In his latest interview, he pronounced hip-hop music as the most politically sensitive music out there today. WOW! I will bet that wins him a whole bunch of votes. BTW, that was on MTV.
Hallelujah! The Messiah has pronounced Hip-Hop as the most politically sensitive music! He has spoken from on high! Bow your heads and give praise!
Actually I find it to be an interesting statement. Can't say I listen to hip hop but throughout my life I have listened to rock, blues, reggae, jazz, a bit of country and even an occasional dose of punk. Rock could be very political. Especially in the 60s and early 70s. I don't see it as much now but I have really never been mainstream. Still, even as a child in that era of rock I can remember Country Joe and the Fish singing about Vietnam. "One, two three what are we fighting for? I really don't give a damn. I'm going to Vietnam." Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young singing about Kent State. "Four dead in Ohio" Steppenwolf singing about Vietnam draft resistors. "As we march them off to prison. In this land of liberty". I'm sure if we put our collective heads together we could come up with a lot more. Not that rock isn't politically sensitive today but I don't see it in the lyrics like we did back then. Again though, I'm not into mainstream that gets tons of airplay. Now in reggae I loved Bob Marley and no doubt he was very political. It didn't show up so much in his music though. Still, I believe there was at least one assassination attempt on him. One of his rythym guitarists is originally from Gary, IN. Not exactly a safe place and he left the band and moved back to Gary because it was safer. That would be Donald Kinsey, son of "Big Daddy" Kinsey and a not so politically motivated blues player. Blues and country I don't see as overly politically sensitive. Of course I'm just looking more at lyrics here. What the performers think and say when NOT on stage can be an entirely different animal. I can recall Frank Zappa and Dee Snyder (Twisted Sister - never liked them) tearing Tipper Gore to shreds about lyrics and freedom of speech years ago. I can also remember Zappa ripping Donny Osmond apart on the same issue. Actually quite interesting and I'd LOVE to hear ArizonaJack weigh in on this. I know he has VERY diverse tastes in music.
I listen to about as much Hip Hop as I do Country...which is to say not ever voluntarily. But hearing some of each is unavoidable. And I must say I really didn't realize there were a lot of political Hip Hop songs. Actually, I am still dubious that there are.
