Hip Hop Is Not Responsible for Sexism [7] but There Are Bitches and Hoes [8]
Tricia Rose begins chapter seven of The Hip Hop Wars by numbering the top five songs on the radio on May 13, 2008: ‘Lollipop’ by Lil Wayne, ‘Love in this Club’ by Usher and Jeezy, ‘What You Got’ by Colbie O’Donis and Akon, ‘The Boss’ by Rick Ross and T-Pain, ‘Hypnotize’ by Gemini. Tricia Rose breaks down images, self centered, and materialistic. “This line up reflects a distortion of youths music’s long-standing and perfectly acceptable focus on sex and courtship into sexist and objectifying tales of male conquest.” It is criticized that these songs “do not distinguish between male and sexual desire and the sexual objectification of women” (150).
This argument is immediately followed by six of the top defenses used by some of hip hops top bitch sayers, “(1) society is sexist, (2) artists should be free to express themselves, (3) rappers are unfairly singled out, (4) we should be tackling the problem at the root, (5) listening to harsh realities gives us a road map, (6) and sexual insults are deleted from radio and video airplay. Each of these defenses evades the issue of sexism, none directly tackle the issue sexist content.” (151)
Rose brings up that we often single out rap music ignoring that sexism is a societal issue. If this was not true there would be no feminist. Sexism being a societal issue reaches back to the founding of this nation, which in many cases was built on prostitution or the exploitation of the whores and jezebels we demonize rap music for acknowledging. We talk about rap music as if it created sexism, but it is a driving force in popular culture today. Rap did not create Marilyn Monroe, neither did it create the phrase ‘sex, drugs, and rock n roll’. Society tries to portray the hip hop culture as hypersexual, forgetting that the first people to exploit black women sexually were slave owners.
There was a time when rap music talked about more politically charged events, that was because there was a politically movement going on in the neighborhoods. Twenty years later, the music brings in billions of dollars and there is an abundance of women who weren’t around before for the wrong reason….this is how the bitch and hoe got popularized in the music. Nelly, along with numerous other top paid rap artists had to come to the defense of the culture admitting they are just telling it how it is, the way that they see it. Former D-Block representative and Jay-Z both agree not all women are bitches and not all bitches deserve to be treated like women “Sisters get respect, bitches get what they deserve. Sisters work hard, bitches work your nerves….I love my sisters, I don’t love no bitch”- Jay Z performing Bitches and Sisters. (173)
Despite rappers insistence on keeping it real, there are lots of people within media that have a lot to say on the use of derogatory terms in hip culture including Russell Simmons, Oprah, and of course Don Imus. The Don Imus incident involving him calling a group of female basketball player’s nappy headed hoes sparked forums nationwide. Debate was fueled by people who felt that Imus had no right to call those women nappy headed hoes because he doesn’t live a life where hoes are outside his door (this was used the same way the n* word is used, you aren’t one so you can’t call anyone one). Generally, people were not upset at Imus because those women were not hoes, but because he said it. This point drives home the fact that there is a consensus that hoes exists within the hip hop community, one that often gets generalized to the black community.
The idea of hip hop being a strictly derogatory towards women is fictitious. Many who are not on the inside are quick to judge the actions of rappers ignoring some of the obvious outward extremities that make ‘womanizing’ so easy. There is a cry from public figures that demand for change in the way that women are represented, while inside figures actually encourage the behavior. The things that rappers talk about within their music are protected by freedom of speech, but the hoe image is something they put about themselves. When a video is shot for one of these mainstream songs the women show up in their most skin clad outfit and press themselves against the rappers, promising sexual favors for a chance to be in the spotlight. 50 Cent doesn’t ask women to suck his dick; women ask to suck his dick. So when a famous rapper speaks about the many women they have it isn’t something they are making up, it is a world that was created around them. Women like Kat Stacks and Super Head are the role models for numerous women. Even for the ones not actually doing the hoeing around, there is a pass amongst us as long as there is an understanding that not all women are hoes. Chris Rock mocks the culture in his ‘smack her with a dick’ sketch.
Jay-Z, TI, and many other forces in hip hop argue that there are many bigger issues that need addressed before we try to fix a few b’s and h’s in rap. We can make progressive steps within the music if the structure of the system was to change, but that is left up to the women who want and allow themselves to be hypersexualized. Fault is often found when too great a pressure is put on rap music or people try to interpret music that was not intended for them in a language they simply do not understand. There is a clear consensus that rappers recognize all women are not hoes, proof being in how any rappers are married and the growing number of songs made to empower the black woman; something Tupac accomplished numerous times and got little notoriety for. Ultimately, the music’s message gets as far as we allow it to get.
written by: Allante M. Chayla O.
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