Hip-Hop: The New Blues, angst

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I just read an article about "Seeking The Birthplace Of The
Blues." How stunningly unoriginal, I know, so I won't bother
posting the URL. But when scanning over the piece, I noticed
the phrase "Hip-hop is the new blues." For some reason the
phrase filled with anger. Why? Perhaps because it's just so
reductionist and jingoistic. What do y'all think?
Disclosure: although I am a fan of both genres, I listen to
vastly more hip-hop.

― Squirrel_Police (Squirrel_Police), Sunday, 4 April 2004 20:35 (twenty-one years ago)

hip-hop is the new punk.

― tcbmf, Sunday, 4 April 2004 23:00 (twenty-one years ago)

I really agree, S. I mean, it's a pretty racist thing to say, in a sense--leaving out the formal or aesthetic qualities of both genres, and reducing them to simply black people expressing discontent through music. It implies that what is important about each type of music is that it is made by an African-American and it's angry or unhappy, which just completely ignores the fact that it's music, and valuable as such.

― Alec Magnet (poop), Sunday, 4 April 2004 23:06 (twenty-one years ago)

I think people use this argument to try to justify hip-hop's existence to the "rap is crap" people. They are saying "hip-hop is like another, universally critically respected genre in which black people sing about cars and bitches! That makes it OK!" So perhaps they mean well, but it's a stupid argument.

― Sym (shmuel), Monday, 5 April 2004 00:15 (twenty-one years ago)

Perhaps you should look the underlying functional aspects of these genres. What do these records do, and why/how do they do them? They are the same thing, only the window dressing is different.

The technology is different and access to communication technolgy has brought in more influences, but it is the same shit. Black popular music is all about a bunch of working folks getting together on a saturday night and having a good time. As long as there are working black folks that need to relax there will be a guy who comes up with some music that will entertain them while putting a few bucks in his own pocket.

As long as African people have been in the Americas this has happened, and it will continue for a long time to come.

― The Rebukes of Hazard (mjt), Monday, 5 April 2004 00:41 (twenty-one years ago)

Black ppl relax like this...

― Sym (shmuel), Monday, 5 April 2004 01:19 (twenty-one years ago)

I'm sorta confused, do working white people sit around on Saturday nights and play D&D in complete silence?

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 5 April 2004 02:03 (twenty-one years ago)

It's like you have a window into my sad quiet life.

― Sym (shmuel), Monday, 5 April 2004 02:46 (twenty-one years ago)

Yeah, a lot of white people post to msg boards. I wonder if blackplanet has more of a "get low" atmosphere

― $corpium ($corpium), Monday, 5 April 2004 02:51 (twenty-one years ago)

hahahaa I like this thread.

― djdee2005, Monday, 5 April 2004 04:07 (twenty-one years ago)

WTF! I thought rap was the black CNN!!!

― sexyDancer, Monday, 5 April 2004 14:37 (twenty-one years ago)

god -- blues as a bunch of people just sitting around -- funny then how all the favs were mostly consumate entertainers and professionals playing contemporary music.

screw the folky, primitive cartoon version of the blues propigated by the 60s.

― jack cole (jackcole), Monday, 5 April 2004 15:04 (twenty-one years ago)

what the fuck you talkin bout nigga? bb king was nice, sincere, very real, though i don't like his music like i like early stuff cuz it's too sexycool (like forshadowing smooth jazz before miles discovered crackrock) for me, but you can't discard post-60's blues, unless you tell me what yr talking abt. a ton of skilled guitarists came out and recording wasn't poor and gritty. i don't get primitive cartoon folky. are you talking abt dylan? what's yr beef, dog?

― $corpium ($corpium), Monday, 5 April 2004 22:25 (twenty-one years ago)

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