Hip Hop Counter-Publics, or the academic utility of Christmas presents

A few weeks ago in a New York bar, I had a long, fascinating conversation with the outstanding "counter-publics" theorist Michael Warner about whether there was such a thing as a "hip hop counter-public". (We had just finished a long day's workshop on whether there were such things as "religious counter-publics", so it's not as pathetic a bar conversation as it sounds.  I think.)   It's something I've been chatting with people about ever since that piece I did for the Guardian about hip hop in the Middle East - turns out there are quite a few more people interested in Middle Eastern (Arab, Israeli, Iranian) hip hop and its possible public diplomacy functions than I thought (Om.K., hope you got my notes?).

Warner surprised me a bit by suggesting that there could be a politically and culturally significant hip hop public sphere, but now there mostly isn't. The argument, as best I remember, was that the commercialization of hip-hop and its commodification destroyed its capacity to play such a role.  It had lost its face to face core, the arena of unpredictability and "stranger sociability" which has argued forms the essence of a public sphere. Even the most politically-engaged rappers had still been enveloped by commercialized culture of albums and singles and concerts rather than genuinely engaged spaces of discourse.  In other words, he essentially agreed with Nas that "Hip Hop is Dead": " Everybody sound the same, commercialize the game/ Reminiscin' when it wasn't all business/ If it got where it started/  So we all gather here for the dearly departed."   

Interesting, thought I.  Then for Christmas I bought myself the new KRS-One album (with Marley Marl), entitled Hip Hop Lives! KRS offers a strong and direct rebuttal of the Warner/Nas thesis: "So write this down on your black books and journals, Hip Hop culture is eternal."  He's deeply critical of commercialized, mass-market rap music, of course.   As he has for decades, KRS celebrates the creative, intellectual potential of the music and insists on trying to reclaim it from the gangsta rappers and the rest.   Whether this kind of intellectual, politically engaged hip hop matters today - compared to the mass market hip hop which floods global markets - is another question, though.  Jay-Z goes to Dubai, 50 Cent goes to Beirut... does KRS get out of Brooklyn?

Anyway, all of this as a way of preface. All the cool bloggers are offering up their "Best of 2007" lists.  But this has been quite the year for me, what with the move down to DC, new job with new courses, and all that.  I've hardly seen any movies this year, not even on Netflix, and lord knows I don't have time to read fiction.  I don't think there'd be much interest in a list of "Best Playgrounds Close To My House."   But since I still listen to music in the gym, and I spend a lot more time commuting than I used to, I can at least do my favorite albums of the year.   

Best Albums of 2007:

1.  Lupe Fiasco, The Cool.   My vote for album of the year.  Smart lyrics, shifting styles - as good as, if not better, than last year's Food and Liquor. 

2.  Talib Kweli, Eardrop.  Might be number one, except for a few embarrassing tracks. This is the good Kweli - which is, indeed, good. 

3.  Jay-Z, American Gangster.  Yeah, he went back to tired old territory - frankly, Kingdom Come's celebration of being rich had more authenticity - but the album is pretty scorching. 

4.  Public Enemy, How You Sell Soul To A Soulless People Which Sold Their Soul.  Still going strong - there's at least four tracks which are dead-drop classics, even if the rest of the album doesn't hold up so well. It's a concerted attack on gangsta rap and a call for political relevance - what you'd expect, but still powerful stuff. 

5.   KRS-One and Marley, Hip Hop Lives.   Not every track works, but KRS is as solid a pro as there's ever been and as above it's both smart and interesting.  Plus, there's this great line dissing "These Kentucky Fried Chicken DJ's promotin breast and thighs."   

Most Bizarrely Overrated of 2007:
1.  Kanye West:  Graduation.   His whining, simpering excuse for a diss song - directed against Jay-Z,  who apparently once didn't leave him free tickets for a show  - sums up everything which is wrong with Kanye.  He should really stick to the beats.

2.  MIA, Kali.  I honestly can not listen to this album - every sound I hear makes my teeth hurt.   I know others do not feel that way, so I anticipate some abuse. 

3.  50 Cent: Curtis.  It's hard to be overrated when everyone says it sucks. But my lord - suck it really did. It's kind of sad - Curtis Jackson seems to have really lost his way; he's run out of things to say, and his style just doesn't work well with fancy production.   I do not anticipate revisionist history treating it kindly.

That's it.   December was a slow blogging month because I was so darned busy, but things should be back to normal soon.  Plus I've got a few pieces coming out this week (part of the reason that blogging was so slow) to get the year off to a nice start.

Happy new year everyone!   

Comments

[saeed uri]

pick up a blues scholars cd.

[aardvark]

More suggestions, please! Most music is boring me these days, I need more variety in my ipod.

[JoshG]

give saul william's new one a shot. it's available at http://niggytardust.com, either for free or donation.

[Ted]

Marc: you are dead wrong about MIA's Kala (NOT Kali)--it's not quite up to the level of Arular, but it is mostly great. And I think Michael Warner's is right to be sceptical about the hip-hop counter-public. But check out Jeff Chang on the subject: http://www.motherjones.com/news/feature/2007/11/fight-the-power.html

[Helmut]

Despite my own grad students' attempts to educate me (also in DC), I don't know hip hop very well. That ignorance apparently hasn't stopped me from compiling a "best of 2007" lists on the music front. Here's the hip hop one with links to the others: http://phronesisaical.blogspot.com/2007/12/best-music-of-2007-hip-hop.html. I focused mostly on what I think are the interesting internationalized margins of the genre. It's pretty innovative music.

[Emily]

i am in total agreement about the kanye album, although stronger is appearing on my ipod with frightening regularity. but really, that's because it's a fantastically produced song, not because it's well performed.

to take on the public sphere argument, i think the sheer formality and structure of contemporary hip-hip might contain the possibility of its forming a public sphere, in that it provides a common language and a common structure for understanding contemporary experiences of racism. however, the form has become so formalized (I have a highly developed theory about how the contemporary gangsta rap song is formally identical to the pre-Islamic qasida) that it's nearly impossible to see the actual rhetorical content. frankly, i also view commercial hip-hop as performing a lot of ambivalence about its own success--the tension between the hood-rhetoric and the money-rhetoric. but that's another story.

[saeed uri]

I think an important point to remember when talking about hip hop today is that some of what we hear might sound like rap or hip hop but really i think it falls under the whole pop genre because it is just a mixture of everything. Hip hop will not die with people like atmosphere, jedi mind tricks, dj honda, blue scholars, and my favorite, gift of gab.

I have a really good friend in Ramallah who raps, his name is Jad Abbas but he goes by the name of boikutt or muqat3a. I think it is some of the most creative music out there, but i am very bias since I went to high school with him in Ramallah. Here is the myspace link:
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=6209211

[Martin K]

I am not a hiphop-fan, but when it comes to hip-hop/rap with political significance, I would suggest looking to France and the scene there. Lots of real things coming out of the banlieus, as a starter I can reccomend (old) MC Solar. There is a lot of religious/cultural issues being brought up.

[American Voices]

Just had a powerful two weeks in July with Iraqi hip hop dancers and rappers from the Kurdish regions in the north. Videos of their performances here: http://www.americanvoices.org/soundandvideo/unity/

Hip Hop lives and thrives , in Iraq at least....

[Bram]

In general, I agree that most US hip hop can't be considered a counter-public, but there are some small acts who take their politics seriously. Saul Williams has already been mentioned. KRS-One is still surprisingly political, although I think his beats and flow are stale. In November, I attended a DAM show in Brooklyn with some good performers from the states. I don't think there will be another American Public Enemy, but that doesn't mean the margins of the hip hop scene can't keep pushing the margins.

I'm surprised that Marc didn't mention anything about the Palestinian hip hop scene, which seems to be one of the most dynamic around. If any hip hop can be considered a counter-public, it's the hip hop of Palestine. Someone else mentioned Ramallah Underground. I'm amazed by how tight they sound. There is also . And if you go to these groups MySpace pages, you find out about a whole lot more groups. Checkpoint 303 is one of the best.

As for the Marc's recommendations, I disagree with MIA. I love the album. You should be on the lookout for Santogold, who has a similar style, but is a bit less political. And for pure fun, The Cool Kids are amazing. Neither have an album out yet, but keep your ears open.

[Bram]

Something happened to my previous post, but the should refer you to DAM, from Palestine.

My last paragraph shouldn't be part of the link.