As we all know, rap and hip hop are known as being apart of the urban or black culture. That being said, most successful rap artists are black. And in black culture, the use of the N word has been reinvented into a friendly, even affectionate term, as opposed to it's hateful origins. N recent years, rappers have taken advantage of this fact and made millions using the word to describe their attitude and viewpoints in songs. So the question is, is it ok for a white rapper to use this word? Or for that manner, a white person at all?
Before I go any further, click on the 15 second video below and see what Chet has to say...
Chet believes that he should be able to say whatever he wants because he is immersed in the hip hop culture.
On one hand, I get where he's coming from and I'm a huge believer in equality and impartiality but the truth is, racism and racial bias is still alive and well. So calling it history is a bit naive. I understand that he's a rapper and wants to be treated like a normal member of the rap community but is him using what was once a hateful slur considered socially acceptable now?
In the states (and in many other places around the world), there is somewhat of a war going on between police and the citizens they are supposed to protect. This war in most cases, is fueled by racism because many feel racism is still at large. So when Chet comes forth saying that he wants to use this word because he is apart of the rap culture, I'm not sure if he's thinking about how that may come off to those whom still view that word as offensive or a "black only" word. Though most people like myself don't really care about white people using the N word, it still bothers some. And I can sympathize with them. How can someone forget about the racial tensions when we still live with them everyday? There are plenty of remnants of racial bias that are interwoven in our modern society both personal and judicial.
For example, check out this amazing video: Is Racism Over?
But this seems like pretty common knowledge, which led me to think, could he be doing this for other reasons?
Nowadays, it seems like a lot of young celebrities resort to publicity stunts to bring attention to themselves for one reason or another. And you can't really argue with them, it has proven itself effective. When a celebrity is surrounded by controversy or gossip, every move they make becomes interesting and news worthy. If a celebrity were for example, having an album dropping soon (wink wink) that publicity could draw attention to it, thus boosting it's sales. Besides, all publicity is good publicity, or so they say. So it could certainly help out a young rapper who though he is the son of an A-List celebrity, only has 500+ followers on his soundcloud.
But... at the end of the day, what Chet is truly doing, only he knows, but I wrote this article because I want to know what YOU think.
Do you think it is ok for a white rapper to say the N word in his or her music?
Do you think that racism is still a real problem or just an echo of the past?
What do you think it would take for racism to truly be over?
Let me know in the comment section.
Thank you so much for reading this short article. This blog is for all thing music, so as long as there is music there will always be new content to dig into. As you may or may not know, I am a songwriter and am working on some new stuff constantly, so be ready for some off of the top lyrics and song remixes. If you would like to donate to the advancement of my music, please feel free to using the link to your right. While you're there check out more of my content from this blog.
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