From the Fringe: the Hip Hop Culture
and Ethnic Relations
The '‘hip hop culture” has permeated popular culture in an unprecedented
fashion. Because of its enonnous cross-over appeal, the hip hop culture is potentially
a great unifier of diverse populations. Although created by black urban youth on
the street, hip hop’s influence has become worldwide. Approximately 75% of the
rap and hip hop audience is nonblack. The music and all that goes with it has
moved from the fringes to the suburbs and into the corporate boardrooms. Indeed,
McDonald’s, Coca Cola, Sprite, Nike and other corporate giants have capitalized
on this phenomenon. Although critics of rap music and the hip hop culture seem
fixated on its dominant messages of sex and violence as well as on its harsh language,
this genre offers us a paradigm for mending ethnic relations. In the 1950’s and
'60’s, the "Beat culture” challenged the status quo in ways that unified liberals and
prompted change. In the same vein, the hip hop culture has challenged the system
in ways that have unified individuals (particularly youth) across a rich ethnic
spectrum. This paper will discuss the development of the hip hop culture, the cross
over appeal of hip hop, and the potential of this culture to mend ethnic cleavages in
our society.
Today, rap is the fastest growing music genre in the U.S., accounting for
more than 10 percent of the SI 2.3 billion music sales in 1998 (Alexander, 1998,
p.Bl). The overall hip hop culture has been established by this musical art form.
The language (street slang), dress (baggy pants, caps worn backwards, expensive
sneakers), and style of the hip hop culture have all evolved from rap music (Lewis,
1998, p.E3).
Soundscan, a company in Hartsdale, N.Y. that monitors music sales,
validated the widespread popularity of rap when it noted that at the end of 1998, 9
of the 15 albums topping the pop charts were rap. At the end of 1998, three of the
top selling albums were rap acts; JciyZ, Oiitkast, and A Tribe Call Quest. According
to the Recording Industry Association of America, rock music accounted for 32.5
percent of the industry’s $12.3 billion in sales during 1997. But this figure is down
from 46.2 percent a decade ago. Meanwhile, rap music’s share of sales has increased
150% over the last ten years and is still rising (Hilburn, 1998, p.6). These figures
re-affirm the fact that rap is replacing rock and roll as the most popular genre of
music among youth (Srauss, 1998, p.El). Ten years ago, in the suburbs teenagers
blasted music from such rock artist as The Byrds, The Doors, The Eagles, Van
Halen, and Guns ‘N ’Roses. Today, teenagers are listening to rap music from such
artist as Jay Z and Outkast (Hilburn, 1998, p.6).