as a member of the overlapping tribes of generation x and the hip hop generation, one of the things that initially pulled me into awareness of the world of social issues outside my suburban bubble was the politically-tinged rhymes of late 80s-early 90s rap, most notably the black nationalism of public enemy, but also digable planets ("pro-lifers need to dig themselves, because life doesn't stop after birth"), a tribe called quest ("mr. dinkins will you please be our mayor?"), fishbone, and (while some may disagree with the classification) rage against the machine. by the time i was out of high school, the myths of my republican upbringing were falling apart under the pressure of the alternate realities implicit in these lyrics. music can be a powerful force.
but just as the mid-90s commercialization of grunge neutered what was a growled shout against an unfair world into pop-flavored "alternative" and the reactionary aggressive masculinity of kid rock and linkin park, so too rap seemed to my eyes to have coopted away from its political roots to bling-bling, puff daddy and gangsta rap. was politically conscious rap a fluke?
were there exceptions? sure. throughout the nineties, the fugees, del tha funkee homosapien, tuna fish from ozomatli all kept the flame of rap for social justice alive, and chuck d has moved on to air america talk radio host-dom, but i wonder if i'm just hunting down the last fading remnants of a dying breed. is there anything out there?
and then i hear that black eyed peas song on the fahrenheit 911 album, and i start to wonder, am i just missing it all? is my perception totally off? has there been some underground keeping things real that i lost contact with? or is politically aware hip-hop, in the words of huey freeman "so early nineties"?
educate me. i want to believe.
