These findings suggest that rap may affect society in several ways. For example, how adolescent whites perceive rap may impact their support for race-based policies such as Affirmative Action as they grow older and become more politically involved. Further, to the extent that rap helps to promote interracial relationships, cross-racial social networks resulting from rap may increase employment opportunities for blacks and other non-whites (97).
However, state Thompson and Brown, another scenario is just as plausible. Since so many of the studies on racial attitudes and rap music have been cross-sectional, it is possible that over time the relationship between whites' opinions on rap music and racial attitudes may change. It is feasible that as the average young adult white rap supporters get older, have a family, and begin a career, the relationship between their opinions of rap music and their perceptions of blacks and support for liberal values may grow weaker. Also, note Thompson and Brown, almost all studies on the relationships between racial attitudes and rap have problems in claiming causality. That is, it is not empirically known if rap leads to more racially tolerant attitudes or, on the other hand, if more racially tolerant whites tend to listen to rap music. If more liberal and racially tolerant persons are more likely to listen to rap music, rap may not lead to the transformation in values that media gurus have claimed, but rather, may only serve as an indicator of the type of persons that listen to and appreciate rap music.
Definitely more research is needed to investigate the correlation between racial attitudes and perceptions of and exposure to rap music. In order to get a more thorough understanding of the connection between rap music and white listeners' attitudes and behaviors, future studies must longitudinally investigate the relationship between rap and whites' social and racial attitudes and determine how these relationships fare over time (99).
How can the myths about blacks be broken? Scoop Jackson, former editor of XXL magazine and author of the NBA.com column "NBA Underground," stresses that black urban journalists have power and can use it to right some of the wrongs and rectify the omissions that have occurred against blacks over the years. "White people, especially whites in the media, are not going to go out of their way to make black people important or make what we do relative to how mainstream America functions." With blacks being only 12 to 13% of the population, "our lives -- to them -- lack impact."
Urban journalism can be -- and at times have been -- the balance. "We, as journalists, have the opportunity to make what other black people do seem just as important as what the other side does. Min. Farrakhan can become as important as Bill Gates, Ken Chenault (American Express-CEO) can be as important as Allen Greenspan, Bob Johnson (BET) as important as Ted Turner."
Adds Alain Mariduena, president of Stress Media:
The good is that we have a voice. The good is that the voice is not that of the same white American that works at the other media outlets [and is] given assignments...
The good is that we put some fire under the other commercial ventures' ass that forces them to be realer and honest (sometimes). The other good is that we have to build a business foundation. You know have equity and assets in companies (like mine) to be respected and to make a difference in the media landscape. For real, we need to be in it to take it over and be heard and lay it down for our seeds that follow.
QUESTIONS ABOUT RAP:
How often do you listen to hip hop or rap on the radio?
Have you ever listened to black gospel music? Why do you like it? Why do you not like it? Do you believe that it as popular as rap? Why? Why not?
Do you own any rap CDs? How many?
What was the first rap musician you heard? Why do you remember him?
Who is your most favorite rap singer? Why? Who is your least favorite? Why?
Do you watch rap videos?
Which of these are your favorite?
Above the Law,
Busta Rhymes
Bone Thugs,
Canibus
Channel Live
Onyx
Master P,
Fugees
Genius/Gza (solo)
Mic Geronimo
Puff (Daddy)y Combs
Jay-Z
Jeru tha Damaja,
Killah Priest
Def Squad
Method Man (solo)
Mobb Deep,
Nasty Nas
N.W.A.
Old Dirty Bastard,
Rakim
The Firm,
True School
Raekwon
The Roots,
Smoothe da Hustler
Snoop Dog,
Trigga da Gambler
Cocoa B's (or anyone DuckDown)
Tupac
Digital Underground.
Redman,
Wu Tang Clan
YoYo
How old are you?
What other kind of music do you like?
References
Aaron, C. 1998..Black Like Them. Spin Magazine
Farley, C. 1999..Hip-Hop Nation. Time, February 8.
Goff, J.R. 2002. Close Harmony. Greenboro: University of North Carolina Press.
Jackson-Brown, I. 1990. Developments in black gospel performance and scholarship.
10(1) Black Music Research Journal: 36-42.
Lusane, C.1993..Rap, Race and Politics. Race and Class 35(1):41-56.
Newsweek. (2000, September 18). Beyond ghetto fabulous: faces of a hip-hop nation.
Nightline. (2000). Hip Hop: Beauty in the Beast? (Transcript). Retrieved December 31, 2006 http://www.abcnews.go.com/onair/nightline/transcripts/n1000907_trans.htr
Spiegler, M. 1996..Marketing Street Culture. American Demographics 18(11):28-
Sullivan, R. 2003..Rap and Race: It's Got a Nice Beat, but What About the Message? Journal of Black Studies 33(5):605-22.
Thompson, M.E., & Brown, R.K. (2001) Whites and rap music: Is it really all bad?
Social Work. University of Michigan.
William-Jones, P. 1975 Afro-American gospel music: A crystallization of the black aesthetic. Ethnomusicology. 19(3): 373-385.
