The world of Hip Hop has been one of intrigue to many scholar and popular culture as a whole. It encompasses a way of life, uncommon in mainstream culture and unorthodox in its style, structure and form. To some people, Hip Hop is a musical genre informed by a unique style of conversation; that which is known as Rap. But to most others, Hip Hop is a cultural movement, which denotes and connotes meaning laying claim to a particular lifestyle specific to African Americans. Be it a culture or a musical genre, Hip Hop has inadvertently influenced the lifestyle choices of not only its targeted demographic, but also the language and image of people all over the world. As a culture incepted from the inner city of New York, Hip Hop has developed a cult following which has not only surpassed general expectations but has created new achievements in the world of popular culture. Through its vehicle, Rap music, Hip Hop has become a worldwide phenomenon which is synonymous for an overt political, cultural and socioeconomic conversation and more often than not confrontations.
The culture which begun as a form of protest has now metarmophosized into an important part of American culture, imbibing certain values that echo those of the system they challenge. This central purpose of this research is to examine how the dynamics of Hip Hop which seem to be more ‘urban cool’ focused has shifted to a watered down or even refined, upper crust path. Through a content and textual analysis of one rap artist and his songs, this alteration of a once marginal culture to a mainstream one will be assessed.
The hypothesis put forth is that the struggle for acceptance and revenue has superseded that of the Hip Hop culture’s ability to maintain its unique normative structures, specifically in rap music, making the music and artists deviate from these structures and infusing the culture with mainstream influences. Whilst doing so, already existing artists are being forced to deal with how to reconcile the duality of staying true to their roots with the demands of today’s standards. The cause of this is to be examined in this research as well as the issues surrounding such a shift

• How does this new wave of Hip Hop reflect in the portrayal of Hip Hop as a culture and what are the implications of this new image? (social, cultural, political, economic)
• Is there a loss of authenticity?
• Is this new wave of Hip Hop challenge to or reinforcing normative American culture and ideals?
• How do seasoned rappers of Hip Hop reconcile their traditional standards with the new values that have arisen in Hip Hop culture today?
• Are these new sub-genres and their images informed by true positive change in the lives of African Americans (keeping it real?) or is it just a strained pull towards mainstream pop culture?

Jay Z in urban streetwear (1998)

CREDIT:www.google.com (courtesy of google images)

The notion of authenticity is one of the most prominent facets of Hip Hop as a culture. In their language, the term is defined as “Keepin’ it real”. Morgan (2005) explains that “the Hip-Hop mantra ‘keepin’ it real’ represents the quest for the coalescence and interface of ever-shifting art, politics, representation, performance and individual accountability that reflects all aspects of youth experience” (p. 211). In this sense, Hip Hop can be noted as an art form, creating space for the experiences of black youths and perhaps helping to inform society of the various struggles they encounter as a minority group. This can be exemplified in the vivid description of violence and crimes in the lyrics of rap songs. Rappers are seen to ‘keep it real’ since they seem to shed light on ‘real’ issues pertaining to the African American community. From this perspective, keeping it real, not only signifies a reflection into the lives of this set of people but also serves as a social and economic outcry to the larger society to address genuine issues which they may be ignorant to.
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The nature of this research allowed for the use of two research methods which would help increase the reliability and validity of the data and findings. Due to the nature of the data being examined, content and textual analysis were the two most favourable methods chosen. A content analysis of the lyrics was conducted and this was necessary to help identify certain trends and patterns in the Hip Hop genre. As Neuendorf (2002) contends, “content analysis is a summarizing quantitative analysis of messages that rely on the scientific method…. and is not limited as to the types of variables that maybe measured or the context in which the messages are created or presented (p.10)” Berger (1991) also explains that content analysis is a research technique that is based on measuring the amount of something in a representative sampling of some mass mediated art form (p.25). All of this Weber (1990) adds, is to make valid inferences from the text (p.9).  From these definitions, the use of this method for the collection and analysis of data for this research will be beneficial in explication of meanings. In any research, there is a unit which is usually the data being studies or analysed. Content analysis is no different and requires the unit of data collection and/or the unit of analyses (Neuendorf, 2002, p.13). Because the research entails the examination of Hip Hop through its artists and their songs, the unit of data collection will be the Hip Hop artists. Since it is a quantitative method, it brings more objectivity to the analysis of the lyrics and makes obvious, or not themes that may be overlooked by using an alternate method of research.  The unit of analyses can be accorded to the lyrics of the specific rap songs chosen. It is especially important for this particular research mainly because of the systematic approach it takes in weaning out information from any given data.      

With the use of a coding form, questions pertaining to the research will be quantitatively approached and analyzed objectively. This will be done through an account of the frequency of particular variables in the text being coded. Content analysis was important in helping to narrow down the subjective interpretation of the data. Conducting a content analysis is a valuable option for the provision of an empirical basis for monitoring or detecting shifts in opinions (Stemler, 2001). It is important to note, that the data collected was done so through a non-random sampling method. The unit of analysis was collected through convenient sampling since the songs were intentionally chosen.

 Even though this research method seems potent for this paper, there are a few restraints which will be addressed. Content analysis, with its objective approach makes it difficult when assessing the paper on the grounds of generalizability. That being, the extent to which the findings can be applied to other cases (Neuendorf, 2002, p.12). This is due to the fact that the sample was not drawn randomly from the population of Hip Hop artists. Content analysis also tends to limit the subjective and often open interpretations of latent meanings in the text. This is why the second method of analysis was chosen to even out the setbacks of content analysis and also add to the research as a whole.
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Jay Z with R&B star, Usher, holding (marketing) a Dom Perignon Bottle, an upscale premium champagne for the rich and famous.

CREDITS: www.google.com (results from google images)

     For the unit of analysis, the lyrics of six rap songs from Jay-Z, a seasoned rap artist were non-randomly chosen from the sample. Jay-Z first released his album in 1996 when the rap community was still dominated by gangster rap and has gradually become one of the most successful rap artists of all time. His latest album, The Blueprint 3 debut at number one breaking the record  and propelling him past Elvis as the solo act with the most # 1 albums in Billboard’s history accruing over 11 number one hits on the billboard album charts (Forbes, 2009). The choice of him as a viable unit of data collection stems from his consistent worldwide success which has spanned over a decade. His ability to hold fort and excel even in the new wave of Hip Hop when many of his comrades are fading out, is one that is intriguing. The longevity of his career as a rap artist also allows for insight and a progressive look at the evolution that has introduced this new phase of Hip Hop.

The lyrics to six Jay-Z songs were assessed in this analysis. The songs were chosen chronologically with three taken from his first two albums and the other three from his last two albums. The analysis revealed in the first three songs, a high volume of expletive words in total and derogatory references to women, drugs and violence; eighty in all. There was also an affirmation about the geographic group/gang he associates with, that being, East coast. In terms of quoted references, the rapper cites political figures and structures like the president and the “Feds” in ‘Dead President’ and geographical places of importance like Brooklyn in ‘Rap Game/Crack game’   and New York in ‘Real Niggaz’. Luxury labels or brand names are mentioned four times amongst the songs with Hennessy and Range Rover appearing in ‘Real Niggaz’ and Cristal in ‘Dead President’.  The overall theme for the songs turned out to be socially and politically focused.
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CREDITS: YOUTUBE (www.youtube.com/watch?v=8z13AjI8n4I)

 The textual analysis was conducted on the video of Death of Autotunes (D.O.A), one of the singles released off Jay Z’s latest album. This song is going to be analysed using ideological and semiotic components of textual analysis. The analysis was thematically synthesized under the proposed characteristics of the new wave of Hip Hop

Class and Power

The video is a six minutes long feature which begins with a vintage Mercedes pulling up in an alley at night. The dark setting of the video in the beginning connotes some mystery and danger to the scene and individuals involved. The car seems to come from a brightly lit street into the alley which is completely dark. This seems to metaphorically infer a deference to his roots, that being, ‘the streets or the hood’, an often dangerous place thus the befittingly dark setting. The chauffeur who is white, then steps out to open the door for the presumed passenger who happens to be the rapper, Jay-Z. The exchange the official R.O.C handshake, after which he enters a backdoor in the alley. The intentional placement of an old chauffeur instead of driving the vintage car himself implicates a validation of his status in society. The use of a vintage Mercedes, which is not representative of the aesthetic ghetto fabulousness, serves as a signifier of the position of the passenger in the car. A veteran of some sorts who is used to the good life and thus has no need to show off.  There is a binary opposition created with this narrative as well with the white chaffeur. The ideological construct is usually of the minority being, exactly so, and thus being in a subservient position to the dominant culture. This is challenged with the position of the ideologically dominant group in society and almost normalized with the handshake. The lines of race are therefore crossed into the field of class which seems to blur the colours of race.

     Before he enters the building, he passes by a door with graffiti on it. A symbolic placement which serves as an affirmation of where he is as graffiti is one of the building blocks of the Hip Hop culture. The rapper is seen fully for the first time in the following narrative, clad in just a plain black t-shirt and black pants. He however has a very stylish black leather jacket on which again is a contestation to the normative and generic expectations of a rapper’s outfit. The casual nature of his outfit is offset by his leather jacket which again is made to seem generic and almost dated. The song is initiated as soon he turns on a light switch which floods the garage with light, reminiscent of the bright light he exited from in the first scene. The use of white light  to signify purity and truth in semiotic terms, is evoked. The rapper can thus be noted to be possibly a member of a better and purer faction, bringing ‘light’ or ‘the truth’ to ‘the streets’.

Commercialization and Denunciation

 Another narrative focuses on a tray with glasses surrounding an exclusive alcoholic beverage called Patron. Jay Z proceeds to take a sip of it before continuing with the verse with the new narratives intermix, showing the artist rapping with a band all dressed formally in shirts and suits. Once again the normative structures surrounding Hip Hop as a culture are challenged with the band and their style of dressing. There seems to be a juxtaposition of a formally dressed band which is indicative of dominant ideologies of performance, with black band members which is not common in Hip Hop culture. Traditionally, rap was performed to beats and mixes by a DJ and not to a band which is more mainstream.

 There are three explosions of three symbolic markers in Hip Hop culture. ‘Bling’ or ‘ice’ which are diamond and gold chains and bracelets worn by rappers as overt signifiers of their success and ‘Hip Hop’ gear or ‘streetwear’ are destroyed with an explosion. This figuratively imports a tone of disdain and ridicule for the cultural materials which for so long have been referent to Hip Hop culture.  These actions also instigate a problem with the incarnate dimension of Hip Hop as an authentic culture. The last explosion is that of a particular brand of champagne, Cristal, popularized by rappers like himself (see Rap Game/Crack Game) in the 1990’s. This, in summation denotes a great level of denunciation on his part for all things that have been traditionally linked to Hip Hop as a culture and rap especially. The explosions signify an acute severance to anything ‘old’ in Hip Hop.

Narcissism

 The rapper is seen in a few narratives with high-profile cultural figures executing mundane discourses. Having dinner in an Italian restaurant, drinking wine, smoking cigar and playing cards with Hollywood hotshots like Harvey Keitel implore his self-professed title as a ‘Mafioso’. There is also a supplication of power in these narratives, judging from the mediated ideologies surrounding the mafia and celebrities, that you have to gain their respect and you have to be trusted. The textual tone of this video is one of understated power and persuasion. Jay Z, in this narrative is able to contest normative values and signifiers of these values in Hip Hop culture as a whole. As the new him and by himself, he is able to rub shoulders with stars and command respect from dominant groups in society.

 His association with ‘celebrities’ on a personal and comfortable level implies a certain level of acceptance, recognition and power. This is important in bring order to the imbalance he has created by having a white chauffeur but yet having a backup band which is black. The narrative thus does not seem to recognize race as an issue like Hip Hop does, neither does it acknowledge, power struggles as an issue in Hip Hop. It is not difficult though, to identify the dominant structures at play. The product placement of the premium drink, patron, and the use of the Mercedes as markers of success exhibit the commercial and capitalist tone of the narrative. Therefore, even though the rapper, who is the protagonist, is advocating the ‘good life’ to the antagonist which is the streets, that being other rap artists and the Hip Hop community, he is still not an inherent component of that culture.  The need to re-authenticate by an emphasis of ‘white’ culture’s marker’s of wealth and power is made apparent in this video. This also in the narrative seems to require a   de-racialization of one’s self which is easier shown in a narrative than done in real life. The rapper seems to be contradicting himself in his earlier works, which were