The Distinctive Influence of Hip Hop on the Political Socialization of Minorities
In the 1970s, hip hop started out as a small hobby in the housing projects of Bronx, New York. Over the past forty years the popularity of the Hip hop industry constantly expanded; started out in housing projects in urban community, then moved to the homes of all races in america, and now today Hip Hop is a global industry. When one thinks of rap music they relate it to violence and hypermasculinity. However, what many of these critics fail to realize is that hip hop also plays an gargantuan role in the political views of the listeners. Artists in the 90’s like Public enemy and mos def jump started a new branch of rap; political rap . So by looking at …show more content…
In layman terms, political socialization is how one gain their political views via several stimuli. Some of these stimuli include political views of one’s parents,community, church,friends,etc. But one of the most influential elements of political socialization is the media. Media has had an exponential growth in their influence over politics; this is primarily due to the ubiquitous nature of social media in our culture. However, there is another aspect of media influence political thought; music. Lady Gaga, John Lennon and Bruce Springsteen all made songs that conveyed a political message (i.e. gay rights, anti-war, etc.). But, in urban communities the major stimulus of political socialization has been hip hop music. In Andrew Smith’s paper titled The Influence of Rap Music in the Political Socialization of the Youth he argues “The various political themes expressed in rap music, including themes of anti-racism, anti-poverty, and anti-drugs, demonstrate how rap music can serve as a tool of political socialization for people, particularly young people.”. This is evident in the 1990’s and the …show more content…
So several big time artists including Nas (Black President) and Common (The People) released songs in support of voting for Obama. This was an effective method because accordaing to Culture Clash: Black Media, Political Attitudes, and Political Participation, written by University of Michigan professor Portia Hemphill “Black youth participation in Obama’s 2008 campaign hit an all-time high (55%). Voter turnout increased more amongst black youths than any other demographic group...Aspects of popular culture (specifically rap music) are the powerful vehicles by which such socio-political priming can occur.”. This is evidence that hip hop plays a huge factor in the political views of listener. Rap is voicing their political opinion this year, this time in disapproval of Republican nominee Donald Trump. We will see the effect of rap on politics after the result of the 2016 presidential election.
After reviewing the concept of political socialization and the influence of hip hop on the political views of the listeners, we can conclude that rap is major stimuli for political socialization. I aspect hip hop to play an even bigger role in politics in the upcoming
In the 1970s, hip hop started out as a small hobby in the housing projects of Bronx, New York. Over the past forty years the popularity of the Hip hop industry constantly expanded; started out in housing projects in urban community, then moved to the homes of all races in america, and now today Hip Hop is a global industry. When one thinks of rap music they relate it to violence and hypermasculinity. However, what many of these critics fail to realize is that hip hop also plays an gargantuan role in the political views of the listeners. Artists in the 90’s like Public enemy and mos def jump started a new branch of rap; political rap . So by looking at …show more content…
In layman terms, political socialization is how one gain their political views via several stimuli. Some of these stimuli include political views of one’s parents,community, church,friends,etc. But one of the most influential elements of political socialization is the media. Media has had an exponential growth in their influence over politics; this is primarily due to the ubiquitous nature of social media in our culture. However, there is another aspect of media influence political thought; music. Lady Gaga, John Lennon and Bruce Springsteen all made songs that conveyed a political message (i.e. gay rights, anti-war, etc.). But, in urban communities the major stimulus of political socialization has been hip hop music. In Andrew Smith’s paper titled The Influence of Rap Music in the Political Socialization of the Youth he argues “The various political themes expressed in rap music, including themes of anti-racism, anti-poverty, and anti-drugs, demonstrate how rap music can serve as a tool of political socialization for people, particularly young people.”. This is evident in the 1990’s and the …show more content…
So several big time artists including Nas (Black President) and Common (The People) released songs in support of voting for Obama. This was an effective method because accordaing to Culture Clash: Black Media, Political Attitudes, and Political Participation, written by University of Michigan professor Portia Hemphill “Black youth participation in Obama’s 2008 campaign hit an all-time high (55%). Voter turnout increased more amongst black youths than any other demographic group...Aspects of popular culture (specifically rap music) are the powerful vehicles by which such socio-political priming can occur.”. This is evidence that hip hop plays a huge factor in the political views of listener. Rap is voicing their political opinion this year, this time in disapproval of Republican nominee Donald Trump. We will see the effect of rap on politics after the result of the 2016 presidential election.
After reviewing the concept of political socialization and the influence of hip hop on the political views of the listeners, we can conclude that rap is major stimuli for political socialization. I aspect hip hop to play an even bigger role in politics in the upcoming