Charlotte Post Image persist

CoolNavBar by Georges Auberger (http://www.auberger.com) -->You are here: Home > Arts & Entertainment

Alter State of Hip HopWar over words, image persistsBy Cheris F. Hodges cheris.hodges@thecharlottepost.com
Back in the day, the message in hip-hop was clear: Don't push me because I'm close to the edge.
Hip-hop star ­ and Charlotte Bobcats minority owner ­ Nelly is part of urban music's new breed.
associated press photo/andrea a. dixon
Nowadays, hip-hop is a myriad of messages, and critics say that message is violence, drugs and sex.
"There is an imbalance in the message," said Paul Porter of Industry Ears, a consortium of entertainment and broadcast industry professionals dedicated to promoting justice in media. He added that 75 percent of hip-hop songs played on broadcast radio have a message of sex, drugs and violence and that's marketed to teens.
"And the whole theory that broadcasters tell the public is bull," he said. "You can turn your radio off, but those are public air waves. And there are too many other ways for children to get the negative information."
Porter recalled hanging out with his 8-year-old nephew who was on the Internet watching a Ying Yang Twins video. "Parents can't be with their children 24 hours a day," he said.
But music videos and radios are always around. On Charlotte radio, songs like Trick Daddy's "Sugar (gimme some)" and the Ying Yang Twins "Wait (The Whisper Song)" are popular not just on urban station like WPEG (98) FM, but hit music stations WNKS (95.1) and WIBT (96.1).
Porter said this shows radio stations aren't to blame for what's played, but their parent companies.
"We're being held under corporate hostage. I don't blame WPEG, I blame Infinity (the parent company of WPEG and WNKS). They send a corporate play list in," Porter said.
Essence Magazine has launched a yearlong look into how the images portrayed in hip-hop songs and videos effect young women.
At press time, an editor from the magazine had not returned a call to the Post. But according to the web site, "When we search for ourselves in music lyrics, mixtapes and DVDs and on the pages of hip-hop magazines, we only seem to find our bare breasts and butts. And when we finally get our five minutes at the mic, too many of us waste it on hypersexual braggadocio and profane one-upmanship. The damage of this imbalanced portrayal of black women is impossible to measure. An entire generation of black girls are being raised on these narrow images. And as the messages and images are broadcast globally, they have become the lens through which the world now sees us. This cannot continue."
But Joe Wiggins, director of urban communications for TVT records, home of the Ying Yang Twins and Lil' John and the Eastside Boys, said if people don't like the music, they don't have to listen to it or buy it.
"Because of the way hip-hop has grown, its critics have grown 10 fold," Wiggins said.
"Everyone always has an opinion. But I don't think any organization in America should believe in censorship."
WPEG morning show host "No Limit" Larry Mims said some of the same people who complain about the music aren't doing anything to give artists an alternative.
"They're not offering the artists any jobs," he said. "It's not our job to be the parents. If you don't like the artist, don't buy the CD and don't support the artist."
WPEG, said Mims, won't play certain songs that have suggestive lyrics during the daytime. "We play those songs at night when the kids should be in the bed. We do keep the kids in mind."
When "Wait" hit the airwaves, Wiggins said that it was because the song was leaked from a recording session.
"I don't know if it would have been released to radio," he said.
The song, which has an infectious beat and very provocative lyrics, has drawn sharp criticism.
Wiggins said the artists didn't record "Wait" to be malicious and public demand was strong enough for the label to release the song.
When asked if record companies have a moral responsibility about the songs it releases, Wiggins didn't have an answer.
"That's a good question," he said. "I think that's debatable and should be asked of all genres of music."
Mims said the debate over hip-hop lyrics shows that the genre is in the forefront. "They talked about Rock and Roll the same way," he said. "It wouldn't make sense to attack something at the bottom."
Other Arts & Entertainment Articles in this Issue: Exhibit a look into teens' frame of mind
News Business Life/Religion Arts&Entertainment Sports Health Editorials ClassifiedsHome Demographics Calendar of Events Feedback Black Guide