Controversy in Hip Hop
Hip-hop culture has certainly had its share of controversy since its inception in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Hip-hop can be simplistically described as being a predominantly African-American and Afro-Carribean youth culture that consists of four main elements, these being graffiti writing, break dancing, rapping and Djing. Of the elements of hip-hop, rap music is the most widely practiced and acts as a vehicle for the cultural expression of the participants. ... There are numerous themes that can be identified in hip-hop culture and they all have issues or controversies associated with them. Some of these controversies that I have been able to identify are firstly what is hip-hop culture and what is not? This I believe reflects the uncertainty over what practices and cultural objects are thought of as uniquely hip-hop as opposed to being labelled part of another culture or musical style. Another major controversy is the way sexuality is expressed in hiphop culture with many critics claiming that sexism and mysogynism are rampant in rap music with women being objectified and repressed. ... There is also the relationship between gangs and hip-hop and examples of murders in the industry such as the untimely deaths of Tupac Shakur and Notorious B. ... Another key controversy within the industry is the idea of “selling out”. ... Guevara 1996 states that while hip-hop is and has always been a male dominated industry, women were always involved in the development of the hip-hop subculture in the United States. Women can participate fully in all of the elements of hip-hop culture and there are an increasing number of female rappers.