Trump is here: Will Mainstream Rap Music Punch Nazis?
Me and Lord got a clip with an extendo
And we rollin’ with it, hangin’ out the window
We on 16th ridin’ by the police station
We might make a pork rind out of pig, bro- Vic Mensa “16 Shots”
“We don’t need no culture except revolutionary culture.”
This was said by Black Panther Party leader Fred Hampton in a speech on November 1969, weeks before he was assassinated by the Chicago Police Department. As President Trump takes office and promises more “law and order” in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement, Fred Hampton’s quote is just as relevant today as it was when he made it while being targeted by the FBI and CPD under Richard Nixon. With resistance in the air and boots on the ground marching for change, will mainstream Rap music punch back at the system?
Once upon a time, popular music reflected the black social justice movements of the period — The Civil Rights Movement created freedom songs, the Black Power Movement produced James Brown’s ‘I’m Black and I’m Proud’, and the birth of hip-hop was a political movement unto itself. But if you currently look at today’s Billboard Top 25 Rap chart, there is not a single song that reflects today’s mass protest movement, let alone makes a revolutionary political statement against the current order:
Some will say the reason for this is because “conscious music” or “protest music” is not catchy to the ear and that the songs above will get any club and party T’d. That’s a valid argument but an incomplete one. Yes, there have been numerous wordy rappers giving social commentary over lackluster production. (I’m sure several snooze-chella rappers have popped into your mind.) What I’m arguing for is change in message and attitude, not in lyrical dexterity or overall musicality.
Wouldn’t 21 Savage’s “No Heart” be just as awesome if every “nigga” killed in the song was substituted for a racist cop? What if Quavo’s shooters in “Bad And Boujee” were making politicians duck instead? Why are the agents of oppressive institutions exempt from the violence in popular rap music? It’s fascinating considering the current sociopolitical climate: an American city doesn’t have clean drinkable water for all; the DOJ confirms multiple police departments are racist; hate crimes followed the election of Donald Trump; people are being deported at a rapid rate; the largest prison strike in U.S. history took place last year, and militarized police forces are often diametrically opposed to unarmed Black people marching with their hands up. As more injustices take place and more lives are lost under Trumponomics, will popular rap continue to be apolitical and not have a revolutionary message?
“But Charles, what about Kendrick Lamar or J.Cole? Don’t they have the message you’re looking for?” To put it succinctly, no. Kendrick’s and J.Cole’s music are social commentary and most often serve as introspective analysis of dealing with the world’s ills. Their message isn’t retaliation against the system; it’s description of the harsh realities that urban young Black men face. It’s not “We gone be alright” that I’m advocating for, it’s a call to control and define our sociopolitical circumstances like Vic Mensa does in his song “16 Shots”. It’s not a cry out for help like “Be Free” this moment in history calls for, but antagonistic music that poses offensive messages to the very systems J.Cole seeks to be free from.
All my niggas that be running shit/Police coming and we gunning them/Middle fingers right in front of them/Give a fuck about the law/ All we wanna do is ball/Nigga united we stand, but bitch divided we fall/
- David Ellis
I’m only posing this question to popular rap because many underground rap artists are using the medium to push revolution. In fact, there are talented artists doubling as revolutionary activists. In my hometown of Chicago, you can find rappers like David Ellis, Bella Bahhs, and Tweak standing toe-to-toe with police officers at protests and aggressively using their voices to take a firm position against oppression. In St. Louis, rappers Tef Poe and T Dubb O were highly visible in the Ferguson demonstrations and have remained vigilant in their music. By refusing to compromise on their politics, some of these artists sacrifice personal gain in order to invest in the long and strenuous work of community organizing as well as politically educating the masses on revolution. In light of this, it is deeply important for rappers who have a larger platform to not only speak truth to power, but to take an oppositional approach in their music against the status quo and create space for more revolutionary ‘raptivists’ in the mainstream.
When artists punch back at system, they widen the political spectrum. Donald Trump’s election comes with a Republican dominated U.S. Congress and a conservative led Supreme Court. The United States is in the hands of the conservative-right so much so that the word “Nazi” is becoming common again. Mainstream rappers who can employ a radical-left sentiment in their music are needed to bring thoughts to an American consciousness that is expeditiously moving right––if not for the sake of revolution, at least for the sake of balance.
Many mainstream rappers know the system and America is not serving in the interests of its most marginalized. We’ve witnessed murderous policemen like Dante Servin and Darren Wilson walk free for murder with no accountability from the governing structures citizens pay for. If the country is incapable of providing the justice its citizens rightfully deserve, at minimum art should provide a level of accountability. One thing the artist does have power over is their thoughts and words. Rappers speak politically, intentionally or unintentionally, every time someone presses play on their song. The next time I press play, I want to feel as if a Nazi is getting punched in the face.
