From, Know What I Mean: Reflections on Hip Hop, Track 1: "How Real Is This?" Cyber Post
Besides responding to The Second Line, read the next chapter from Dyson's book and post your response here, minimally 250 words before class Tuesday, so by Monday, Sept. 1, before noon.
Read the chapter, annotate it and be prepared to discuss it in class. Pull out the arguments and its supporting evidence. What themes run through the conversation? What is the tone of the discussion? Are there any questions you'd weren't satisfied with the answers? What would you like to know more about? How would you rate the conversation? What did you learn?
We will use this formula for most of our responses.
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8 comments:
Deon Johnson
English 1B: (Tuesday/Thursday)
August 31, 2008
Track 2: “This Dark Diction Has Become America’s Addiction,” from Michael Eric Dyson novel, “Know What I Mean?” explored Language, Diaspora, and Hip Hop Bling Economy.
Having many themes in this chapter or track, I believe the main theme, which I evaluate is the melody throughout the entire book, is knowledge and educating. This chapter exchange observations of the other side, the side of “intellectual ingenuity of Hip Hop artists.” Naming poets like, Common, Kanye West and Talib Kweli. I’m certain this was the follow up, per say, to the pervious track, “How Real Is This?”
“How Real Is This,” talked about rappers rapping about things the necessary haven’t lived or experiences, just what they think would sale to consumers. This chapter discusses how “these geniuses” doesn’t have to live in poverty to rap about penury, stating that it “doesn’t detract from their authority...” but rather they can feel it and therefore rap about it and still get that “hood stamp or credit.”
The tone of this contention was very inviting. The communion seem very relax and informative; Meta DuEwa Jones, the guest artist, was agreeing, interrupting as well as arguing instead of just asking the questions and listening for the answer. This is a sensitive topic and it showed through the pages of this section.
I was satisfied with the answers to the question, but I would have love for Dyson to explain more, in deep, on a few answers; for instances I wanted to know more on why he felt “the amazing thing is that these young rhetoricians are denied the legitimacy of their accomplishment because we [pathologies] on moral level.” I would like to know, who we, why is that amazing, are and what is it like and what does it mean to be on a “moral level.”
I also wanted to know more on why he felt black artist “[had] to go away before they could come home,” which I agree with tremendously; many artist aren’t accepted, in their own city, until they are nationally known. I know an international artist, who is a family friend who always expresses her disappointment in this business. She says “MTV took a change on her before BET did,” adding, “BET didn’t think I was big enough, international known, at the time, to play her video.”
The conversation was good, nothing special, like the first track, but I enjoyed it somewhat; I give it a 7 out of 10. Something I’m actually embarrassed to confuse I’ve learned was Jay-Z being the “CEO of Hip Hop.” I was aware of him being “the greatest rapper alive,” but not the CEO, very interesting.
This track had a lot of quotes, phrases and metaphors, which I loved and can’t go without noting. The phrases “Code Switch,” was so desired, it’s such an eye opener for those “gangsta rapper,” who think they can go from local to international statists in their “White T, Blue Jeans and Nikes.” Dyson says it’s important to dress for the occasion. My absolute favorite was, “shines a luminous moment of critical self-inventory and cultural interrogation, not just self consciousness.” Very Powerful!
Benjamin H.
English 1B: (Tues/Thurs)
Sabir
Track 2: “This Dark Diction Has Become America’s Addiction” contains multiple themes that come up in the conversation between Michael Eric Dyson and guest artist Meta DuEwa Jones. One theme that runs through their conversation is that even though some of the great rappers and hip hop artists in our time are not well educated their parents still influenced them and because of their parents they became not only excellent song writers but intelligent ones as well. Another idea is that almost all rappers and hip hop artists must be accepted world wide before they can even get love in their own community. One other theme that gets sparked off in their conversation is the one that hip hop is all over the world because of the black diaspora, and every time that hip hop travels to places all over the world it is reborn into the root of all hip hop. An idea that also comes up is the one about diamonds or “bling” as people in hip hop call it, and that is not right that diamonds are celebrated in the U.S. by rich African Americans when its there own kind that dies in order to come up with these diamonds in Africa, and all because the bigger and shinier the diamonds around an artist neck are the more powerful he is supposed to be in hip hop culture. The last theme in this track is that white executives are not as evil as they are portrayed to be in hip hop because if it wasn’t for them hip hop would not be as big as it is today.
The overall tone in this conversation seems to me that both Dyson and Jones are looser with one another and also it has a more of a friendly feel to it than just being a boring interview like in track 1. I have to say that Dyson again did an excellent job in answering all the questions to the fullest and it left me very satisfied. The thing I would like to know more about is all the different hip hop artists and rappers that stand up against white corporate America in their songs/raps like the artist Jay-Z is talked about at the end of this track. I would rate this conversation to be an 8 out of 10 because of how well balanced all of Dyson’s answers were to all of the questions posed to him by Jones. One thing that I learned from this track is that the artists Talib Kweli, Kanye West, and Common all have mothers that have received a doctorates degree and I found this to be very interesting because I did not know this about these three particular artists.
Dominique West
[[[Tues/Thurs]]
9-10:50 1B
What themes run through the conversation? What is the tone of the discussion? Are there any questions you'd weren't satisfied with the answers? What would you like to know more about? How would you rate the conversation? What did you learn?
Actually throughout reading this track I found myself intrigued by what Dyson had to say. I mean he used very expressive language. Words that I've never heard before. He set a tone of comfortableness and ease when reading it. It was as if he was sitting next to me speaking. The things he was saying about the different artists, hip-hop and how its a language spoken internationally was a wonderful way of putting it. He made specific references to certain hip-hop artists whose parents actually had doctorates. Not necessarily cracked out or on welfare. He put it out as it should be seen, which is that not all the rappers have hard times. Sometimes they choose their own roads different from what their parents took. I also liked how the reference was made to the song Kanye West and Jay-Z had out, " Diamonds from Sierra Leone." How real is that? I mean that rhetorically. It was such an amazing way of using a metaphor and I liked the way Dyson broke it down a little bit more to its bare bones. It was truly enjoyable to read Track 2.
Deon Johnson
English 1B (Tuesday/ Thursday)
Respond to a Classmate
Great work Ben (Benjamin)! I like your essay a lot, and it was cool to see the similarities we had about the differences in conversation, from track 1 to track 2; I totally agree, it did seemed more “looser” than pervious.
Even though I didn’t mention it in my summary, I also didn’t know that Common and Talib Kweli mothers have received their doctorates. It makes me wonder how that effect and/or affect, if at all, their artistry; are Common, Talib even Kayne consider, and chose to be label as, “conscious rappers” because of the education they concave from their parents? What do you think?
I know, since I read your summary that you wanted to know more about the stand or the problem with artist and “White Corporate America.” I think it’s more of a point; the point between selling records or having a career, being known as the artist that delivers that positive and truthful message. Corporate first priority is making money; some artist focus is spiting that positive intelligences, rather than talking about fucking some girl every night after just meeting her in the club. I feel, just by listen to interviews and having a little inside that Corporate is pushing artists to have upbeat, booty bouncing music, with lyrics that follow, rather than a song with a direction and motivation; because party joints sell while positive songs don’t. To some artist that’s a problem, because it’s messing with their creativity.
“Bling Bling” and blood diamonds is a controversy topic, while this particular chapter can be interpreted in many ways, I do think it’s something deeper than the artist not showing sympathy to the fact that “their own” is dying over jewelry. I think the bigger picture, that Dyson was trying to portray was, which you mention, how official you are, if you have a chain and the size of it.
Benjamin H.
English 1B: (Tues/Thurs)
Sabir
Respond to a classmate:
Dominique your essay was good and insightful, and I enjoyed reading every bit of it. I thing for the most part we both agree that Track 2 had a different feeling to it than Track 1. I also can relate to you in the terms that Dyson does use very complicated diction in this track. I had trouble with some words myself. We also have another thing in common, and it’s that we both included in our essays that some hip hop artist’s moms have received doctorates degree. I also liked your essay because in some parts you write about something that stood out to you personally your writing shows it because it contains a lot of emotion. It was very nice reading your essay Dominique.
Kimberly Peterson
English 1B Tues/Thurs
I found that this chapter was interesting to read. It kind of used the same tone throughout, but it did stay on the same track, (hence the name= track 2). I picked out one quote that gave away the theme to this entire chapter, "Hip hop is a language that travels across local borders internationally and finds resonant rhetorical uses in strange places." This is what hiphop is. It reminds me how far we have evolutionized since the begining of mankind.
Hip-hop came from the streets, from poor neighborhoods. Rap comes from urbanized neighborhoods, most of the people who rap never have seen most of the things they are talking about. But I guess it doesn't really matter because in the end, its just stories.
I thought it was really interesting to have been said that hip hop has to go around the world before it is accepted in the neighborhoods. After looking at the begining of hip hop documentary, i can sort of see why. Hip hop had begun in the era of graffiti, for a type of freedom of speech. Tagging was not considered as an art form, it was considered as defacing public property. Perhaps anything has to make its way around the world before the people who started the treads, area that it had started in, wants it back. Perhaps I would have a better understanding of this whole theory if Dyson explained it on the larger scale.
Faraj Fayad
English 1B
T-TH
Track 2:
The chapter “This Dark Diction Has Become Americas Addiction”, from “Know What I Mean.” Written by Michael Eric Dyson featuring guest artist, Meta DuEwa Jones is a great argument which has a lot of themes supporting the existence and values of hip hop in the U.S., and all around the world.
Track 2, is filled with many implicit ideas backing up the rhetorical geniuses whom are very inventive in writing lyrical hip hop songs. Dyson talks about Tupac Shakur and how “his speaking from the heart through a prolific and potent pen, is undeniable,” after explaining that he was a high school dropout and that his mother was a crack addict. Also, mentioning other emcees that came from the ghetto and are also rhetorical geniuses.
Dyson’s discussion was argued in a very convincing tone when supporting his idea, and Jones’s questions and agreements kept the whole conversation intellectual. The flow of the conversation made a lot of sense. In this chapter I noticed a lot of shout outs to a lot of great writers and artists.
I was tuned in to the whole conversation and satisfied with the questions asked, also to the answers of those questions as well. Answering Jones’s question about hip hop being international, Dyson responds, “Although hip-hop had its African American artistic womb in the Bronx, we know its narrative of origin ranges far beyond those borders.” Later in the chapter Dyson also quotes, “hip hop is able to renew its intellectual identity when it begins to forge allegiance with cultural expressions of degraded and oppressed people around the world.”
Dyson talks a lot about hip hop taking root and flourishing globally, but doesn’t mention if it has the same impact on listeners overseas as it does here in the U.S., or if the hip hop population in those countries is as big as it is here. I wonder if the rhythm of the songs and instrumentals produced is the same as it is in English.
Interestingly this track was a good source of information, and one thing I did learn is that hip hop is its own culture different from any other genre and those who feel this type of music is leaders in a way. Like Jay-Z a talented lyricist who speaks his mind and for that Dyson respects more than Bill Cosby by quoting, “ Bill Cosby lacks the courage to speak against the white corporate capitalists…, while Jay-z talks about his personal and social responsibility while defending the social vulnerable….” Dyson is a very smart person and great writer for hip hop, who knows what he is talking about.
John Rawson
English 1B (Tue/Thur)
Track 2
In, “Track 2” Dyson starts by acknowledging the different backgrounds and upbringings of a few well known hip hop artists such as; Kanye West, Talib Kwali and Tupac. Two of these lyricists came from mothers with doctorates. Tupac however came from a, “socially revolutionary,” mother with a substance abusing lifestyle. Dyson goes on to add that just because a few talented hip hop artists were raised by highly educated mothers, they were by no means rich and still came from a lower-middle-class background, which could have great influence in their poetic skills.
“The origins of hip hop have always been informed by Afro-Diaspora elements.” (Dyson, 44) Dyson describes a phrase that he feels captures the meaning and identity of blackness as, “the black Atlantic.”(46) To Dyson this phrase means hip-hop is, “transatlantic:” that it is beyond its Bronx origin. Dyson shares an example of hip-hop’s international appeal with a story involving two NBA players. A white, German teammate was pared to share a room with a black American point guard. It was said that during their time together they watched soccer while listening to German hip-hop. “Now haven’t things come full circle when a white guy from Germany is schooling a brother from America on the intricacies of international hip hop.”(48)
A running theme Dyson commonly indicates is black Diaspora. He continuously touches on hip-hop artists using the, “black Diaspora” to stay true to their roots instead of giving into the white mans lists of demands. I feel this topic was not convincing or strongly argued. Dyson has a laid back tone throughout his interview which has me questioning his point. An example he uses to further explain this black Diaspora in hip hop culture is a popular song by Kanye west called,” Diamonds.” He claims that Kanye is staying true to his roots by openly acknowledging slavery and more obviously, he is speaking about blood diamonds. What I fail to understand is how this message isn’t merely hypocritical and lightweight ignorant. So what if he acknowledges black people dying for the diamonds he wears on his neck? He still wears them.
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