AFRAM Post #2

A theme that has been sustained throughout our course that is extremely important to our analysis of the histories of Rock music and American popular music in general is the idea of "authenticity." It is used heavily in rockist narratives to invalidate and invisibilize certain artists and their work, while promoting and highlighting others (those being forms acceptable to white audiences and a white supremacist economic system). Hamilton discusses how "rock ideology is first and foremost an ideology of authenticity: It delineates what constitutes "real" rock music, including who is authorized to play that music and who is authorized to listen to and talk about it." Similarly, in Chang's Q&A about the historical resistive function of Hip Hop, he rejects the idea of there being a "golden era" of Hip Hop. He talks about how in the late 80s and early 90s, Hip Hop was used to empower and lift up youth populations who were experiencing acute levels of marginalization, surveillance, and policing. This trend continues into today, where we see Hip Hop representing struggles globally, from DAM in Palestine, or M.I.A. providing commentary on issues unique to places like Trinidad and India. The diverse examples he uses here prove that Hip Hop is truly an instrument of resistance, and the iterations we see popping up globally are no less legitimate than music by widely celebrated artists like Kendrick Lamar. 

There are many examples that come to mind of Hip Hop songs or artists that use their platform and art to spread anti-establishment messages. Within the umbrella of Hip Hop, some of these songs are hard-hitting and brutally honest, while others are more satirical. I would argue that neither form is more “authentic” or legitimate than the other. Kendrick Lamar’s song “The Blacker the Berry” is a relentlessly heavy song with powerful lyrics about Blackness and a struggle with identity, battling destructive stereotypes about Black people. Capturing a different tone, “Work it Out” by Jurassic 5 featuring Dave Matthews Band blends Hip Hop and pop to create an upbeat and hopeful tune about perseverance and collective strength. Most interesting about this song is the music video produced in 2006, a satirical mockery of George W. Bush, which I thoroughly enjoy, despite my limited memory of the Bush administration.