What issues should Hip Hop focus on?

YAWN!!!!! people, try to put all that "CUMBAYAH MY LORD!" nonsense into a hip hop song! it wont work, and no one will listen to it..not nowadays anyways. its gotton to far away from where it was when it made sense!

you wanna change hip hop, you bring back the lyrists! there will never be another Public Enemy, or BDP, or even NWA. there will never be people running home to watch the WORLD PREMIER VIDEO like here used to be on mtv back in the early 90's. it isnt going to happen. but if you bring back the lyrists, they will force you to listen..you may not hear it the first time...or the second time, but when you start to memorize the jam, you will no doubt start to grasp the meaning. this is where Nas has fallen off. he USED to say shit, but now he is all about money (which is fine, but for those that remember, it makes you sound like a sellout! cuz his albums are nonsense) Hip hop will always talk about money, always talk about women being bitches...stop expecting or asking for it to not...it will never happen. the issue is the context. if you are a woman and all you hear is bitch or hoe, and you didnt listen to the song, you just think you shouldnt hear it ever, well you need to read books. i have a 13 year old daughter and i let her listen to the worst of the music to eliminate the shock value. and it works. she knows she is not a bitch, or hoe..but she can identify those types of women that are being described as such when she sees them, and doesnt want to be anything like that.

the mysogyny argument is so retarded...bitches, and hoes do exist..in the correct context. and most of the time you hear bitch...in hip hop..they are actually referring to men!

ghostface killa and lil wayne...best lyrists right now.

Take your catalyst energy and put it to some of that White Ford Love ya gravelly voice, our(my) baby Mr. Erik Schrody, sing to me and god bless you, make me feel good about being pushed so far down-yet happy for your music and the stories you tell. Give me hope! That's the catalyst single moms need - hope. Dead beat dad's are crippling society. Even taking that ONE welfare check about killed me, but it was better than stealing shoes at the local KMart for the young-ins. I love what you have done for my soul. Keep it up-your gravelly voice does something to me, It brings as close to "pleasure" as a single woman can be. You're my catalyst -u keep on keeping hope alive for the women that carry the load. Sending strong feelings of admiration back at you. {smooch} Got plans for the 17th you great big hooligan you?

true hip-hop has always embodied the essence of truth behind the blinders provided by society. it speaks of everyday struggles and inner battles that everyone faces in some form (even the uptight, white, suburban crowd). so to expand on this, hip-hop could focus on the troubled youth who feel lonely and hopeless and eventually turn to crime. in my town of Dayton, OH, i see so many cases of this. young guys trying to seem like they have it together; like they can take care of themselves; like they are "hard." but i think they need guidance and reassurance that there are better things for them, and they are not the scum of society.

I'm gonna be honest...i can't completely agree with most of the responses here. i feel like what has been talked about is what the mainstream is force feeding the masses, BUT i do agree with what your general ideas are. My point is that there are plenty of intelligent artists in hip hop...but no one knows who they are. I think the media tries to make the majority happy by slipping in the occasional Common or Talib Kweli into the mainstream mix, to lead you to believe that that's all hip hop has left.

i'll throw out a name most people probably know.
Immortal Technique has made it a point to stay up on current events. i think he is far more knowledgeable than most newscasters we watch on TV. And I'm glad he brings this information to his audience in his music.
Even if I don't always agree with his opinions.
Also the little details, like the fact that Dead Prez is still active with the Uhuru movement.(you should look it up. Fred Hampton Jr. used to be active in that organization also)

as a response to Randomaccess, i agree hip hop lacks a "nurturing of the adolescents in our culture" but i don't think the 60's and the 70's passed along with social commentary and activist artists. (If you want to know more than what i've already mentioned, just send me a message)

and on a personal note, maybe i'll seem like less of someone preaching and more like someone actually trying to change this perception if you heard my music. We're not the MOST political group, but maybe you can respect a hip hop group that hits on subjects like, police violence, the geneva massacre,
the dark history of the emmett till case (more recent than you might think), the roles of father figures, and gay and feminist rights. and with one of the 3 emcee's i work with being gay, we have dealt with some of these oppressive forces and ideals about sexual orientation and the hip hop community on a personal level.
anyway, if you were interested enough to read all of my ranting, check out the site, or send me a message.

http://www.barakanoel.com/
I recommend the "Citizens of Sleep" album
it's free so no reason not to check it out

wow-lot of very intelligent people commented here, lets see blueplanet-so true, well said..same to you edgework...96thdayofrage-I love franti...jakstowne I agree, but take a look at all the dumbshit girls who love that music, maybe they need to learn to respect themselves and stop supporting that shit...randomaccess you said it all, but unbeknownst to most, there is plenty of positive and introstpective hip hop out there-it just doesnt get airplay =(. I agree with you though and add just one general thing to focus on-peace.

~ Hip hop needs to be honest; each artist has their own set of "variables" that forms their own reality. So to be a true "catalyst" each artist has to look into their own social consciousness. Hip hop artists were once mostly "young" - in their teens or early twenties. So, sex, drugs, "gangster" posing, bling, etc. has not surprisingly been a focus of the genre. As the artists are maturing, (right Ev?), they should be evolving into a more mature and 'deep' human being. That said, each individual will need to look inside and decide what their passion is - because, to be a catalyst, it has to ring TRUE.

~ Personally, I'd like to see more nurturing of the adolescents in our culture. They need to be taught how to get from where they are to where they want to be as they move forward in life. Education, of course, is key - but they need more than that; they need the experience shared from the artists they listen to. It's all incumbent on the maturity of the artist - and how much they have evolved.

~ Also, I'd like to see a renaissance of more constructive political commentary; a social awareness that identifies issues AND looks at solutions. The 1960's and early 1970's showed a maturity in social commentary by the musical artists. Disco, soft rock, Club 54 cocaine mentality squashed the prevalence of activist artists. It turned mighty green $$$ and white (sniff) and the Reagan era reinforced that.

~ And, let's get MUSICIANS back into contemporary music of hip hop; the technical aspect has been fine tuned, let's get discerning about just how much artistry is truly in the 'product' and how much is just spittin' words with sound effects, mixed by professionals.

Combating misogynistic bigotry. Enough already. Look around the world, including the United States: women and girls are denied their basic human rights and civil liberties; half of humanity is systematically targeted for violent hate based solely due to an immutable trait--their gender. Misogyny is the status quo of brutal injustice.

Rap needs to reconnect itself with its roots and battle injustice rather than exploit it for profit. Combat (anti-female) intolerance and hate. Fight the power, goddamnit.

Don't take this wrong! Since hip hop has done more to brazenly promote overblown ego, self indulgence and violence, than any other art form, It may be the perfect place for an artist to examine their souls in public and find humility! Maybe not so crazy!

I think the focus should be on the deeper problems that cause our visible problems. Our education system in this country relies on fear that is propagated from the top down. Fear is the number one problem PLAGUING this nation. Our civil liberties - from habeas corpus to abortion, from wire-tapping to gay marriage, health care to the all-time worst, religion...gone or going because of our population's fear and need for even the illusion of safety. The reason kids shoot each other in school today, the reason mothers and father kill their children or each other, the reason religious leaders scream their hate, the reason they hate in the first place, the reason a majority of us fall in line, the reason our so-called representatives for the most part DO NOTHING, the reason our president is openly and proudly a traitor to this nations citizens and interests, with no accountability....the reason is FEAR, but fear of what? I'm baffled at the complete lack of understanding we, as a people, have for each other. I'm baffled we are turning as a nation into cowards and bullies.