It's almost 2:30 a.m. here in Brooklyn and I got back home earlier (had to stop and get some Popeye's for late night munchies before writing this lol) from the She's So Fresh III Showcase. It's a show, organized by a friend of mine Bless Roxwell and J.A.G. Music and Media and is hosted by an even better friend of mine Tasty Keish, where they feature all female emcee acts. If you haven't gone to one, you should definitely check out the next one. Hopefully, I'll stay consistent with this blog by that time so I'll have information up for you when it happens.
The ladies definitely shut it down and seriously repped for the other females in the rap game as well as in general. There was an overall feeling of support and comfort for women of all kinds but they definitely didn't make it a Man-Hating Event at all. The only time I felt like a male groupie at all was when Bless actually put the mic in my face when I was singing along to her song "Peace Love Unity" (I heart you, Bless for that LOL.) It was really inspiring for me to be around such great women who were doing something positive for themselves and made me want to go harder with my mission and do more to support causes backed by women and for women's rights.
That said, the one thing that bothered me as a guy was the lack of men in the event. It irritated me even more that I was like one of four male emcees in the building tonight. I mean as an underground emcee, you know about the lack of support of women in the rap game as a whole, unless you're rapping about sex and money and wearing less than nothing, so why not support a group of female rappers who aren't going that route and refuse to portray a certain image about themselves? And this isn't a random thought because I was at the last She's So Fresh Showcase and it was the same case.
Now before anyone catches an attitude and says, "I had other things to do and who are you, Varyus, to tell me what I should do with my life?" I'm going to make it clear that I KNOW that life happens at times and I'm not in anyway saying that you HAVE to go to every hip-hop event with or without a cause. Believe me, I sparingly go to events just because I choose to exercise that right myself. But I wonder why we, meaning male emcees, don't support our women counterparts more. After seeing women constantly come to our shows and support our music, I wonder why we don't return the favor, especially knowing the nature of the field of hip-hop and how it cannibalizes women.
Is it that they can't rap? Clearly they can. I caught myself and many others making the "oooh! that line was sick" face many of times while women were rapping.
Is it that we're afraid that they'll destroy hardcore rap as we know it and make it all "girly"? No. There's PLENTY of females making "I'll break ya jaw" music and not all of them are lesbians.
So what is it then?
Why aren't we doing more to change how women are viewed in hip-hop and how female emcees are treated? Why aren't we supporting them more?
I don't know.
Peace and Love...
VW
"So where the ladies at?/ Yo we chillin over here..." - De La Soul, Dinninit
Friday, February 5, 2010
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1 comments:
Great Write up,The only way I think women can be viewed differently in hip hop is through WOmen themselves. Too many young girls are out promoting and idolizing people like Nikki Minaj, Kim Khardasian, Khloe and a list of other famous whores that when some come out positive on a a different hip hop tip they are simply ignored.
In many cases women are used as resources, either a tool for sex appeal and fantasys or as a prop to show diversity in a group, once they start being viewed as Individuals and as a major part of the industry as they really are! It is going to be a tough road but we need the young ladies to come together and grow up get out of the trance that they are in.
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