Friday, April 30, 2010

Misogyny in hip-hop music and videos


Although the portrayal of women in hip-hop have shown several positive female role models, the negative portray of women influence many young men, women and female rappers by showing the only way to be a successful rapper is to degrade and flaunt women. Hip-hop culture is frequently condemned for its misogynistic exploitation of women; however misogyny is also seen in many other genres of music such as Rock N Roll and pop. Hip-hop is also used in examining gender stereotypes. It brings to surface the issues that face many young people, such as discrimination, peer relations, and self-worth, which can be considered in order to bring about change in the misogynistic aspects of hip-hop culture. Record companies also encourage the use of provocative, edgy lyrics to maximize a rappers appeal and success, they also reject or limit the promotion of rap artist who use socially conscious lyrics. Many women argue that they use rap videos as a way to gain exposure and become financially secure. This controversial topic has caught the attention of many women who have had enough of the repeatedly disrespect of women in hip-hop. Essence Magazine created a domain where not just the hip-hop community can give their insight but also regular people who are affected by these representations. I believe the misrepresentation in hip-hop can either get worst or better. Rappers should realize that what they do in music videos and what they say in their music really has a affect on younger people, therefore they should become more conscious of how they present their music to the public.

5 comments:

  1. I like what you have here so far, it looks like you know what you are talking about. Just this little blog is very interesting, so i am sure your paper is even better. The topic is very interesting!

    Kasidi

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  2. Very good topic to write about! I feel like this is a huge problem in the United States and in the music industry today. I'm glad you've chosen to tackle it, and it looks like you a have a very good grasp on the issue.

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  3. I totally agree. I've seen some pretty ridiculous rap videos that almost made me offended. I appreciate all the misogyny. It gave me less of a desire to argue cause I have no idea what that means. Your paper relates to my paper. It's all the major labels' faults. haa!!!

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  4. In my social problems class we just watched a video on misogyny just last week so i can totally agree that rap videos are not the only ones to do this to women it can be seen in pretty much any genre of music. You seem to have a good understanding of this topic and its cool to see someone cover this issue.

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  5. I talked on this subject a bit in my paper. It's an interesting subject. I liked how you closed this blog with your opinion on what rappers should do, and I completely agree! Kids are highly influenced by these images of rappers and their music. Definitely an important topic!

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