Hip-Hop Cleans Up Its Act – At What Cost?

Hip-Hop Cleans Up Its Act – At What Cost?
May 15th, 2007
AMW!.e. Talent: DJ Single Handed

The recurring theme in the hip-hop community today is a “cleanup” of sorts. The call to eliminate explicit, misogynistic, and otherwise degrading lyrics from rap songs has been heard loud and clear. Def Jam Records founder and owner Russell Simmons, an extremely influential voice in hip-hop, has made known his commitment to this movement and has encouraged others to do so as well.

No Limit Records founder and southern hip-hop pioneer Master P has stepped up to the plate by launching a new label, Take a Stand Records. The company co-owned by Master P and his son, Romeo, will release music free of explicit lyrics. To take it a step further in a positive direction, a portion of the profits generated by record sales will go towards scholarships for underprivileged youth.

While the integrity and necessity of philanthropy in the hip-hop community cannot be disputed, I’d like to take a closer look at the lyrical cleanup effort. The intentions are good, but I’d like to see precisely what it is we’re doing.

What exactly are we cleaning up?

If we’re cleaning up the perpetuation and glorification of negative stereotypes and images in songs that are done strictly for entertainment purposes, then I am all for it. If we’re completely cleaning up lyrics across the board, regardless of intention and context, then I think we should take a few steps back.



One characteristic that has made hip-hop stand out is its edge fueled by uncensored, in-your-face lyrical content. Much of it was used to describe the plights in our country: deplorable conditions in our nation’s inner cities, difficult circumstances faced by our youth, and other realities that were displayed as a critique of the establishment as a whole.

The language I’m using right now tells the truth in an easily digestible way. Hip-hop said “F@*k the police!” The message was driven into our brains and implanted into our collective consciousness with brute force, even though many dismissed it as merely hateful garbage.

As we eliminate negative images and “dirty words” from hip-hop, will we go so far that we wind up taking away part of hip-hop’s identity? As it is, hip-hop is barely still a culture. It is now firmly entrenched in the establishment it once fought against. Though hip-hop in its purest form will always remain intact largely under the radar, the land of Corporate America has completely taken it over and turned it into a nicely-packaged product that it can put on the shelf with all of its other nicely-packaged products.

Hip-hop does need to “clean up” by reviewing its responsibilities to everyone it influences. I just hope that the community as a whole prioritizes what exactly needs to be cleaned up and what degree of adjustment needs to happen to other aspects of hip-hop.