Chris Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 What's your policy when it comes to bigoted or otherwise unpleasant lyrics? A huge track and a good example is Where Da Hood At by DMX. In the original version he says "show no love to homo thugs, empty out, reload and throw more slugs. How you gon' explain fucking a man, even if we squash the beef I ain't touchin' your hand..." and so on, there's more. Would you play this? Would you play the censored version that obscures it? Would you play the instrumental, or cut up the track at this point? Another track by DMX? On one hand, I think DMX had some great Swizz Beats fuelled party music in that era, on the other I don't play that track because I think those lyrics are vile and I tend not to play any DMX because I feel like people who are aware of that make judgements about a) the kind of person I am and b) the kind of environment they're in. That said I play plenty of music with violent lyrics, misogynistic lyrics, sometimes racist lyrics, and I'm sure homophobic ones too - and tracks by artists that hold those views even if it's not explicitly mentioned in the song. I think it's hard not to, but I'm not really sure where the line is for that value judgement as to whether you should consider the wider implications of playing a track. That particular DMX lyric feels especially bad because it feels somewhat heartfelt, but really is it any worse than an Eminem track where he makes a homophobic quip or any number of tracks that horrendously objectify women? Look at me talking about playing out in the present tense. I'm priceless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doppelkorn Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I agree that there's a lot of glossing over these kind of horrible lyrics in tracks. Weirdly the homophobic and mysoginistic stuff seems worse than the murderous stuff because it suggests an attitude rather than a deed, which might have been done under a range of mitigating circumstances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Posted November 23, 2011 Author Share Posted November 23, 2011 Yeah definitely - I listen to violent and aggressive music as a soundtrack to my own dark thoughts, and braggadocio lyrics if I'm in ego mode, but I don't listen to agree with what they're saying on a literal level I apply the sentiment to my own thought processes. If what they're saying on a literal level is an actual depiction of an act that I fundamentally disagree with then I can't get down with it. For example if someone talks about killing someone I can use that metaphor to work through an emotion if they're talking about killing them for being a prick, but not if it's for being gay. That said, excessively violent lyrics, especially when played over and over, change the atmosphere of a room for the worse (that's why I always have Can't Touch This in my back pocket, just in case), so it's a slightly different thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Symatic Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 it's why i mostly play instrumental stuff. if theres a context to it, like if the mc's talking from a character's perpective, i can sometimes tolerate it, but most of the time i just cut that bullshit off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Symatic Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 if you're talking about robbing and murdering, you're probably a dick. if you're lying about it to sound hard, you're definately a dick. homophobic lyrics are just as shit as misogynistic lyrics. but yeah, sometimes theres a context, like with comedians. theres people that do it well, and use risky subject matters to make us think, and theres some that just do it for the ratings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Symatic Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 and i just feel like a knob if i'm playing a track that shouts "nigga" every other word. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I def agree. There's a few songs by common that I like sonically but don't agree with. I normally skip verses or fade out sections. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djfoly Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Oh fuck off you gang of poofs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yoshi Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I def agree. There's a few songs by common that I like sonically but don't agree with. I normally skip verses or fade out sections. Common talks so much bullshit. Most of what he says is absolute crap. It's not afrocentrism, it's black emo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doppelkorn Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Afrocentrism - now there's some bullshit right there. KRS can fuck right off with half the crap he spouts too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djdiggla Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Oh fuck off you gang of poofs! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-cRC0ToM1I Why are they C-walking if they bloods? Common talks so much bullshit. Most of what he says is absolute crap. It's not afrocentrism, it's black emo.Ahahahahah! Mos Def had some stuff in his first album that seemed a little anti-white to me. PE's Farrakhan stuff is a little much too. I think a lot of time artists are kinda pandering so they are not viewed as sellouts. but kinda lame. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djfoly Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Oh fuck off you gang of poofs! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-cRC0ToM1I Why are they C-walking if they bloods? Common talks so much bullshit. Most of what he says is absolute crap. It's not afrocentrism, it's black emo.Ahahahahah! Mos Def had some stuff in his first album that seemed a little anti-white to me. PE's Farrakhan stuff is a little much too. I think a lot of time artists are kinda pandering so they are not viewed as sellouts. but kinda lame. There B walking!? :$ WTF is this thread about? We all hate black people cause there racist now? Seeing as I have been listening to this stuff for over 20 years its too late for me to start coming out with that now. Also what's wrong with afrocentrism? Who the fuck are you to tell someone what that means to them or that it's bullshit. This thread stinks IMO! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wax On Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I don't notice a lot of lyrics. I like Common. #endofmycontributiontothethread #hashtags4lyfe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djfoly Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 ^^^^ Right aka who gives a fuck!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djdiggla Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I don't listen much to lyrics, I just noticed that with Mos. I certainly don't hate blacks but when I thought to myself why am I listening to this and why am I supporting this artist? Anyways, doesn't really matter. Oh, I always heard Lauryn Hill hated whites but apparently there is no proof of that. But it was the big rumor as a teen and at the time I wouldn't listen to the Fugees because of that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimmy Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I wouldn't listen to the Fugees because of that. WHAT THE FUCK!!!! WHO DOESNT LOVE THE F-ING FUGEES Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djdiggla Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 First off, they r ghey as hell. Back in the day I was too busy banging Cypress, Too $hort and Rage to listen to girlie pop bitch rap. Second, why would I listen to somebody that says they'd rather children starve to death than white people buy their album (which is what the purported but unproovable quote is). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimmy Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 i always knew you were a racist Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest broke Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 There's a time and a place for everything. If you're worried about the track you're about to play, it's probably not the right time nor place to play it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doppelkorn Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 That Lauryn hill thing has been properly disproven apparently. http://www.snopes.com/quotes/lauryn.asp re. Afrocentrism: It's fine if you want to relate to the roots of a race but not without its controversies. That's all I'm saying. I hear that a lot on here that people don't listen to the lyrics. Maybe that's why I can't buy into a shit-tonne rap because it's bollocks, thematically. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djdiggla Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 I wouldn't say it's disproven a much as unproven. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 no ones paying attention to the lyrics on a track in a night club. You could be on the mic calling everyone queers.. They ain't listening unless you have a great set of tits. There's a few songs by common that I like sonically oh no you di-in't Back in the day I was too busy banging Cypress Where i'm from this translates to: I used to have sex with the band cypress hill back in my prime Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djdiggla Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 Thats what it means here too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jopa. Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 if i hear something i dont like it will probably change my opinion of the artist. i have no problem using breaks and beats from artists i dont support, but i would never allow more than a catchy hook to infiltrate my mix. if its something theyve said outside of their art, it might change my opinion of them a little, but it wouldnt necessarily compel me to boycott their music. i have never been a big krs one fan. i like a few bdp joints, but mostly for the beats... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R Funksmith Posted November 24, 2011 Share Posted November 24, 2011 (edited) I dunno if this really adds to the discussion, but I was having a conversation earlier tonight with someone who doesn't like, or know very much about, hip hop. She was pointing out how 1) there's no melody and 2) it's all bitch this and ho that, i.e. misogynistic. I didn't even address point 1. As for point 2, I was quick to direct her attention to a song by the Rolling Stones (her era), Under My Thumb. Which is extremely misogynistic. But her and many of her generation are able to forgive it because.... I'm not sure why actually. Maybe because they love the Rolling Stones, or because "it's just a story from a pretend character's point of view", or maybe because it's actually in line with their inner sense of how gender roles are or should be. Under My Thumb is misogynistic, but not violently so. (Now that I think of it, there's that earlyish Beatles song, I dunno what it's called but the lyrics are something like "You better run just as fast as you can, little girl... (if I) catch you with another man, that's the end little girl" which has some pretty dark undertones, and I should have pointed that out to her.) But what I'm saying is, there's a difference between Under My Thumb and a song by Too $hort... a different degree of misogyny. There's something more potent about hip hop, in my opinion, more powerful I guess... but probably I would think differently if I was born 35 years earlier... or would I? Umm, yeah. Carry on. Edited November 24, 2011 by R Funksmith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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