“Cuz I’m gone sell your cock and you gone sell your soul,” said Bun B on his song “Bun” from his 2005 debut album “Trill.”
Hip-Hop can be a dirty game. It has the undeniable ability to take some one from a normal person trying to share their music with the world to a cash obsessed creator of crappy uninspired songs. (Case in point: Ja Rule, 50 Cent and Sisqo.) But that never stops people from loving it, especially women.
According to RIAA, 50% of the people who purchased Rap and Hip-Hop CDs in 2007 were women. A Google search of “women and hip-hop” reveal countless blog entries, articles and even student papers on the touchy subject but none offer a real look at why women can love something that seems to hate them so much.
Old School To New: Female Rappers
The days of the female rapper seem to have come and gone. Long gone are the days when powerful female images like Queen Latifah and Salt -n- Pepa graced music videos and concert venues spreading messages of female empowerment and safe sex practices.
The female MCs role in hip-hop has now been reduced to being the alpha males sidekick, supporting his verses with a sense of sexy obscurity. If today was magically dubbed “Keep It Real Day,” one has to acknowledge the reality that MOST of today’s marginally successful femcees (and I am using the term loosely) have no real talent.
With the exception of Lauren Hill and a few others, one could even go as far to argue that all today’s female MCs, both successful and lesser known, have no legitimate lyrical talent. It seems all of the years of male domination have made the current industry climate intolerable to intelligent, talented women.
Mike Jones Says Strippers Determine If The Music Is Hot
In the very beginning of Mike Jones’ mainstream commercial success, he did an interview with Sway from MTV News. He said that he started his career by making songs for strippers. He would play his songs in strip clubs and if the dancers like it he was sure it would be a hit.
In a recent poll asking women why they liked hip-hop music, many attributed their love of the genre to its ability to move them to the dance floor. The question then becomes: Do you want to dance like a stripper?
Bitches & Hoes: David Banner & Luke Offer Their Opinion
Although a 2007 study conducted by the Black Youth Project revealed that 66% of young black women and 60% of young white women believe that “rap music portrays black women in bad and offensive ways,” most people would concede that rappers are not talking about THEM when referring to women by disparaging names. The question then becomes: Then who are they talking about?
A recent edition of BET’s Hip-Hop vs. America (Hip-Hop vs. America II: Where Did The Love Go?) examined hip-hop’s love/hate relationship with women. A panel of speakers including Luke, David Banner, and author Michael Eric Dyson, hash out the facts and opinions and argued their points. The discussion became pretty heated, leaving some panelists angered by some of the arguably sexist opinions of others. The forum ended just as this will, without a definitive answer.
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