Arts & Entertainment
 

Hip-hop misrepresented at summit

Fans' shameless self-promotion, disrespect fails to further hip-hop's search for identity

By Chris Griffin
The Daily Cougar

Hip-hop's elite gathered Saturday afternoon for the annual Hip-Hop Summit held at Texas Southern University to discuss the status of the hip-hop culture and its future and the importance of voting and voter registration among youth.

Def Jam Records founder Russell Simmons established the Hip-Hop Summit in 2001 to distinguish problems relating to hip-hop and it's listeners and leave with resolutions. In front of an estimated 10,000 "hip-hoppers," a discussion panel of artists talked as well as listened attentively to each other and the massive crowd.

"This meeting is for the self-betterment for you as our supporters and fans, and for our culture as a whole," Simmons said. "And striving to be the best and working hard is what we all should be striving for."

Hosted by BET's Big Tigger, and with an extremely impressive cast including rappers such as David Banner, Talib Kweli, Bun B of UGK, Jermaine Dupri and DJ Kid Capri. Rev. Jesse Jackson, Congresswomen Maxine Waters and Sheila Jackson Lee were also in attendance.

Voter registration was the specified topic and fans only needed to show their voter registration card or register at Texas Southern, where many registration booths were on site, to enter.

"We must start making our voices heard and take back our communities." Run-DMC member Rev. Run said. "There are too many unregistered citizens in our communities."

A brief Q-and-A portion of the discussion proved disappointing and not topical to solving problems. Most of the fans chose to use the time for shameless self-promotion, or to ask repetitive questions that lead to repetitive answers. The panel was obviously frustrated with the quality of the questions, which led officials to cut the session short.

Rap pioneer Ice Cube gave a moving and important message.

"Hard work, determination, and believing in yourself and your abilities gets you where you want to be," Cube said. "Nobody on this stage got anything for free, everyone worked hard to get where they are, and that's what it takes."

Chicago super-producer Kanye West also gave a memorable speech about perseverance and not giving up after his near-fatal car accident in 2002.

An awards ceremony ended the afternoon's events, but sadly most of the enormous crowd had already left TSU's H&PE Arena. Many of the fans disrespectfully left after the appearances of hometown heroine Beyoncé and St. Louis rapper Chingy. Chingy received the loudest ovation of any other entertainer or politician, but, as could have been suspected, had nothing to say regarding reparations, voter registration, the AIDS-stricken African-American community or any other discussion topic.

When asked why Houston was chosen to hold this year's Hip-Hop Summit, Roc-A-Fella Records' CEO Damon Dash replied, "It was the perfect time and place because we are all in town anyway for the Super Bowl Sunday, and there are many talented artists. And Houston is on the rise."

More will be needed than an annual occurrence to get hip-hop music the prestige and power it demands and deserves. Perhaps a hip-hop history lesson is needed first.

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