Poetry and Music as Social Commentary: Hip Hop and Tupac

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Poetry and Music as Social Commentary Hip Hop
and Tupac
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Kool Herc - Father of Hip Hop and Rap

• Born Clive Campbell in Kingston, Jamaica
  in 1955, he is credited with first
  extending the breaks in songs by using
  two turntables playing the same song.

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Kool Herc - Father of Hip Hop and Rap

• His block parties in the
• Bronx, New York in the
• 1970s were legendary.
• His style included rhyming
• over instrumentals as well
• as Jamaican toasting which
• directly influenced modern rap djs.

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Sugarhill Gangs Rapper's Delight was first
mainsteam rap hit, reaching 36 on Billboard
Music Charts in 1979. http//www.youtube.com/wat
ch?vb6gD_CwF5YM
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The Message by Grand Master Flash and the Furious
Five was the first rap record to openly address
socio-economic and political issues. Watch the
video on You Tubehttp//www.youtube.com/watch?v
k3kRuJhIVIo
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It's like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder
How I keep from going under Broken glass
everywhere People pissing on the stairs, you
know they just don't care I can't take the
smell, I can't take the noise Got no money to
move out, I guess I got no choice Rats in the
front room, roaches in the back Junkie's in the
alley with a baseball bat I tried to get away,
but I couldn't get far Cause a man with the
tow-truck repossessed my car Don't push me,
cause I'm close to the edge I'm trying not to
loose my head It's like a jungle sometimes, it
makes me wonder How I keep from going under
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Kurtis Blow, the first rapper to appear on
national television (Soul Train), released "The
Breaks" on Mercury Records in 1980. The record
went on to sell more than a million copies.
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If your woman steps out with another man(That's
the breaks that's the breaks)And she runs off
with him to JapanAnd the IRS says they want to
chatAnd you can't explain why you claimed your
catAnd Ma Bell sends you a whopping billWith
eighteen phone calls to BrazilAnd you borrowed
money from the mobAnd yesterday you lost your
jobWell, these are the breaksBreak it up, break
it up, break it up
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After the success of early rap artists, rap
became a profitable cultural influence Hip Hop.
Record companies like Def Jam and artists like
Run DMC, the Beastie Boys allowed it to become a
permanent part of mainstream American Music.
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Since the late 1980s, Hip Hop and Rap have
influenced language def, dis, aight clothing
throwback jerseys tv - CRIBS
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Hip Hop and Rap are Known For Gangsta
RapSelf-prideRenewed ActivismSampling
MusicMisogynistic LyricsUnifying Cultural Force
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Tupac Shakur
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Lesane Parish Crooks was his birth name. He was
born June 16, 1971 in Brooklyn New York Married
briefly no children
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Born after his mother successfully defended
herself against federal charges.Attended
Baltimore School for the Performing Arts where he
excelled in acting and dancing. While still a
teen, his family relocated to California. He
drifted into gang life and was arrested nearly 20
times before he was 20 years old.
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In 1991, he became a dancer for the group Digital
Underground and soon released his groundbreaking
cd, 2 Pacalypse Now. Throughout his life, he
was shot a number of times, served time in jail
for assault and for sexual assault. He also
starred in the movies Juice and Poetic Justice.
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In 1996, Death Row Records CEO Suge Knight
secured his freedom from his prison sentence with
a 1.4 million dollar bond. Tupac died Sept. 13,
1996 at University Medical Center, in Las Vegas,
NV after being shot.
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Since his death, Tupac has sold over 60 million
records and had at least 10 movies made about his
life.
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"If you walked by a street and you was walking on
the concrete and you saw a rose growing from the
concrete, even if it had messed up petals and it
was a little to the side you would marvel at just
seeing a rose grow through concrete. So why is it
that when you see some ghetto kid grow out of the
dirtiest circumstance and he can talk and he can
sit across the room and make you cry, make you
laugh, all you can talk about is my dirty rose,
my dirty stems and how I am leaning crooked to
the side, you can't even see that I've come up
from out of that."
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1. What kind of cultural influencesimpacted
the life of Tupac Shakur?
2. What about the significance of the rumors
surrounding his death? Does this add to his
influence as a poet and literary figure?
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3. What about the self-fulfilling prophecy
in his lyrics about his death?
4. Were his lyrics a positive or negative
influence on youth and the hip hop culture?
Elaborate and give examples.
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Look at the lyrics for Brendas Got a Baby.
What are some poetic elements that the song
contains? Be specific and give examples. What
is the theme of the poem? What are some details
we learn about Brendas life? Why is it
significant that he calls her Brenda?Watch the
video on You Tubehttp//www.youtube.com/watch?v
hrvTjleqF1w
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I hear Brenda's got a babyBut,
Brenda's barely got a brainA damn shameTha girl
can hardly spell her name(That's not our
problem, that's up ta Brenda's family)Well let
me show ya how it affects tha whole communityNow
Brenda never really knew her moms and her dad was
a junky Went in death to his arms, it's
sadCause I bet Brenda doesn't even knowJust
cause your in tha ghetto doesn't mean ya can't
grow