Keepin' It Real: Definitions in Flux/Realer Than Real

Definitions:

Hegemonic: the social, cultural, ideological, or economic influence exerted by a dominant group

Peculiar: strange, queer, and odd.

Multiethnic: made up of people of various ethnicities

Obfuscating: confusing

Tumultuous: disorderly or noisy, disturbance

Sacrosanct: treated as if holy : immune from criticism or violation

Malleability: capable of being altered or controlled by outside forces or influences

Keepin’ It Real: Definitions in Flux

Hip-hop came about in the 1970s in South Bronx. This caused criminal activity and the black community to be associated directly to hip-hop. Since hip-hop came from South Bronx, which is a mainly black community, whites have been removed from hip-hop culture. This is because most are from middle-class, suburban living. In hip-hop, whites are not considered authentic. Eminem is an exception to this. He is authentic because of his experience. He doesn’t rap about surreal things. He raps about the troubles he has been through. Also, he was one of the first whites to take the chance and enter hip-hop.

Graffiti art and b-boying are only considered authentic to hip-hop in the Latino community. Some African Americans have attained doing graffiti art and b-boying, but it did not originate where hip-hop did.

My goal in this paper is to try and understand for myself and others, just why rappers do what they do in music videos and say what they say in their lyrics. I want to know just why they use half naked women, slang, and glorify violence and prison in their videos. My audience will be teens and young adults that listen to rap music or have the same questions as I do. By understanding these actions I am going to look into the rapper 50 cent also nicknamed Fiddy. 50 cent now has a movie out about him and the 9 times he was shot. I have seen the video myself and I agree it is a very violent, gang related movie. I like to stand in the middle of everyone’s opinion and see both sides of the issue. When trying to convince my audience why rappers use violence I will use examples from 50 cents movie, music, and his background. I know just from the movie that 50 cent had a rough life and lost his mother through drugs and violence. I also know that 50 cent was so involved in gangs and drugs that he now wheres a bullet proof vest everywhere he goes for his own safety. By reffering to 50 cent I believe I can cover alot of issues on this subject.

Clarkyboy. “Rap Music and Violence.” http://www.clarkyboy.com/rapmusic.htm. 2005. Web. 23 February 2010.

2,500 teens walked out of their high schools in Philadelphia to object to the fact that they were going to be bought out by a for-profit company, called Edison. These teens were well aware of how the market takes advantage of them and targets teens; therefore they knew what it meant to be managed by a for-profit company. If this company were to buy them out they would feel like property. They are there to get an education and they shouldn’t have to worry about things like this. The residents should be first notified since it’s their tax dollars being used. Even though they come out of their own pocket to pay for public education they should still be against this idea. Everything Edison had to address sounded good, but how would they know if it’s true. From my opinion, all extra money would go to the company for profit and there would be none left over for improvement.
The teens felt they were being let down by the school board if this were to happen. The issue should have been brought upon the residents and the teens and than discussed. From the teen’s point of view, they felt they were being used. They were going to be a franchise, and they would be looked at like a Wal-mart or Wendy’s instead of a group of teens getting an education. Becoming a franchise would lower their school spirit since there are many other schools that carry out activities and instruction just as they do. Schools are not a franchise and shouldn’t be. No one should have to change schools to get a better education. With public schools, most of them are alike in many ways. If they were to be franchised the competition among students to get into the best school would put a lot of pressure on them and their parents. This pressure shouldn’t be brought upon young students trying to receive an education.
If I were in this situation I would want to be consulted. It’s my education and I want to know what’s going on behind closed doors. As a student at the school I would feel its only right to be informed and have an input on the decision. I would not feel comfortable knowing that every penny I had to pay to go to school was going to this company rather than towards my education. I’m sure it’s nice to receive new equipment and much needed items to better the education system, but this is going against people’s morals and it would have to require more money out of the student’s pocket. In this case they have the right to know what is going to happen along with the residents, and this is an issue that should have to be discussed before putting into play.

Plastic Surgery among the youth is an issue that I was not aware of until reading Branded. After reading about it I realized it's a bigger issue than I had thought it was. I want Parents and Children to be aware of what is taking place. These teens are influenced by celebrities, idols, and models to look the best and have the best curves. The need to fit in has risen dramatically since the 1900's. I will use statistics and stories from teens that have had plastic surgry to pesuade my audience on the issue of Plastic Surgery among our youth. I want parents to know they have a huge impact on their children when it comes to plastic surgery, if their parents have done it they think it's ok for them too. Parents need to realize looks aren't everything and start raising their kids to look at people from the inside not the out. It's even hard for me to look at people for who they really are when I have only grown up with the idea, not influenced by my parents but rather my peers, that you have to look good to get anywhere.

I now realize that not just teens, but parents too have an addiction in going under a needle to look "normal" or more developed. The main surgery teens are undergoing are breast implants, liposuction, and nose jobs. Men like big breasts and everyone hates a big nose. The economy we live in is very competitive to look good. People who look good and are attractive get rewarded. We see women winning beauty pagaents that have went under a needle many times to reach their goal of what looks good. The reward should go to the plastic surgeon, not the one that had the surgery! This issue will only continue to rise as well as the competition of looking "good" or "normal".

Quart, Alissa. Branded: The Buying and Selling of Teenagers. New York: Basic Books, 2003