Outlook: Breaking Up With Hip-Hop

Lonnae O'Neal Parker
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, October 16, 2006 11:00 AM

Washington Post staff writer Lonnae O'Neal Parker was online Monday, Oct. 16, at 11 a.m. ET to discuss her Sunday Outlook Article ( Post, Oct. 15 ) on why, as a long-time fan, she can no longer partake in today's hip-hop offerings. Parker says the misogynistic lyrics are a sad departure from hip-hop's early days, and that glorified violence has replaced meaningful messages.

Why I Gave Up On Hip-Hop , ( Post, Oct. 15, 2006 )

The transcript follows.

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Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Hi there. Thanks so much for reading my piece in Outlook yesterday and engaging with me around this subject. I want to introduce the chat with a quote from DJ Kool Herc, one of the inventors, a god-father of hip-hop.

To me, hip-hop says, Come as you are. It ain't about bling-bling. It ain't about how much your gun can shoot. It ain't about $200 sneakers...But it has been pimped and perverted. It ain't about keeping it real. It's got to be about keeping it right. (Intro, "Can't Stop, Won't Stop, A History of the Hip-Hop Generation" Jeff Chang)

I think we've always gotta here from the folks who kicked it off. With that, let's get started.

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Washington, D.C.: The portrayals of young black men and women in rap music is horrifying. Nevertheless, these are the images that our young black men and women are seeing and trying to emulate. Why aren't more parents as concerned about what their children watch and listen to on television? Secondly, why aren't they engaging their children in meaningful dialogue on this subject matter to inform and educate them that this behavior is not acceptable? Finally, how do we encourage young black women not to portray "video h-s" in rap videos, as this is only prostitution in a glorified manner?

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Yes, many of the images are deeply disturbing. I'm not sure I agree that parents aren't concerned. Every parent I talk to voices the same concern about the music and of course the broader culture as well. Black kids are vulnerable to these messages and images and many have a hard time distinguishing between the hyberbole and reality, but white kids are also subject to violent, stupid imagery. I don't see aspiration figures,especially for girls anywhere in the culture. And you are right, the real need is to engage around the lyrics and try to provide context and a counter to some of the worse stuff out there. Thanks for your question.

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Washington, D.C.: Is your daughter receptive of the old school hip hop you play for her?

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: That's so funny. She is receptive to much of it. She loves Slick Rick's Bedtime Stories for example. Also, when we're feeling silly, we do a lot of UTFO and of course I listen to a lot of Tribe Called Quest. But you know, she's 12 and she's inherently suspicious of music I think is cool.

Because she doesn't listen to a lot of radio, she doesn't have a good context for what's contemporary. So she might be enjoying a song, then she'll shoot me a look and say "Mommy, is this song old?" It's very funny.

Almost daily, I ask her, "Sydney, what's my anthem," and she always mumbles under her breath "I Got Soul by Eric B. & Rakim."

I'm like, that's right, and don't forget it.

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Washington, D.C.: Finally, there's someone who shares my sentiments about the digression of hip-hop! Nowadays, there are only two types of rap songs: (1) ones about flashing money, shooting people, and degrading women; and (2)ones that just don't make any sense at all. No joke -- there's a song about chicken noodle soup! Get real! Since when is this considered creative? My question is: What can we do besides wearing t-shirts to stop this madness? Or are we all destined to break-up with hip-hop?

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Actually, there are tons of people who share that sentiment. But let's be careful not to paint all hip-hop artists with the same brush. There are some folks out there doing really thoughtful, creative work. The problem is sifting through the nonsense to get to the good stuff and as a parent, I don't always have the time to constantly filter. So it's often easier to turn off. And yes, sometimes it seems like folks will make a song about anything. Got a hacking cough? Go ahead and rhyme about it.

I think women can be enormously influential in stopping a lot of this. I love the (cute) tee-shirts that send messages to the wearer and the reader and I absolutely love the notion of stepping off the dance floor. As Jahipster points out there simply is no party without women on the floor. That's local and immediate and powerful. So let's not break up with groups like the Poem-cees or OutKast or Common. Takes more work to find some of these artists, but it's our culture and we've got to assume proprietary rights and responsibilities.

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Louisville, Ky.: Lonnae,

I wanted to give you a big thank you for your article. Rap music and the hip hop culture have definitely taken a turn for the worse, to the point where I have to bring out the old school CDs on a regular basis. My children are quick to huff and puff when I change the radio station when one of the new songs come on or they're quick put on their headphones to listen to Dem Franchize Boyz and all of these other new artists whenever I put on an Eric B. and Rakim, Tribe Called Quest or Black Star CD.

Hopefully one day, they'll realize that the rap music of today played major part in the destruction of the hip hop culture that you and I grew up to know and love. I hope that guys like Mos Def, Talib Kweli and Common stay in the game for a long time.

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Thank you. Yeah, being able to go back to old school music helps, but you know, it's unrealistic to think that alone is enough. I'm hoping if we're active and engage, if we lift our voices and, hello, vote with our pocket books, then it won't come to the (further) destruction of hip-hop culture.

It's a struggle, but of course struggle is nothing new to us.

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Silver Spring, Md.: There is a ton of good rap out there. Just not on the radio.

But the best stuff was never on anything but the local stations back in the day anyways. What has changed is that there are NO more local radio stations who can play stuff by J-Live, Kev Brown or the artists you mentioned like Common, Mos Def and Talib.

I have kids 5 and 7. I play rap for them often. Mostly old school, old RUN-DMC, Stetsasonic and stuff like that. But they already say, "it isn't real music daddy, it is just talking rhymes over a beat."

They are right, but some are better at it than others. Find them and play them for you kids.

Oh yeah, as far as I am concerned, MC Lyte ushered in the whole thug thing with her song, "Need a Roughneck", so she gets no dap from me.

--Old schooler

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: You raise an interesting point with MC Lyte. I used to listen to a lot of harder edged rap including N.W.A. but back then, without the concentration of media ownership, narrowing of radio playlists and hyper-commodification of rap music we could contextualize much better. That was merely part of a whole range of expression. Joan Morgan, considered the mother of hip-hop feminism points out, we don't want to sanitize the culture-we don't want to disallow individual expression and hard realities. We don't want to hypersexualize it, but we don't want to erase our sexuality either. It's a hard balance, but the culture has got to do a better job than it's doing now.

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Bethesda, Md.: Why do you think "the kids" are so attracted to what appears, at least at face value, to be so ugly and self-defeating?

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Because it's got dope beats and tight rhymes. Isolate the lyrics from the rhythm and they are horrific but that's not how we listen to rap. The production values are often so compelling, they obscure the ugliness of the message.

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Denver, Colo.: It seems that Lonnae O'Neal Parker has a problem with the way corporate radio and MTV package hip hop, not with the art form itself. In terms of contemporary artists, she mentions 50 Cent and Snoop Dogg, but seems unaware of the existence of artists like Talib Kweli, Common, Blackalicious or J-Live. Hip hop is smarter, more respectful of women, and more political than it has ever been. It's too bad that the corporate media chooses to promote hip hop that is materialistic and that creates negative stereotypes of African Americans, but this is a problem with corporate America's values, not hip hop's.

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: You should go back and read the article where I mention Talib Kweli and 50 Cent specifically.

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Washington, D.C.: People's first instinct when they don't like a song's message is to attack the media (BET, MTV, etc.) without ever taking their protests to the person who made the video and song in the first place, i.e. the artists and the record labels. Is there an effective way to protest against artists who make degrading/violent music?

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: The most effective protest I know of happened a few years ago when Nelly cancelled an appearance at Spellman College in Atlanta. He'd been invited to perform but women began protesting the images and lyrics to his song "Tip Drill" and he ended up canceling.

That to me seemed a powerful example of local organizing and action.

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Hoboken, N.J.: What are your thoughts on Lupe Fiasco? I think he's a breath of fresh air to current hip hop, especially the hip hop with a lot TV/radio air play.

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: I haven't heard a lot of Lupe but what I've heard I've liked a lot. He seems in the tradition of a Public Enemy.

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Hyattsville, Md.: Ms. Parker,

I really enjoyed you're article. I feel like you and I are in the same boat. I'm 29 and haven't listened to hip-hop on the radio in a decade. Artists like Talib Kweli, Common and their affiliates are the only current rap acts that make it on to my playlist. However, I never really thought of myself as having "broken up" hip-hop. I just feel that my taste have matured. While on some level I'm as disturbed by the emptiness of the rap that makes it onto the radio and into the videos, Part of me is happy about the fact that rap, for better or for worse, has something for everyone. True, those of us who don't get into 50 Cent and Li'l Jon may have to work a little harder, but the good stuff is out there. And hip-hop has an incredibly deep underground culture, that's loaded with little known artists doing innovative and extraordinary work. Don't you think that the existence of such distinctly different subcultures exist within hip-hop is something of positive for the culture as a whole? Granted, it's unfortunate that the worst of the culture tends to get the most attention. But isn't that always the way when art and popular entertainment mix? More people watch reality TV than PBS.

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: You make a good point about tastes maturing. My concern is that commercial radio stations carry many of these songs during afternoon drive times when they are so accessible to kids. It's unfathomable to me that that black programmers and jocks don't make more of a distinction about what they play. Granted they are subservient to corporate interests and many in the record listening public but the airwaves are a public trust and often they are violating that trust. We all make choices and they often choose wrong.

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Arlington, Va.: Back in the day, what did you think of Tipper Gore's crusade against obscenity in pop music? Do you see yourself as following in her footsteps?

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: I think its problematic when we start trying to legislate this stuff, especially since offensive lines and political sensibilities differ. However I do think pressure can be brought to bear on radio stations to enforce "safe harbor," zones when some of the music won't be played.

Also, sisters walking off the dance floor as proposed by "Jahipster," would be a great grass roots protest. Other's like "Industryears," have called attention to some of these issues. Finally, a lot of us have already stopped buying.

Duke professor Mark Anthony Neal points out that all of commercial hip-hop's excesses have created a context where it no longer has a relationship to the everyday folks who were important to it 20 years earlier-it's traditional base. In addition, its so super exploited itself, it no longer has anything new or shocking to offer to the young white fans who give artists their double platinum status.

This is born out by NielsenSoundScan which reports a nearly 16 percent drop in sales of hip-hop albums mid-year 2006.

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New York, N.Y.: We need to hold someone responsible for this junk. It's not some some old white guy telling Snoop what to rap about--he and Master P and Diddy and Jay-Z pretty much make decisions for themselves. Right? So can't we say this publicly? Put the blame where it belongs?

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Um, I think you just made that point.

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Bowie, Md.: Nevermind radio, what do you think about shows like "Flava of Love" and how it demeans women and how the cable stations make $$$ out of demeaning women? It's been so popular that they now have season 2. I'm sure you don't let your kids watch it.

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: See, I don't even know what a lot of this stuff is. I've never seen that program although it sounds vaguely familiar. Is that the one with Flava Flav who used to be the best hype man in hip-hop?

Some lyrics and images provide teachable moments but most of the time you gotta just turn off the radio and TV and send kids out to play, you know?

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Wheaton, Md.: Just want to say that I was in college about the same time as you and can relate to feeling empowered by the rap lyrics back then. Call me an old head, but we've definitely lost something. I really like the idea of women choosing to leave the dance floor when an offensive song comes on. I started doing that a long time ago, although my club days are mostly over now. Big "ups" to you for the article and creating new, positive energy around this issue. We have GOT to do better.

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Word!

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Houston, Tex.: I've long been fascinated by the difference in attitudes towards money in hip-hop and rap music. It seems to me that if white rock musicians (Green Day, say) made a video in which they rode limos to a mansion where they poured champagne on bikini-clad models, it would only be understandable as a joke.

It's a complicated question, but what do you think is behind the frequently ostentatious display of wealth in hip-hop imagery?

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: The notion of conspicuous consumption has typically been applied to the black middle-class. I think this hyper conspicuous consumption is an off shoot of that. The black middle class worships money just as much, it seems, but we differ about the means to the end. I think there's a place for all of us to recognize our own complicity. People are not just going to press their faces to the glass and pine for all the stuff you have. They are going to find a way to get it themselves.

That said, ostentatious displays of wealth are not unique to rap and not unique to black people. Look at all the ostentation during the Gilded Age and more recently during the dot.com heyday. Look at the explosion of corporate scandals. So a lot of contemporary rap is sad in that way, but not out of step with the larger culture or U.S. history.

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Fairfax, Va.: We've been asking for years, "where does it end?" The killing of two of hip-hop's stars may have curbed some of the violence, but only started the party. Remember when the biggest controversy was 2 Live Crew?! Anyway, my observation is that hip hop has changed the world. Kids in every corner of the globe have adopted the culture, the speech and the dress as their own. If everyone rapping today stopped and you pulled the songs from stores and radio, the waves would continue for years. Do you agree? and Where does it end?

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Yes, some of that speaks to the genius of the culture that it can reach around the world. I have a friend, DJ Stylus who travels and tells me about the robust hip-hop scene in the Balkan states or the former Yugoslavia. Of course there are iterations like Reggaeton that are partially built on hip-hop foundations. If they stopped making records,the music would continue for years and it should. Some of it just has to change. And it will.

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Bowie, Md.: "Flava of Love," which is on VH1, is about Flava Flav and how about 20 "women" are brought onto the show to prove their love to him. These are some of the skankiest women out there, and they cat fight and do all sorts of stuff, including bed him, to win his favor. He puts them through all sorts of weird challenges to weed them out. Flava claims what he's looking for is a woman who understands him, and will be with him unconditionally, but knows that in his business, he can't commit to her.

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Wow. That's hilarious. You know I used to love Flav, but he ain't the pretty boy at the party so I'm not really surprised that a few skanky women would vie for his favor or that he'd make good reality television. He should maybe settle down with one then come back on the old school reunion circuit.

Hey Flav, one love.

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Louisville, Ky.: Lonnae, How do you suggest we educate our children on the evolution of hip-hop and rap music?

It's impossible to think that we can monitor everything our children hear and see at home because what they don't get from home, they'll just get it from a friend at school just like I did.

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Just like I did, too. They will get it from the streets and that's very organic. I just keep playing my music, reinforcing my lessons, repeating my rhymes.

My kids will hear whatever on the streets, but not in their mommas house. Ultimately, it's my voice they'll hear in their heads until they grow old. Ultimately it's my voice that's more powerful.

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Germantown, Md.: I think it is wrong for people to talk about hip hop/rap the way they do. What about the movies and material on television these days? Why are hip hop/rap and its artists singled out so much? Yes I agree that a lot of the violence and explicit material is uncalled for but I think people should look at hip hop as an individual , and realize that this individual has to grow and mature as a person.

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Yeah, but black kids are getting shot on the streets so, you know, that fuels some of our urgency about not having so many brothers rap about AK-47s.

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Glen Ellyn, Ill.: Slick Rick? He did five years for attempted murder, right? Quite a role model for old school.

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Bedtime Story is a cautionary tale (so don't you dare laugh, about a kid who chooses the wrong path) and that's the song we listen to.

Some rappers have stories and some are more artful and compelling than others. And some just pimp their stories better. Rick has been in some bad places as has Rakim, but he reminds us: "it ain't where your from, it's where you're at."

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Odenton, Md.: I agree because rap stars are no longer just "rap stars", they are role models. And the sad thing about all of this is the fact that most of these rap stars make songs which sets a standard of behavior for the youth (sometimes older people), but yet the rap stars them self do not really live that life. It is not just music, the tongues of rap stars are killing our communities, literally.

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: That's a good note to end, just like we began with a sentiment from DJ Kool Herc who says, and I paraphrase, don't say you don't want to be a role model. The fact is you have my son's attention so teach him something. Help me raise him.

Thank you all for a great discussion. Keep it going, wherever you are.

Peace.

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Washington, D.C.: Where were you in 1988 when NWA was coming Straight Outta Compton? Because stuff these days is tame by comparison.

Lonnae O'Neal Parker: Btw, I saw this and couldn't resist: Earlier this year, at a book reading for black mother's, I posited the notion that I might be the only reporter in the country who had both covered a state dinner at the White House and knew all the words to the urban cautionary tale "Dopeman," by N.W.A.

"Um, make that one of two," joked another woman my age. It was New York Times reporter Lynette Clemetson who used to call herself Sky Collins and host a hip-hop radio program while working on a graduate degree in East Asian studies at the University of Pittsburgh.

I was compelled by the stories of early gangsta rappers, clearly exaggerated for effect, but that was when hip-hop offered a whole range of expression.

Anyway, I couldn't resist. Thanks.

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