Hip Hop

[Name of the Writer]

[Name of Instructor]

[Subject]

[Date]

Hip Hop Sub Culture

There are certain cultures and the subcultures that have always provided me with the intrigue in terms of how they operate. Not only they are different from the other respective cultures in terms of the way they operate, but there is also quite a lot of difference they have originated, what is their thought process and how they go about their business. One of these subcultures is the hip hop culture. Even though there is not much of an idea about when is the precise time that it has originated, the experts tend to believe that it was during 1970’s and 80’s that this culture really started to take shape.

Now, one of the core reasons that hip hop as a culture has always fascinated is that how the racial undertones tend to operate in that culture. The idea is that how the racial undertones are witnessed in the hip hop culture and whether this subculture is confined by certain cultural demographic, or it is something that is inclusive in nature.

To make sure that some perspective and history about the culture is developed. The first thing that I did was to make sure that I developed understanding regarding what the origination of this culture is and how this movement started. The major source of information came from the already existing literature that exists in this regard that have already discussed the whole movement in great detail, but there was another source of information about this subculture, and that information was not provided in the formal literature and journals. Thus, I have to look at the YouTube videos to make sure that I have the necessary insight about the particulars of this culture, how they operate, what are their primary motivations and what is something that they stand for.

Now, it has to be noted that the time period in which the hip hop culture started to emerge for the first time was during the 1970’s and it was the time period in terms of how different racial minorities in the United States were starting to find their voice. Not only they were being heard at the more predominant level at the political level, but there was a need for the cultural outlet for them as well through which they are able to express themselves in an appropriate manner. The hip hop thus can attribute its start to the various contributions that came from the different regions. In the nutshell though, it was the manifestation and the cultural representation of the different ethnic groups that had started to find their voice in the new United States. Each component stands on its own, however, with its own artisans, audiences, and commercial products. The intersection of these components in the West and South Bronx generated the cultural revolution of hip-hop. Although rap music and hip hop are often used interchangeably, rap is only one of (at least) four elements of hip hop. A brief explanation of these elements underscores their original emergence and sets the stage for the corresponding racial categorizations.

Now, looking at the way this subculture is different from some of the other subcultures, the key thing that stands out for this culture is that how different elements of these cultures are playing their role in the creation of the identity of that culture. The first one is the DJ-in, the other is the B-boying. The other two critical components of this culture are MC-in/rapping, and visual/graffiti art/ With the passage of time, the people who belong this culture have also started to develop their sense of style in terms of how they dress up for different situations and what is their reaction to different emotional situations that they are surrounded with the passage of time.

As is the case with any subculture, this subculture also was different in a sense that there were many seminal figures that emerged in that culture with the passage of time and how they have become more inclusive in their nature. For instance, people of white color and white race were considered to be an outcast when one discussed about the subculture, but it changed with the emergence of the modern rappers and practitioners who practiced hip hop as an art of music. The success in the musical arena as well as the public demeanor that was followed by them showed that it is not about the race of the person, it is about making sure that one presents themselves in an appropriate manner and bring about the change in the corresponding manner as far as the way change is going to be represented at the given point of time.

Not only that, there was a change in the way gender representation was witnessed in the scene of hip hop. The general perception was that the sort of dressing style that was adopted by the practitioners of the hip hop is such that all the given stakeholders are supposed to play claim to the changes that are happening in terms of the gender inclusion found their way in the hip hop scene as well. The women representation also came with some female artists perfecting the style and the imagery that was supposed to be the hallmark of the hip hop artist. It is admittedly a racially essentialist conclusion to assert that any of the aforementioned elements of hiphop are dominated by any particular ethnic group.