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This is a video of the brilliant author, Tricia Rose, talking about passion for hip hop. Her experiences have led her to dig deeper into the reality of hip hop and the culture surrounding it. I think that this video helps to show where Rose is coming from. It puts her book into perspective.
The Hip-Hop Wars does an excellent job of laying out the problems that hip hop is assigned and why they are not true. For example, she states that hip hop is to blame for demeaning women and destroying America’s values. Society has associated hip hop with the black culture, so blaming it on such moral issues leads to judging through race. An important asset to her book is that she uses both sides of the debates in order to prove her point. Throughout the book she is unbiased and uses several cases of evidence to back up both sides of the debate surrounding hip hop.
The author of the video posted below talks about some of the main issues of hip hop and where he thinks blame is due. This is a real life example of a person's views about the issues that the book desribes.
From my point of view, it is important to acknowledge that the author brought up a tough issue. She was able to use this issue and dig deep into the roots of it so that she could tackle difficult issues. Her efforts were successful because she looked at the topics from an unbiased angle and strived to provide information rather than swaying opinion.
I think that Rose was able to put several truths about hip hop into her work in a professional way. In the same way, President Obama was able to present his opinions of hip hop as well.
The author, Tricia Rose, focuses her efforts on the way hip hop is viewed in society now, and why the negative view is a problem. She breaks it down into several different categories. The first several chapters are about the critics of hip hop and the blame it receives because of the problems in society. After that, it speaks of those who are claiming that hip hop is real. This part states that hip hop is not to blame for all of the problems, and the music is actually portraying what really happens. The books wraps up by talking about what the future can bring if the societal view of society can be changed.
One of the debates that she discusses is that Hip Hop reflects black dysfunctional ghetto culture. Because of the past of blacks in America, they have been denied, devalued, and disregarded as people and their contributions (Rose, 2008, page 63). This has led to several problems with the race. Over the years they have had to fight to create an identity for themselves, and part of this culture they created has intertwined hip hop. “Denying the roots of this process misses the bigger and much more important image of black deviance as a function of the apparent excesses of hip hop” (Rose, 2008, page 65). It is important to view black culture not through a dysfunctional lens but as a broad range of values and traditions. The same goes for hip hop. Black dysfunction cannot be seen as an overflow of hip hop and cannot be blamed as a result due to hip hop.
Works Cited
My opinion continued
Brown Alumni Association (2010, October 19). Hip Hop Wars (excerpt).
Retrieved November 24, 2013, from
ImpactMD (May 31, 2007). The problem with mainstream rap and hip hop music. Retrieved November 24, 2013, from
Rose, T. 2008. The hip hop wars: What we talk about when we talk about hip hop- and why it matters. New York, NY: Basic Books.
Starrground (February 3, 2008). USA President Barack Obama Opinion On Hip-Hop & Rap 2008. Retrieved November 24, 2013, from
In my opinion...
The content in the book was excellent. It was wise to put all of the information surrounding the discussion of hip hop together. She was fair and included both sides of the debate into her work. I think that the actual book would be a hard read for a certain population in our society, which would leave them out of the discussion.
The theme of this book is that hip hop is extremely misunderstood from both sides. Those who are in favor of it claim that it portrays what life is really like in the ghetto, and it helps them be true to who they are. On the other side of the debate is claims that hip hop is the sole cause of violence and that it hurts the stereotype of black people overall. Through putting so much detail into all sides of the debate, I believe the author is hoping to shed light onto the truths of hip hop and what is really happening. The myths and perceptions of hip hop’s social construct is leading to false ideas about it. She wanted to make readers aware of the truth about hip hop because there are so many opinions about it that are hurting the core of the culture. It seems that she wants people to be aware of the truth so that hip hop can be viewed in a different light. When this happens, the true value of hip hop can be appreciated and used as a vital part of society.
I really struggled while I was reading this book. For someone that did not have a base knowledge of the hip hop culture, I was felt lost at times. She definitely put plenty of research and detail into her work, and she deserves recognition for that. However, her style was hard to follow. It felt like I was reading a documentary script. Plus, her wording was advanced and challenging to follow. The style she used was difficult to follow and not easy in the form of a book. For example a sentence from Chapter 4 says, “This unexpected rejection of both sets of values combined with the emulation of portions of each has added to the confusion besettling the hip hop wars and has produced a significant divide among hip hop fans” (Rose, 2008, page 107). Many of her sentences were long and required rereading for comprehension.