Misogynist Lyrics Still Not Novel or Groundbreaking
A couple of months ago, indie darlings Tegan and Sara issued a heartfelt and well reasoned anti-misogyny letter directed toward Odd Future. And Tyler, the Creator, being a child, responded on Twitter that if the sisters, both lesbians, needed some hard dick, they could hit him up. (Most lesbians, being sensible shoppers, prefer to get their hard dicks in bulk from Costco. Saves a bunch of money and fits nicely in the back of a Subaru hatchback.) That's about as groundbreaking as the shit that was carved on the desks in the back row of my high school study hall.
However, just because it's obnoxious and they don't really mean it, doesn't mean that the message isn't harmful. When they were booked at the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago, people were understandably surprised. Whether it deserves it or not, Pitchfork's got the reputation of being a hipster countercultural mecca, and, in a political environment where hating women seems de rigeur, it seems that the countercultural event of the summer would book bands that didn't advocate rape and bitch-slapping.
Their inclusion on the Pitchfork bill spurred Coleen Norton, Prevention and Education Manager at Between Friends Chicago and other advocates to take action. Rather than picketing the concert with signs, which would have provided Tyler and his band of Angry Lost Boys with the scary foil they so wanted to confront , they handed out fans and distributed information to those interested in learning about the services the organization provides. Norton considers their efforts a success. She says,
We passed out 7,000 fans throughout the weekend and were constantly getting thanked by people for being there. We really didn't get any negative feedback from anyone who came up to our booth or table. We had some great conversations with people about their lives, their work, and also about how they felt music and violence have an impact on their lives (good or bad). We ran out of sign-up sheets because so many people wanted to get more info about our organizations' services and volunteer opportunities. It was pretty obvious to us after speaking to so many that there was discomfort felt at the fest while Odd Future was playing. Some folks who had never heard of them walked up to our table after their set to voice that discomfort.
Curiously, the kids of Odd Future brought Colleen and friends a peace offering on the morning of the group's set on Sunday: cupcakes. Of course, once they got on stage, they advised the anti-domestic violence advocates, which they called "protesters," to suck their dicks. And the crowd went nuts! Norton wasn't bothered.
Misogyny In Rap Music - News
Erin Gloria Ryan —If you pay attention to music journalism or hang out with many 14-year-old white boys, you've probably heard of the shock rap group Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All. They're quite the sensation, and they're blowing everyone's minds
Rap is its voice in a 4/4 beat. Muslim rap is replete with beeps, bops and beatboxes, although without the materialism, misogyny, vulgarity and "gangsta" violence of much Western hip-hop. The messages of Muslim rappers are just as bold and blunt,
Why He Might Not Win: Because he said he invented hashtag rap, even though that shit's been around since at least the early nineties. You were three when you invented it, Sean? Come now, sir. Their Audio Aesthetic In Exactly 26 Words: Groovy indie
Will @ChrisBrown repudiate his misogynistic, vile fans or allow them to commit virtual assault and battery? • TMZ reports @ChrisBrown is a "neighbor from hell," loud & disruptive. I'm shocked. • @ChrisBrown only used the f word about 6 times in his rap
misogynistic and violent lyrics, the man known as “Juggla” (he is known for being a “lyrical juggler”) is about imparting positive imagery mixed with western philosophy over tunes heavily flavored by Afrobeat, Jamaican yard, rap and reggae music
Who's to Blame for Misogyny in Hip-Hop, the Artists or the Fans ...
I’ve never quite understood the appeal of the upstart Los Angeles-based rap crew, Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All. Despite their spot-on beat selection that makes me want to nod my head, I just can’t rock with Odd Future for the same reason I can’t get into Eminem—the blatant woman-hating lyrics are just too much.
All of the bass in the world can’t make me overlook lyrics like, “We go skate, rape sluts, and eat donuts from Randy’s” or “George inside the storage if you wanna take a look/But keep your motherfuckin’ daughter’s mouth shushed boy/Lookin’ for them white sluts who good at suckin’ cat/Wolf dick black as nigga riders from the fat black bitches/Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All don’t give a fuck.”
Yeah…just not my cup of tea.
Despite being utterly repulsed by Odd Future, and its teenage front-man Tyler the Creator, mainstream music writers (mostly white men) love these dudes. I had a hard time grasping why anyone thought this group—with their extremely violent, over the top, yet amazingly simple rhymes—was hip-hop’s future. And yet they were hailed by everyone from XXL piece about the crew and concluded that Odd Future’s fans feel empowered, they feel like “bad muthfuckas” just by listening to their depraved lyrics.
I mean, I get it. We all listen to music for different reasons. Sometime it’s to be inspired, but often times it’s to get amped up. That’s one reason anthems like “All We Do Is Win” or “Go Getter” become hits—people want to feel powerful. But when does it cross the line?
How does the need to feel powerful translate into the need to dominate, rape, or kill women? What part of the game is that?
Recently, Jezebel’s Erin Gloria Ryan wrote about Odd Future’s appeal and how some women are fighting back against their hate-filled lyrics. She rightly concludes that their appeal—the “I don’t give a fuck” attitude they proudly wear—is nothing new. Rappers and rockers have been spewing misogynistic lyrics for years (uh, “Bitches Ain’t Shit” anyone?), so why is Odd Future being hailed as the second coming?
Ryan lays the blame at the feet of music journalists who have fed the Odd Future frenzy and listeners who continue to buy into the bullshit.
She writes :
Why do we keep falling for this old, tired trap? What sort of bizarre cultural amnesia infects us so that we forget every two years that someone literally just wrote a hit song about beating up a woman ? Most people wouldn’t defend the music of a white power group or someone who sang about raping little boys, and even Eminem got in trouble for his homophobic lyrics. we keep falling for it?
Part 2: But now, the misogyny in rap music now seems more violent, as if instead of not knowing women, it's become a kind of hatred for them
Misogyny in rap music? What innovative journalism, Ryan. Misogyny In Rap Music - Bookshelf
Popular Culture, Crime and Social Control
RAP MUSIC'S VIOLENT AND MISOGYNISTIC EFFECTS: FACT OR FICTION? Charis E. Kubrin and Ronald Weitzer ABSTRACT Purpose – We review the literature on the ...Encyclopedia of rap and hip-hop culture
In fact, the misogyny in rap music is not necessarily distinct or more pronounced than that found in much of rock music. In the 1970s, and even more so in ...The macho paradox, why some men hurt women and and how all men can help
Up until that time, I had been hesitant to publicly say anything critical about misogyny in rap music. My reticence was validated each time I heard a ...Icons of hip hop, an encyclopedia of the movement, music, and culture
Feminism in Rap Music Athena Elafros The label feminist has proven to be a ... misogyny in rap music has come from a female lyricist named Sarah Jones. ...Black Visions, The Roots of Contemporary African-American Political Ideologies
Rap music has a discernible but mixed effect on attitudes toward black ... a few male rappers have made strong efforts to counteract the misogyny of rap. ...Casual Guide Directory
Race & Ethnicity: hooks: Misogyny, Gangsta...
Witness the recent piece by Brent Staples in the "New York Times" titled "The Politics of Gangster Rap: A Music Celebrating Murder and Misogyny. ...
Men and Masculinities
identified five gender-related themes in this body of music—themes that contain ... means that misogyny is much less pervasive in rap music than some critics ...
Sample Quantitative Analysis
Does misogyny dominate rap music as argued by Adams and Fuller (2006) ... Researchers argue that misogyny in rap music is the result of the social context ...
"Here's for the Bitches": An Analysis of Gangsta Rap and Misogyny
While sexism and misogyny in no way are restricted to black lyrics or African-American communities, they are prevalent traits of gangsta rap music. ...
Gangsta Misogyny by Edward G. Armstrong - JCJPC, Volume 8 ...
Article presenting the results of a content analysis of gangsta rap music's violent and misogynist lyrics. By Edward G. Armstrong, Murray State University.