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Life & Arts

Should hip-hop suffer for Imus' comments?

Rap on Hip-Hop

Eli Jabbe and Dante Eglin

Dante Eglin: In the wake of Don Imus' controversial comments regarding the Rutgers women's basketball team earlier this month, a national debate on race relations has once again been resurrected. This time, however, the attention shifted to the hip-hop industry, which had to answer questions about its portrayal of black women in songs and music videos. As the public ensues with judging Imus' comments, should hip-hop face a similar tribunal?

Eli Jabbe: Yes and no. The public should examine it, but hip-hop shouldn't shoulder the entire blame because Imus isn't necessarily influenced by hip-hop, so that wasn't the source of his comments. There should be a better portrayal of women in some hip-hop mediums because not all artists embrace misogyny. 

Eglin: The issue with hip-hop is the gradual blurring between its role as a form of social commentary and its function as an entertainment medium. Historically, hip-hop has brought to attention several social issues such as police brutality and poverty in the urban slums, but it also has introduced the public to topics such as "bling-bling" and other hollow themes. Because listeners, specifically adolescents, cannot properly discern the difference between hip-hop's lyrical fiction and its pragmatism, the issue has to be addressed.

Jabbe: It seems there's no balance because when it comes to mainstream artists, few rappers are addressing important subjects. The balance has been skewed and there needs to be a more rounded approach to content by artists.

Eglin: At the heart of the issue is the treatment of women in hip-hop lyrics. Are women portrayed in the best light in mainstream hip-hop? No. But mainstream hip-hop does not speak for the genre as a whole. There are scores of emcees paying their dues outside the limelight that have embraced positive and thoughtful lyrics, but because BET or MTV only plays videos with alpha-male emcees adorned by insatiable, champagne-drenched sex mavens, hip-hop is branded with a scarlet letter.

Jabbe: It's unfair for hip-hop's reputation to be dragged through the mud based purely on mainstream artists. Artists like Mos Def portray women in a positive light, and sometimes there are situations where mainstream songs portray women in an affirmative fashion, such as T.I.'s "Why You Wanna." By listening to the words, you can see that not all hip-hop is negative toward women. Like Jay-Z said, "(They) say that I'm foolish I only talk about jewels / Do you fools listen to music or do you just skim through it?"

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