Respectez-nous as We Feminize the Rapped Rhyme
by Grandmaster Flash ’ s entitled “ The Message ” was one of the first tracks to teach listeners about a myriad of negative social issues emanating from the ‘ hood . Perhaps , the most well-known artist to juxtapose hip-hop with pedagogy was ( and remains ) the artist known as KRS-One , a rapper whose very name is broken down as “ Knowledge reigns supreme over nearly everything .” Each of his albums is rooted in subjects involving social justice , and many of his tracks deconstructed controversial subjects such as misogyny , gang violence , drug use , educational deficiencies , and so forth . KRS-One is not the only artist to be labeled as a “ Hip-Hop Philosopher ,” but he is one of the originators of the concept and his popularity remains intact .
Although song lyrics that address similar themes are not limited to hip-hop and have been present in all musical genres for decades ( e . g ., the protest music of the 1950s , punk rockers in the 1970s-forward , “ World ” artists from developing countries ), rappers were the loudest in terms of effectively defining and mass marketing themselves as “ teachers ” and “ philosophers ” with educational messages . However , this sort of pedagogical approach in rap music did not last beyond the early 1990s . The same record companies that once promoted a more positive and socially based thesis in hiphop lyrics changed course and started favoring and embracing a more aggressive-style in the mid-1990s that came to be known as “ Gangsta Rap .” Instead of discussing social issues faced by African-Americans and others in marginalized communities , the focus shifted in terms of reacting to one ’ s subordinate status by lyrically promoting violence and deviant behavior . Gangsta Rap became a financial success for hiphop record labels , and a more conscious style music is yet to return to the broad commercially supported acclaim that rap music enjoyed in its early years . Although a socially based
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