger generation has responded to hip-hop and how they 've begun to purchase the products and services of hip-hop. Through doing this, hip-hop has become the new marketing tool for various corporations to attract a younger consumer base to purchase their products and services. Just recently hip-hop artist are receiving shoe contracts, clothing lines, and various other endorsements from industries that were against the hip-hop genre, and culture. Artist like 50 cent (Curtis Jackson) and Jay-Z (Sean Carter) have landed big deals with shoe companies, theirs being Reebok. In 50 cents song entitled "Stunt 101" he mentions his shoe deal with Reebok,
As long as the VS bling, look at that light show
In the hood they say Fifty man your sneaker look white yo
Just can 't believe Reebok did a deal with a psycho

Somehow hip-hop has survived even the craziest commercialism, but hip-hop is the ultimate capitalist tool (George 155-156). The emergence of hip-hop as a marketing tool is far from being a burden on hip-hop culture. Through using hip-hop, products and services offered by companies have become appealing to younger viewers. The only way for the companies to attract younger consumers is to associate their product or service with what the younger consumers can identify with, that being hip-hop and its artists. While some companies may shy away from being associated with a culture often marked by misogyny and violence, it is undeniable that hip-hop wields immeasurable power and influence in business. Inspirational in some respects and now synonymous with youth culture in many corners of the world, hip-hop has long been credited with -- or criticized for -- having an impact on everything from clothing to cars (www.cnn.com). From flipping through pages in a magazine to channels on the television, if a hip-hop fan sees his/her favorite artist then he/she is more likely to stop and pay attention to what the product or service is just because the artist is endorsing it. The companies can 't be blamed for this tactic, because their sole basis is to generate profit, and hip-hop is the best way for them to do so.
Hip-hop has not only begun to dominate the marketing world, but hip-hop has also become a concerning factor in regards to politics. Just recently politicians have begun to reach out to the youth of the nation via hip-hop. In the last presidential election the hip-hop culture has seen more attention from politicians than ever before. Hip-hop artist are starting to become more involved in political issues, seen in Kanye West 's "Bush hates black people" shenanigans on live television. Hip-hop artist are leading key campaigns to get hip-hop fans and young voters to the polls. MTV launched a "Rock the Vote" and "Choose Or Loose" campaign, with a "Declare Yourself" motto to reach out to young voters. Also, prominent artist such as 50 Cent, Mary J. Blige, Mya and P. Diddy were seen sporting shirts that read "Vote Or Die", encouraging voter registration. With the ongoing war, rising college costs, juvenile and criminal justice reform, health care and a potential military draft topping young people 's list of concerns, the recent acknowledgment of the importance of politics amongst hip-hop and its audience comes at a crucial time. The strive for political power and equality by hip-hop can be compared to the civil rights movement with artist like Kanye West and P. Diddy serving as Dr. King. Already a major cultural and economic force, hip-hop has created its own small power elite that have access to the things politics and politicians are drawn to most: money, celebrity, and the influence both generate (Watkins 146). With hip-hop becoming the voice of Generation X or Y, it is important that hip-hop makes it stake in the political arena. The idea that hip-hop is ready to make a bigger mark on the world, sets the stage for the most important struggle, a struggle within hip-hop to define its political calling. At the core of hip-hop is a debate about how it can regain a sense of responsibility and commitment to it 's overwhelmingly, diverse youth fan base. The will to translate hip-hop 's momentum into a catalyst for social change represents a noteworthy moment in hip-hop (Watkins 151).
Looking at hip-hop on the political scale it is very beneficial that the hip-hop culture has become a factor in the political arena. Considering that hip-hop has become the voice of the younger generation it is essential that this voice be represented politically. By doing so allows the youth of the nation the opportunity to have a say so on what political issues will affect them as they become older adults.
Furthermore, the results of hip-hop becoming a dominant culture force in politics, and marketing has served hip-hop in a positive way. By becoming a marketing tool hip-hops grabbed the attention of companies, which makes companies more aware of hip-hop and hip-hop trends. That way companies can gear their products and services in a way that will be beneficial to the hip-hop lifestyle. And, the results of hip-hop emerging on the political scene as an important factor has been extremely beneficial to hip-hop. This is because hip-hop is the voice of the younger generation, a generation whose votes will pave the way of where America is headed over the next 30 years. Considering the two fields that hip-hop has emerged on, it is extremely important to look at hip-hop as a culture with an enormous amount of power to control and dominate industries and politics in America and around the world.

Work Cited

Associated Press. Hip-hop artists take the rap for. Sales. July 4, 2006 http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/Music/07/04/music.rap.brands.ap/index.html George, Nelson. Hip Hop America. New York: Penguin Group 1998

Lyrics Depot. Music Song Lyrics Archive. 2006 < http://www.lyricsdepot.com/>

Pintado-Vertner, Ryan. From Sweatshop to Hip Hop. ColorLines vol.5 no.2. 2002. http://www.arc.org/C_Lines/CLArchive/story5_2_02.html Reese, R. From The Fringe: The Hip Hop Culture and Ethnic Relations. 1998. February 1998 http://www.csupomona.edu/~rrreese/HIPHOP.HTML

Watkins, S. Craig. Hip Hop Matters: Politics, Pop Culture, and the Struggle for the Soul of a Movement. Boston: Beacon Press, 2005 White, Armond. The Resistance: Ten Years of Pop Culture That Shook the World. Beyond Borders: A Cultural Reader 2nd ed. Bass, Randall; Young, Joy.
Boston, New York: Houghton Mifflin Company 2003

Cited: Associated Press. Hip-hop artists take the rap for. Sales. July 4, 2006 http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/Music/07/04/music.rap.brands.ap/index.html Pintado-Vertner, Ryan. From Sweatshop to Hip Hop. ColorLines vol.5 no.2. 2002. Watkins, S. Craig. Hip Hop Matters: Politics, Pop Culture, and the Struggle for the Soul of a Movement. Boston: Beacon Press, 2005