"White" Rappers in a "Black" Game???

[cipherminds]

MY girl has an assignment for class at UC Berkeley and she wanted to get some feedback about this issue from Bay Area artists, both established and up-and-coming ( fans included).

Here's what she would like to know:
" wassup ya'll...I just wanted some honest feedback--no one will be criticized...I'm doing a project for an ethnic studies class at Berkeley and I wanted to find out what's going on racially in the bay area rap scene. More folks as producer/rappers is comin' up from the south bay (san mateo, redwood city, south city...), outside of the inner city hoods where the majority of bay area rap started. Some people might see this as somewhat "taking black culture." (Rap started as a way of giving a voice to racialized, marginalized and even segregated communities who didn't have a voice in the mainstream culture--hence music about struggles in the "ghetto"...) So, what do you think of this view point? For those that may be categorized as "white rappers," what got you interested in rap and what are you trying to contribute to the rap game? Do you think there is a difference between a white rapper and a black rapper besides skin color? What makes a rapper valid? Anyone can respond to any of these questions and even expand on them.
If you feel offended - don't. This is a chance for folks to speak out openly about this touchy subject. So, do tha damn thang..."

If you would like to email me on this subject, with questions or comments you don't want to be seen here, use

[email protected]

Thank You-Peace

 

[MaddDogg]

Rap started as a voice for any inner city youths. Although it was created by blacks, youll notce that inner city does not nessecarily mean black. It also means asian latino and often white as well.

As with most movements, whether political or artistic, start from the cities where great numbers of people move around and ineract with other people. However, there comes a time when the culture spreads to surrounding areas. Then other people become integrated in the movement and also contribute to the culture itself.

Are different socioeconomic and racial groups "stealing" rap? Most definitely not. The problem with calling Eminem the Elvis of Hiphop as that Eminem didnt STEAL anything from black people, he has his own flow and beats and concepts that are simply BETTER than 90% of rappers out there.

The great thing about rap is that it has almost always been diverse. Most rappers are black but you show up to a hiphop concert and see all races. Art is made for all people to imbrace and hiphop should be no different.

 

[TheBayIsTheSco]

all i could add to this as a fan is i don't give a fuck what color they are as long as they are themselves and not trying to be like someone else or portray a false image. a lot of these new rappers from the peninsula are garbage in my opinion. u know what i have noticed is that some white rappers get credit when they shouldn't. i'm not talking about eminem cuz he's got straight up skills and is legit. i'm talking about guys like smoov-e. for some reason some people think he's tight. that reason could be that he's white and those suburbian kids who listen to him could relate to him. feel me

 

[Psilo707]

all i could add to this as a fan is i don't give a fuck what color they are

Definitely agree with that there...

i'm talking about guys like smoov-e.

That too. haha, Smoov-E fucking sucks.


Anyway, cipherminds, MaddDogg had some good points and im sure there will be many more to follow... i got some ideas but will have to post up later

 

[LadyTragik]

I will be emailing you my response, but just a quick observation

Take a look at Hip-Hop culture as a whole... I find it interesting that each race takes an individual part of every element

1. Rap/MC - Majority, Black
2. DJing - Majority, White
3. Breakdancing - Majority, Asian
4. Graff - Majority, Latino

 

[Game Warden]

I will be emailing you my response, but just a quick observation

Take a look at Hip-Hop culture as a whole... I find it interesting that each race takes an individual part of every element
2. DJing - Majority, White

damn how times have changed. I can remember when being a dj was the thing to be. I remember my brother and I saving our money and getting two technics turntables (not 1200's, but good enough) tapin pennies to the top and getting down.... from havin horses runnin out the stable (being off beat) to comin in smooth and tight. Scratchin, transformin... the whole thing... but now there just aren't that many kids withthe interest to "DJ" besides for hookin up parties. I think it was the whole culture of the time when rap first unfolded. The dj is a dying part of this rap scene.

 

[W6C]

It's important that you make a distinction between "form" and "content".

Rap / Hip Hop is a style of music. Rap contain's a certain rhythm and vibe that seperates it from other genre's. Rock, Jazz, Classical, Punk etc... are all the same way. The lyrics are a form of spoken word poetry, with a cadence that stays in rhythm with the beat. While many variations / subgenre's exist, there are certain musical elements that determine whether a song is considered "hip hop" or not.

Now as far as "content" is concerned, you can rap about whatever you want. It could be anything from Wall Street to Sesame Street, but so long as the form stays the same, it is all Rap / Hip Hop.

People of any culture invariably end up imitating the influences they're exposed to. If you grow up and your older brothers and cousins are all playing Metallica and AC/DC... you're probably going to end up listening to mostly hard rock music. If you're a 12 year old kid (in Berkeley coincedentally) who turns on his radio and happens to skip to KMEL and hear Janet Jackson and Snoop Doggy Dogg... that kind of thing can change your musical outlook forever.

I never had a lot of friends growing up. I found an outlet in the music I listened to. I couldn't tell you why, but for some reason Rap and Hip Hop spoke to me. Like Heavy Metal, Punk or Swing... it was a form of music geared towards the disenfranchised or rebellious youth. Why I didn't listen to Green Day like most other "white kids" at the time, I can't say. Alternative rock just didn't do anything for me.

By the time I was 13 I was listening to Snoop Doggy Dogg, Dr. Dre, Warren G, Domino, The Conscious Daughters, Da Brat and Rappin 4-Tay. I started getting into E-40, The Click, 2 Pac (pre Death Row), Bone thugs-n-harmony etc... I never had any money, but whenever I did I would spend it on music.

One day, one of my friends was joking around and said we should start a rap group. I didn't take it that seriously at the time, but we wrote our first rap. It was the wackest shit you could ever imagine, but we thought it was dope at the time. I moved away to live with my mother. He stopped rapping but I never did. I channelled all of my anger into my lyrics. I someone was trying to fuck with me, or some bitch was talking shit... I would write about it..

Kids at junior high school used to tease me for being a white rapper. They accused me of "trying to be black". They came up with nicknames like "Vanilla Ice", "Homie Rapper G" "White Rice"... and some others that I forget. But I said fuck all of them... I'm doing what I do because it's what I love. I made up my mind to keep striving and never let the haters get me down. I was always raised to believe that all people are equal regardless of their skin color. So for me to bow down and "accept my place" as a white person because of a racist concept that a person's form of musical expression should be determined by the color of their skin, would be against everything I was ever taught about treating all people as equal human beings.

As far as the assertion that rap is the outlet for those who "don't have a voice in maintstream culture", it is too late. RAP IS MAINSTREAM CULTURE. You can see and hear the influence of hip hop everywhere you go. Commercials, Movies, Records... hip hop is a multibillion dollar industry now. When I started listening to rap it was still somewhat of a subculture. You would have some white kids who listened to rap, but it wasn't necessarily the majority. Right now, if you go on MTV... so called "urban music" is the dominant format, and if you want to watch a exclusively alternative rock show, you need to tune in at 2 in the morning. I have to laugh at all the people who said that rap was just a "trend". They said the same thing about rock back in the 50's...

What do I think "makes a rapper valid"? Someone who is doing rap because that's what they love to do. Someone who takes it seriously. Right now you have a proliferation of artists (white and black) who are just in the game because they want to make money or get laid. This shit ain't about "being cool".... It's about music, and if you don't consider yourself a musician and a poet first and foremost, you better get the fuck out of the game and make room for those who respect this as a cultural art form, and have dedicated their lives to it.

I'll admit that most white rappers are wack. Most black rappers are wack too. Just about everyone's imitating someone else and trying to be the next 2 Pac or Nelly. Right now the west coast is suffering cause everyone's immitating that same old bay area gangsta shit... the backpackers / conscious hip hoppers are all trying to be the next Atmosphere or The Roots and the south is suffering cause everyone's trying to be the next Cash Money / Lil Jon and the Eastside Boys...

I'm just trying to be me.

Anyone who has a problem with that might as well be sleeping with the KKK for all I'm concerned.

FUCK EM ALL

- PARADOX -

 

[TheBayIsTheSco]

r u kidding me, he is. u could probably ask any bay area artist the same thing and they will agree that eminem is sick. in fact i just seen cellski praising eminem in an interview.

 

[LadyTragik]

The dj is a dying part of this rap scene.

That's Real....

 

[Psilo707]

Errr tadou, I wouldn't say Eminem is better than 90% of rappers today.

I would say 95%.

And Im no newbie to rap. I like hardcore underground raw straight spittin pimp shit..... but Eminem is good enough to make me 'realize' that the mainstream can still be good at times. And anyone who says he only 'raps about himself' (i know there will be someone that says this, there always is), is just digging for excuses.

Theres no way MaddDogg is a newbie to this shit either... hes been around BART for hella years... so you might have to consider yourself in the minority.

 

[Psilo707]

The dj is a dying part of this rap scene.

BTW thats real shit.... besides the ever-present "huge" mainstream DJ's, which there are never more than 2-3 big ones at a time, they are pretty much obsolete in rap. Electronica is the only type of music that will have "DJ's" in the near future.

 

[FILA|AUS]

Right on everybody has excellent points!

Myself I got two things to say:

1. AS a rap fan, I lost eyes for someones skin color & their image. Seriously, the guy could be pale white with red hair and if he came tight I would bump it.

2. IF white people are allowed to listen to rap, they should be allowed to contribute to it in means of music.

 

[sixfilthyempire]

Real recognize real, no matter what the color is, if someone got skills they got skills thats it, I mean I'm white and when i play my shit for people or they hear it, when they find that out they seem to trip off the fact but ithey like it the same and sometimes more? As long as you rep yourself right you should be all good. Theres always gonna be peeps hatin on everyone, thats just the way shit is........

 

[Sydal]

Race doesn't matter in Rap Music, I give a fuck what people say!!

People from all backgrounds can contribute to this ART FORM, as long as they remain true to themselves. It doesn't matter if somebody is from the ghetto, a trailer park, Egypt, Belgium, or anywhere else in the world...as long as they set out to CONTRIBUTE to the culture and do it because that's what they love doing as a form of expression. Rap/Hip-Hop has grown and touches all sections of the world.

As for me, I'm considered a "white rapper". I want to share my experiences with everybody, and I want people to know that everybody goes through similar shit no matter what. That is my contribution, along with my dedication to the music itself. It is a multi billion dollar industry now, but I'm in it because it's what sets me free emotionally, and that's all that matters. My boy from Tyler, TX got me into doin' this, and it stuck with me, even after he passed away....most people would give up if the 2nd half of their duo passed on, but not me. I'm doin it to maintain my mental health, and to pass on what he passed on to me!! It's a gift given to people, and my boy helped me find it...not everybody has the ability to rap no matter how hard they try. I believe in God, and God is colorblind...with that said, he gives the talent to who he thinks can carry the torch (IN MY OPINION). In my eyes, the music itself is a way of reaching people that you otherwise wouldn't be able to reach, and you reach them for good reasons. I had a kid hit me up...16 years old...wanted to committ suicide until he heard one of my songs and saw that somebody else felt like he did!! It's about all that, and no matter what color skin you were born with, you can do it...as long as you remain true to the art by staying true to yourself!!

 

[cHeWdOGG]

Why must we be forced to see when in music all you have to do is hear?

 

[MaddDogg]

Never said he wasn't good. I just disagree with putting a number to how many people he is better than. And to be more specific...I disagree with putting a number to, essentially, how many COLORED people he is better than.

Man sometimes i just dont know why you post here. Go fly a kite or dig those old school Garbage Pail kids cards up and stick them on your little sister or something.

Anyways I ALSO disagree with putting a number to how many rappers (not colored people) he is better than, my point was that Eminem is legitimately better than the majority of rappers. And Id say 95% is a more viable answer anyways.

If you are goin to say Em is not ONE of the greatest (say top 15 ever) than your either retarded or living in South Central L.A. circa April 29th 1992. And I never said he was the greatest. I agree that he probly has an elevated status because he is white (being that he exposed tons of whites to rap and a larger percent of consumers, many whom are white, buy his cds) but lets take a look at some other "famous" icons of Rap:

Big Pun-I never really thought this dude was all that but a WHOLE LOTTA latin people do.

Queen Latifah- I never really thought this dude was tight but a whole lot of women do.

Noturious BIG- is a great rapper, but you'll notice he gets a lot of labels (ie the GOAT, even though he only has 3 albums) from people in NY while his influences in places like Cali has continued to recede.

So of course, who is better is always a matter of opinion, but location, race, gender have always been an issue.

 

[mR.SiPpYGeTiPpY]

we're all human aint we.. lol. thats what it comes down to.

if theres respect there for one another theres not many other factors that contribute. Respect usually comes into play when you recognize. Rap is too broadened to be considered as a one race thang, cos its been far from that since the beginning.

I think social standards do come in to play if not race, say, if ur blind, and you hear some muthafucka comin outta beverly hills talkin bout killin muthafuckas and he bein all 'real' about it... that aint right. You wont have respect for this stupid fool.
As long as you keep it on the track you'll gain respect.

Rap has many forms of style, gangsta, hardcore, horrocore, playa, b-boy, scientifical, thuggish, Jazzy, party etc. When rappers chat breeze you just have to accept it is their braggadacio (spl?) style entourage.

If a rapper got skills, then he got skills, standard.

im a rapper/producer. I got knock and pretty much any rapper feels half the beats i got. and i'm white. i support rap in our community and people respect me for that. I haven't experienced a struggle or any racist attacks so it seems all good.

LOL. i got 2 Djs foo! DJ Doggz & DJ Sketch. know about it!

when did Spice-1 stop rollin wit DJ X-Large? That was the original shit right there, i'd like that element to come back into rappin. Spice always used to bounce lyrics offa Large and talk about some shit they got into, i miss that.

 

[JAMESMAC]

man rap and music in general is art and only the talented and gifted few can do it to a good standard.fuck yo haters man. eminem is the part of the reason rap is so big 2day how you gonna hate the dude cuz he white,if it wasnt fo em there wouldnt be no big 50 cent dude would still be catchin bullets pushin dope.

 

[B-Buzz]

The #1 problem you're going to find is right there. Once ONE white anything breaks through a minority-dominated area, he is considered one of the greatest of all time. (Larry Bird, Rocky Marciano, Elvis, and the list goes on). I mean...90%? Come on now. You were making good points until that diarrhea of the mouth happened.

Are you sayin Bird & Marciano were overrated?

 

[DUTCH-F.E]

MARSHALL MATHERS IS THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME. GET OVER IT.