The Underground Railroad:Hip-Hop’s express to escape the Minstrel Show PART 3

"We all chase money 'cause we scared to chase dreams" Talib Kweli is a perennial underground hip-hop artist. His albums Black Star and Reflection Eternal are critical- ly acclaimed classics and considered essential hip-hop records. Since those albums, Kweli has struggled to find a balance between the underground and mainstream audience while maintaining his positive sociopolitical messages. His latest release, Eardrum, debuted at number two on the Billboard 200. It was the highest debut he ever had. The album is filled with messages about positivity in hip-hop and the world. Despite the album debuting at number two, the album never received a video for the lead single and the singles never heard the light of day One of his songs entitled “Oh My Stars” shows Kweli speaking to his children. The message that he gives to them is something every parent with a child could relate to. It is also a message that many children should hear. Kweli raps, “And even though mummy and daddy might fight all through the night / Argue and fuss, you a part of us that we've got to get right / I don't love you to death, cause I love you to life / And you a teenager, you might not want my advice / You .might be full of spite, think you're grown, still a tyke / And say things that cut like a patient under the knife / I say this, cause I was once a teenager too / And respect for my peers is really all that I related to / But I made it through, you gonna make it too / So much I wanna say to you...” What parent would not like hearing a song with lyrics like that on the radio? It is very musical and the entire song is filled with similar lyrics. He is an African American man who is professing his love for his children. Most African American males are considered horrible fathers and known for leaving their families behind. To have an artist who is a proud parent is a good thing. It should not be hidden in the underground like it is. Along with Talib Kweli’s messages to children and adults, Lupe Fiasco is an- other artist that talks about things that receive little light in the world of hip- hop. His first single “Kick, Push” chronicles the growth of a kid who uses a skateboard. As the kid gets older, his attachment to hi skateboard grows and the events in his life revolve around it. Hip-hop artists claim to be many things, but a skater is not one of them. A skater is typically viewed as a punk-rock white kid. Yet through Fiasco’s song and lyrics, he has opened the door for an alienated part of the hip-hop audience to find a home. The chorus for the song captures the essence of a young skater. “And so he kick, push, kick, push, kick, push, kick, push, coast / And away he rolled / Just a rebel to the world with no place to go / And so he kick, push, kick, push, kick, push, kick, push, coast / So come and skate with me / Just a rebel / Looking for a place to be / So let's kick...and push...and coast.”

Now with Talib Kweli as the proud parent and Lupe Fiasco as the skater, MURS could be looked at as the average joe. He isn’t perfect and does not claim to be. MURS takes pride in being an under- ground hip-hop artist. His appeal is that he comes across as someone a person could bump into on the street and not have nightmares about. His last album, Murray’s Revenge, received positive re- views because of the issues he chose to talk about. The All Music Guide wrote: “In Murray's Revenge, like in his 2004 release, Murs 3:16, his even-paced delivery shies away from ten-cent words and his songs often deal with the standard rap subjects — a hard life, women, and his own talent — but he is also unafraid to dispel some social constructs that many of his peers only help to perpetuate. In "Dreamchaser" he explains that the draw to gang life is because of a lack of positive opportunity ("We all chase money 'cause we scared to chase dreams"), and he discusses the difficulties of not fitting cleanly into racial stereotypes in "D.S.W.G. (Dark Skinned White Girls)," an issue that's fairly common in contemporary, diverse America. When Murs does slide into talking about himself and his skills a topic no true MC can avoid — he's such a good storyteller that his boasting isn't boring, and he's also willing to admit the bad decisions he's made, creating a real sincerity in his rhymes. Some of the songs are meant to be didactic, but he's usually subtle enough to convey his message without being preachy ("For if a soul is avenged through the deeds of a friend/Then success has always been the best form of revenge"). It's not all seriousness, though; Murs has always been one for a chuckle, and there are some humorous tracks (the aptly named "Silly Girl," for example), but there's enough quality, content, and warm West Coast soul samples in Murray's Revenge to make it a good album that should please fans of any type of hip-hop.

If underground hip-hop albums contain so much positive and relatable issues, why aren’t artists such as Talib Kweli, Lupe Fiasco and MURS heard on the radio? Why aren’t their videos on MTV’s Total Request Live? Why don’t they even have videos? Why are these artists, who are making critically-ac- claimed classic albums, having such a difficult time finding a buying audience? These are very easy questions that all contain one simple answer. Those artists don’t fit in the mold of the hip-hop minstrel show. Through commercialization, industry executives want people to believe that hip-hop is filled with pimps, thugs, gangsters and hoes. They want everyone to think that every woman dresses in scantily clad material and wants sex all of the time. The images produced on the television screen that are considered “hip-hop” make African American males look scary. If a person turns to a channel to find an angry black- man talking about how he will kill some- body, then that is what the person will think? This is not morally right. That is why I believe it is morally wrong for record companies to promote commercial rap over underground hip-hop. What kind of morals do industry executives have if the only things they promote are sex, drugs and violence? They can not be very high at all. Especially not when there are artists out there who show that black people are more than those stereotypes. Hip-hop music originated with African Americans and now in 2008 commercialism has taken away its true meaning. The Minstrel Show will continue as long as people keep a deaf ear to underground hip-hop.

“My culture's not a trend, being Black is not in / But for you it's just a phase you're gonna have to transcend / While even if I tried, I could never blend in / To society's mainstream, American dream / Yeah, it's all one love, but remember one thing / This music is my life, not a cultural fling / It's an expression of the soul when we dance and sing / And you are blessed to have a chance to even glance the scene.” – MURS, And This Is For, MURS 3:16 the 9th Edition.

The Underground Railroad:Hip-Hop’s express to escape the Minstrel Show PART 2

“She dances seductively and is always seen with her pimp or thug”

Every African American man and woman does not deal with street violence, drugs and pimping women. They deal with everyday issues that any white, Mexican or Asian person would struggle with. Topics such as religion, school, genuine love, friendship, homo- sexuality and abuse are discussed in underground hip-hop. These are very important issues that someone may face in his life, but commercial hip-hop stays away from it. One underground artist who does not stay away from it is Common.

Common is a Grammy award winning hip-hop artist who is known for spending the majority of his career in the underground. Just recently, mainstream media has be- gun to give him the credit that he so rightfully deserves. His catalog of music is one of the most impressive and critically-acclaimed hip-hop music since its birth. He has constructed songs that every man woman and child can relate to. Some of the serious topics he has covered include abortion, finding religion and death. Common is one of the most respected hip-hop artists in the genre today.

Common’s 2002 album Electric Circus is his most personal and diverse. He covers topics such as the effects of child molestation, cancer, homosexuality and true love. Many hip-hop albums before and after Electric Circus have not delved into those topics with so much sincerity. Critics recognized the range of topics discussed on the album and praised it for its bravery. “The album may not be for everybody,” according to a December 10, 2008 Prefix Magazine review of the album. “Songs like "Heaven Some- where," which includes many of the guest artists singing gospel, may turn you off. But Common brings together many different textures and goes off on several musical tangents but still man- ages to have DJ's cutting over a few tracks -- a refreshing touch. Still, Electric Circus is one of the most daring albums released in a while, and Common shows a lot of balls to put out such a diverse collection, regardless of how hip-hop fans might react to it. If you like conscious rap mixed with a fresh, original sound, you should dig this.”

Another issue that is rarely, if ever spoken about, in hip-hop is the acceptance of adultery. Little Brother is an underground hip- hop group whose song “Breakin’ My Heart” on their recent album, Getback, tackles the issue head- on. In the second verse of the song, Phonte of the group raps about a woman who learns that her husband is having numerous affairs. She ends up leaving and taking the children to her mother’s house. Although the scenario could be described as typical, Phonte’s set of lyrics give light to a very real issue that is never discussed. Phonte raps, “Momma was like, "Baby now, I hate to see your tears / But I been with your daddy for bout 35 years / And in my day, I had to turn a blind eye to cheatin'' / but I ain't never had to wear no black eyes from beatings / As long as he doin right, by you and the kids / How you gon expect that man not to be who he is? / I ain't sayin’ that it's right, but we often pay the price / cause a woman's life is love, a man's love is life / and he gon live it to the fullest, / and I ain't tryna pull you down, or sound like a broken record / But you should know by now that ALL n**as is dogs / Better to have a rich Pit than a broke German Shepard, uh!” In commercial rap, the Ho accepts infidelity only for the chance to have her revenge. Phonte’s verse shows that all women don’t want to have their own affair. It shows that some women really do love their husbands, but it is their mother who tells them to continue living a mistreated life.

Real issues such as the ones that described above are hidden from a person who just turns on the radio to hear music. The real issues are hidden from those who are trying to find people that are talking about them. It is because of artists like Common and Little Brother that make underground hip-hop so great. They are talking about real issues that everyone con- fronts at some point in their life. The growth of underground hip-hop will show that African Americans are more than thugs, gangsters, pimps and hoes. Despite what commercialism has done with rap, underground hip-hop maintains the essence of what hip-hop has always been about. It holds the reality of everyday life that people from all ages can enjoy. That is what made hip-hop grow into one of the largest forms of musical entertainment in the world today. Its ability to define a culture in a way that everyone can see and relate to is what makes the growth of underground hip-hop to mainstream media important and morally right. There are many artists nowadays that are saying motivational things but just need the chance to be heard. Artists such as Talib Kweli, Lupe Fiasco and MURS rap about topics that are relevant and fun.