Hip Hop, Race, and Gender

I think women are targeted more in hip hop and rap music. They are there for a reason: to bring sex appeal, especially in party hip hop music. Sex will always sell. These women are scantily dressed, or usually just in the background, sitting in a VIP booth, dancing somewhere in the corner, or are near the bar. And when they are dancing, they are suggestive. With no fear, they scream "Look at me, take me, I'm promiscuous!" with their gyrating hips and open legs. I think more artists are trying to incorporate skillful performances into their videos, where one watches not just for the sex, but to take in the movements, the beats, and maybe actually learn something about the style. These women often feel this is the only way to go--they may think, if I want to make it to the top or go somewhere in life, I need to start with a music video and get noticed. There was a VH1 documentary a couple years back that told the behind-the-scenes stories of women who were "video vixens" and have built a reputation in the industry as such. Most of the women documented were black, but white women are also trying to break into the industry. We just don't hear about them as much. We have Lady Sovereign, who is British, and female, and she has been quite successful by breaking into the American industry (we haven't heard of her recently, however). She isn't gyriating or wearing a tube top and daisy dukes. She goes hard in a cap and oversized tee and a side-ways pony tail. I would like to see some more female white rappers break the mold. Fergie sometimes raps on her tracks. Pink started as a R&B/ hip hop artist, but has since moved toward a more mainstream, rock/pop direction. We need more women telling their stories from a new and fresh perspective. By doing so, they will make it known that girls can go just as hard as the guys, and that race isn't an issue. There's a place for them, not as an object in the background, but as a powerful voice in the forefront. And if they can tell their stories with just as much passion as a black or white male rapper, then they will have no choice but to give credit where credit it due.