And people are shocked. They shouldn’t be. The inevitable women’s rights groups have been complaining for years about degradation of women in hip hop culture, and now we are seeing the effects of it. The ho’ shoulda kept her mouth shut and let her man fuck around with other hos.
Nearly half of the 200 Boston teenagers interviewed for an informal poll said pop star Rihanna was responsible for the beating she allegedly took at the hands of her boyfriend, fellow music star Chris Brown, in February.
Wasn’t there a “song” some years ago called Smack My Bitch Up? Uh huh.
Sad state of affairs. Just when we think that we’re raising smart, savvy daughters, we get smacked in the face with the knowledge that we’re not nearly as far ahead in this world as we once thought. BAH.
First of all, don’t make the same mistake Bill O’Reilly did and criticize a genre of music you know nothing about. “Smack My Bitch Up” was a song by The Prodigy, who are from the UK and produce electronic dance music. Different country, different genre, they have pretty much nothing in common with hip hop.
Second, and I don’t believe I’d ever have to say this, but no woman deserves a beating, regardless if that genre of music promotes the degradation of women or not. People often take different songs too seriously, and do all sorts of bad things because of that. This is not inherent in hip hop music, nor is it exclusive to hip hop either.
Blaming hip hop music for isolated incidents like this would be like blaming Christianity for all of the suffering it has caused by extreme fundamentalists, or blaming Islam for radical jihadism. It’s such a narrow-minded view that is counter-productive to a real solution.
If you are not willing to, and have no interest in learning about hip hop culture, understanding the difference between commercial rap and true hip hop, or even trying to understand the nuances and different poetical styles that make up hip hop music, why bother interjecting your opinion on it? You’re either trying to convert us hip hop fans to your way of thinking, or you’re just poking fun at it for your own amusement. Either way, it’s a shame that you’ve chosen to take the low road on the issue.
I’m an open book, if there’s anything you want to know about hip hop culture, rap music or rap artists, I’d be glad to share with you.
Women are just getting treated equally. A man would’ve done it to another man, so why can’t he do it to a woman? Women are no different than men and are to be treated 100% equally. That’s what they teach us in school.
“I don’t believe I’d ever have to say this, but no woman deserves a beating, regardless if that genre of music promotes the degradation of women or not. People often take different songs too seriously, and do all sorts of bad things because of that.”
So, why to you think you have to say no woman deserves a beating DJ?
If young people are impressionable, duh, and may do all sorts of bad things because of the treatment of women in the lyrics, then how can one justify this at all DJ?
I would like to read this chapter in you open book.
Justify what? The music or the violence? Because I am not defending music that is degrading towards women, nor am I justifying violence towards women. I am merely defending an art form that the writer implies is at fault for the tragedy that took place here. There is much more to hip hop than songs about bitches and hoes, and there are other forms of music that are equally as degrading.
DJ, you lost me when you stated that Islam has nothing to do with radical jihadism..i suggest you look a little harder into why that statement is untrue.While you’re at it, look into why and how Christianity was reformed so that in last few centuries the reactionaries became irrelevant, with regards to violence being a tenet of the religion.
I know it is a small matter, but official Islam advocates for the violent takeover of society so as to a create a worldwide caliphate, with Islam being the one and only true religion.Please show examples of same in official Christendom…
As well, let’s look at your fav music another way…perhaps the violence is not a result of the music, but the music is a byproduct of a culture that believes in the mythos of the ho, the gun and the gangsta.The music is just one example of a sickness that permeates the social culture of blacks and Latinos, where violence and misogyny is somehow seen as a virtue worth emulating.
There is no use getting in an argument about religion with those who are religious. I just used that as an example. There are many peaceful Christians and Muslims out there, and there are many that have used bastardized interpretations of these religions to promote and justify violence. Religion is a tool for those who wish to corrupt, just as much as it is a tool for those who wish to promote peace. The merit upon which you seem to judge the two religions is based on your own personal bias, and YOUR interpretation of the scriptural documents that pertain to each religion.
You also seem to want to generalize and stereotype two minority groups in an extremely unfair way. Domestic violence is a behavior that permeates the culture of the poor. I’m not sure if you are suggesting that these cultural differences are inherent to these two races or not, but you should choose your words more carefully if you don’t want to come off as bigot. The largest demographic of hip hop fans are middle class, suburban, white Americans. If your theory were to be considered plausible in any way, the domestic violence rates in middle class white homes should be just as high as they are in impoverished black and latino communities. I have to ask, do you, or the writer of this article for that matter, ever look at the statistics before you make these absurd claims, or are you just judging a culture you know nothing about, and making up information off of the top of your head?
[...] TEENS BLAME Rihanna for beating …. [...]
*Smack my bitch up* ain’t hip-hop. It’s whining by a bunch of white boys.
As a feminist who has worked with victims of violence I must say that I feel like giving Rhiana a shake. Many women in these circumstances have children and are utterly financially dependent and have endured years of brow beating and isolation. This chick is young and rich with no kids and an exceptionally bright future. The example she sets is pathetic, regardless of what backgrounds they both may have had.
If I was covergirl or any other advertizer that might pay for her services I would drop her. Maybe CoverGirl’s next ad can have Rhiana showing how great that make-up can cover bruises. They can target battered women.