Style

Ran across a couple of things today that I felt was completely necessary to share with the class. When I stepped into my REST Senior Capstone today, we were talking about Macklemore for whatever reason. Our teacher didn't know who he was so we decided to play a couple of his videos for him. For those of you who don't know who Macklemore is, he is a brilliant white hip hop artist from Seattle. He raps about injustices, human rights, etc. One song in particular fits in with our discussion about commodification perfectly. It's called Wings.

I love everything about this song. His words are so powerful, the rhythm, the video, the message, just everything. It gives me chills every time I watch it. But basically the message is about commodities, consumerism, how we're all slaves to brands. So much so,  that it's possible for a person to kill another over a pair of shoes. 

The next thing I wanted to share with you all is this crazy awesome photo taken by a man named Brandon. He runs his own photo blog called Humans Of New York (HONY)  and on facebook. And he is absolutely brilliant and takes stunning photos of the people he sees in his surroundings. He posted a new photo today which directly coincides with our discussions about space, turf dancing, and the subway trains. This photo is a homology in itself because it contains all of these aspects, including youth!

HOW GREAT IS THIS PHOTO?! Here's the caption for it: "Honestly, I don't care what they're doing/selling, if a kid is trying to make some honest money, I am paying up. Entrepreneurship takes a lot of courage, and I think it's a civic duty to support a child with ambition. On the flip side of that, there comes a time when you are too large to attempt backflips on the subway. Not everyone realizes this. "

Anyway, I'm in love with his photos and you should be too. So follow now for endless amounts of awesome. 

Also, even though sexuality isn't really a topic we've covered and this video has nothing to do with anything, it's equally wonderful and by Macklemore. It's called Same Love. Enjoy. Weep. Be merry.

Applying Hebdige to Hip hop: Flow, Layer, Rupture

Let's use this space to flesh out how we can use Hebdige and Rose to understand what hip hop means to hip hop heads. What is hip hop's system of signs? And what do they mean?

What are the key signs, symbols and themes in hip hop culture?

What are the homologies in hip hop culture? (E.g) What are the similarities we can identify across hip hop's different elements? What do graffiti, break dancing, rapping and MC'ing share? Do they have similar structures of meaning?

Consider the images below -- How can we use Tricia Rose's concepts of Flow, Layering and Rupture/Breaks to analyze hip hop culture and style?

How does this work in breakdancing?

What are these artists sampling and layering as they construct their hip hop style and image on these album covers? How are they acting as bricoleurs, combining commodities, images and histories to create new meaning?

What are a few core elements of hip hop culture and style? 
Here and in class I want us to brainstorm some of the key signs and homologies of hip hop so we can start to understand what hip hop means to the subcultural members? 


One that stands out to me is a demand to define oneself and one's neighborhood -- to refuse the definitions and representations offered by mainstream press. To demand space and recognition so often denied to young people of color. That seems consistent in hip hop across time and place...

What else? Respond in the comments here or add your own post with the same label.