I Wanna Speak About a Couple Issues Much Bigger...

Has anyone heard Nas offer a decent explanation as to why he is naming his new album N****r? He is yet to even offer a simple explanation, like to put the issue of race back in people's faces...or to make people uncomfortable. With N****r and Hip Hop is Dead, Nas has seemingly mastered creating album titles that start a discussion he apparently doesn't have much to offer to. That is all fine and well, but doing a little research it seems a little group called Little Brother has dropped some actual knowledge on Nas' behalf.

Little Brother was 2007's hip hop seely posturepedic of rap - they were slept on. The Getback was a dope cd, from the beats to the lyrics to the skits, it was the epitome of consistency. Anyhow, the first song we are going to look at so happens to be the first song on the album, 'Sirens' -

They talk about us, not usin the word n***a
I wanna speak about a couple issues much bigger
Like most black folks live below the poverty line
And they wonder why the FUCK we attracted to crime
-Rapper Big Pooh

Pooh nailed it. Focusing on a word (N-word) is a distraction from focusing on the real problem (poverty leading to crime). Now if you go as far as to ban a word, a new word will simply take its place. Let's focus on eliminating the real issues before we focus on eliminating words.

In verse 2, Phonte speaks on the post-Imus crucifying of rap:

They tryin to blame this rap shit for all of our ills
Like I can stick you up with a mic
Like I can rape you with a verse or use a verb as a knife
Like before Kool Herc, everything was all right
Like y'all wasn't callin black women hoes befo' "Rappers Delight"
-Phonte

If hip hop is a reflection of a culture, than it is a product of something that already exists. Essentially, rap is not responsible for misogyny and violence in America - that shit has existed since the dawn of time. So just like with the misplaced attention paid to Nas' N-word, hip hop is also taking shots that should be directed at all of American/world culture and history - not just hip hop.

I say it don't matter if I work at Mickey D's
I still got a fix for what you got between your knees
-Rapper Big Pooh (Don't Go Breakin' My Heart)

If hip hop didn't exist, guess what? Misogyny, violence, and racism still would. 100.

On the Side: Does Little Brother have the best skits in hip hop? They have Dave Chappelle narrating as Phonte's conscience on The Getback, they have a full song from a made up minstrel show performer named Percy Miracles (which actually is surprisingly good) on The Minstrel Show, and on all their skits they just sound like they are having fun, cause after all the bullshit they've been through they still here baby.