Tuesday 22 April 2014
Final
My
Critical Investigation
“I’m always stoned, I’m all high, just brought a new gun lets go do a drive-by” [1]
How do hip-hop artists such as Chief Keef represent
violence, sex and drugs through their music and what is the effect on their
audience?
Over the years rap culture has changed
and has been heavily manipulated in order to entertain audiences and satisfy
their needs. Rap music videos are a media genre that is attracting a
considerable amount of attention[2];
old school rap and modern day do not serve the same message and can arguably be
seen as binary opposites; talking about completely different messages. Old
school rap was seen in a more positive light for a number of reasons for
example drugs were seen as a very negative thing during the 80’s era and many
songs during this time period were dedicated to slandering the drug use taking
place. Artists such as NWA delivered anti- drug messages such as - “If you
smoke caine you a stupid motherfucker!”[3]
To bring negativity towards the topic of drugs.
Today however rap is of violence, “this
highly stylised, energetic music movement took its inspiration from diverse
black American cultural forms to create an idiosyncratic, inventive – and
sometimes controversial – music style”[4].
Chief Keef has become the face of this new music movement, what was once seen
as not cool and bad has now become the norm due to the meaningless messages
being passed through rap music that continues to spread. “Nothing to gain but
killing your brain” [5]
was once the definitive memo on the topic of drugs within rap; however it has
now become defamatory towards women and glorifies drugs, sex and violence.
Chief Keef’s influence is seen as a negative by many and people have used
social media to critique the 18 year old rapper calling him “a product of his
environment” [6]
and even describing him as “a little crazy gangster”[7].
The media today consists of many
different representations, stereotypes and different ideologies presented by
different people. When looking into rap artist Chief Keef’s music we see how
his music can be negative and violent due to the high number of props that can
be found within his music videos such as guns and drugs. This ultimately
re-enforces the negative stereotype that black males are violent and dangerous
which links to Alvarado’s theory (1987) [8]
in which black males are said to be exotic, dangerous, humorous and pitied. This is considered to be a very negative
representation of black males however it seems that Chief Keef presents some of
those aspects within his rap videos. For example in Chief Keef’s song ‘Love no
thotties’[9]
presents humorous aspects in his lyrical content – “couple bucks for these
bitches let me slap them on they ass” and also presents the dangerous aspect by
waving loaded guns in the air whilst driving. Rapper ‘Waka Flocka Flames’ is
one of Chief Keef’s known inspirations and even took pity upon the 18 year old
“you can’t blame a kid... everybody aint grow up in Chicago in the murder
capital...”[10].
There are many other representations
and stereotypes of black men in the music industry alone, many of which are
associated with drugs. A very common stereotype surrounding black males is that
they are drug users[11],
within Chief Keefs music there is a strong presence of drugs and therefore
re-enforces the stereotype that black males are drug users, additionally the
rapper has had a number of drug related charges including driving under influence[12].
This strongly links to Perkins theory (1979) that stereotypes are not always
false – supported by empirical evidence[13].
“Violence in Chicago is not a new
occurrence and neither is the imagery of violence portrayed in hip-hop”[14].
Chief Keef’s music contains a lot of violent content as he insults even the
deceased[15],
this can have a very negative impact upon the audiences watching, especially
those who belong to the psychographic group of aspirers as they tend to be
younger[16].
Chief Keef’s primary audience would consist of males with a socio-economic
classification of E, aged 12-19. At this age it seems that they are more
influenced by what they watch and see and so Chief Keef could have a very
negative impact on the behaviours and attitudes of many young children who
follow his music as they could ultimately endorse the same ideologies as Chief
Keef and could perhaps start to glorify drugs also.
A spiral of controversy surrounds Chief
Keefs music; some bloggers “urge radio stations to stop playing his music
because of the negative effect he has on the city’s youth”[17]
which indicates that Chief Keefs music is to an extent a stature of negativity
within his city. The media effects theory[18]
is how media can affect society and how society affects the media; this can
have negative implications as people tend to copy what they see in the media,
especially those of a younger age. Medhursts theory [19]also
applies to Chief Keef and his music as he can be seen as a stereotype and
therefore a short hand in the media that everyone is able to identify easily.
Black stereotypes within the media
today are not hard to come across, when analysing in depth the iconography in
Chief Keef’s music there was a number of different weapons such as guns and
many videos such as “my lil niggas” had a large number of black males which
could connote a gang thus re-enforcing the stereotypical view that black males
belong to a gang and also linking to Perkins theory [20]
that stereotypes do contain some element of truth as Chief Keef is a part of
the gang ‘the black disciples’[21].
The lyrics presents in his music are
also sexist towards women and speak about women as objects rather than human,
which is one way in which Chief Keef negatively represents women in his music. When
analysing Chief Keefs music video for the song – “Ight Doe” a number of
representations on drugs, sex and violence were found. One way in which
violence was represented in this song is through the use of props. In this song
it can be seen that Chief Keef is holding a loaded gun, by doing so it
re-enforces the stereotype that black males are dangerous[22]
and ultimately has an effect upon the younger audiences watching as they may
aspire to be like Chief Keef and play with weapons too. In the video drugs are
represented in a glorified manner through actors (Chief Keef’s associates)
smoking drugs alongside him. Finally the representation of women in this video
is negative and is re-enforced by the fast paced camera movement anchored with
the lyrics of the song – “I don’t want that bitch, she’s been around like
revolving doors”[23].
This has a very negative affect upon the audience especially those who “aspire”[24]
to be like Chief Keef for a number of reasons, one being that they may follow
his actions and act the same way he does which links strongly to the ‘bobo doll
experiment’[25].
“Throughout time there have been a
number of panics over a variety of issues, ranging from crime and the
activities of youth, to drugs and sexual freedom”[26].
Moral panics have been described as a condition, episode, person or group of
persons which emerge to become defined as a threat to societal values and interests[27].
Chief Keef can ultimately create moral panic in a number of ways, firstly
through violence, when looking at the image of Chief Keef people see a number
of negative representations and stereotypes which ultimately create moral panic
for audiences (particularly older audiences) as Chief Keef’s younger fan base
is rapidly growing. However Chief Keef has been involved in a number of
anti-violence campaigns[28]
which has drawn a lot of criticism; “who thought this was a good idea?”[29]
The idea of moral panic[30]
revolves around the concept that a certain (usually small) minority pose a
threat to society – something that Chief Keef can certainly be associated with
as him and his gang display gun props in their videos and rap about the murder
rate within Chicago; 433 murders in 2011[31].
In addition to this it has a negative effect upon the younger audience who
aspire to be like the 18 year old rapper as they will think what they see is
‘the norm’[32]
and therefore could pose threat to society if many people start to adopt the lifestyle
Chief Keef lives. However during the mid-1980’s there was a great amount of
moral panic with minorities posing great threat to society within the music
industry with artists such as N.W.A releasing songs called “Fuck the Police” [33]and
so historically there has always been moral panic present within the rap
industry which “portrayed images of gangs, guns, violence and sexism” [34]similar
to Chief Keef.
It is arguable that censorship is
equally as troubling as the music being produced. “All kinds of writing can be
censored, from books to newspaper articles to music lyrics”[35].
Much of Chief Keefs music videos show poor censorship which would arguably have
an effect on many of the audiences who are able to view the music as it would
give them a deeper ‘sense of realism’[36].
With such poor censorship younger audiences are able to see the way in which
Chief Keef speaks about drugs, sex and violence which is in a very negative
manner and this could ultimately influence them into thinking it is cool and
following Chief Keef. However some of Chief Keefs more explicit tunes have been
unplayable my radio stations due to the content – “we can’t play that on the
radio it’s dirty”[37].
However many audiences feel as though the music is not the same without the
full lyricism. This clearly has an effect on the audience[38]
as it means that with the poor censorship going on in the music industry that
they are exposed to all the inappropriate content that is out there which can
have a negative impact upon the audience however provide them with a sense of
identity [39](links
to Blumler and Kat’z uses and gratifications theory) as they will be able to
relate to the uncensored content Chief Keef puts out.
However Chief Keef and the stereotypes
surrounding him have been brought to the spotlight via twitter, twitter not
only targets Chief Keef and the stereotypes surrounding him but now comments
about his fans “fuelled by stereotypes about class and poverty”[40]and
so ultimately now his music is having a stronger effect on the audience as they
are become part of the stereotype of poverty and class that Chief Keef faces.
A number of theories can be linked to
Chief Keef and the music he creates which ultimately helps to decide whether
these representations of Chief Keef are accurate or false or have been created
for the media in order to fit a certain agenda. One theory that links to Chief
Keef would be the copycat theory [41],
this theory simply suggests that audiences will copy what they see and Chief
Keef himself could be an example of this theory as he took influence from older
artists such as ‘Waka Flocka Flames’.
Many rap artists have surely grown up
in such environments being both victims and perpetrators to varying degrees,
even if they lyrically embellish their own street credentials[42].
It seems that ultimately Chief Keef at the age of 18 has become a stature of
negativity but at the same time truth, being one of the most representative
people within the rap industry to speak of such controversial topics such as
drugs, sex and violence as ‘the norm’ [43].
Whilst reaching out to a large demographic his music provides audiences with a
sense of escapism[44]
that cannot be obtained without his negative lyrical content. The media today makes audiences feel that his
music is something that they are able to relate to especially with the medias
constant re-enforcement of what Chief Keef only speaks about – ‘Violence, sex
and drugs’.
WORD COUNT: 2,009
[2] Gina, M, ‘A Prospective Study of Exposure to Rap Music
Videos and African American Female Adolescents’, March 2003, Pg. 437
[3] NWA, ‘NWA – Dopeman’, 1998
[4] National Film Theatre, ‘National Film Theatre June 2005,
Bfi, June 2005, Pg.16
[6] Griffin, T, ‘Wild Shit Sells (Chief Keef’s Fame), 2012,
http://blackexcellencex.wordpress.com/tag/gbe-gang/
[7] Charlamagne, ‘Fame Won’t Stop Chief Keef’s Gang
Banging, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4rplnVtnko, January 2013
[8] Hylton, K, ‘Race and Sport’, 2008, Pg. 130
[9] Chief Keef – Love No Thotties, September 2013,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdL_e7CtNJA
[10] Kershaw, T, ‘The Religion and Political Views of Chief
Keef’, http://hollowverse.com/chief-keef/, 2013
[11] Hutchinson, E, ‘The Assassination of the Black Male Image’,
1994, Pg. 14
[12] HNHH, ‘Chief Keef Arrested for DUI’
http://www.hotnewhiphop.com/chief-keef-arrested-for-dui-news.9797.html
[14] Griffin, T, ‘Wild Shit Sells (Chief Keef’s Fame), 2012,
www.blackexcellencex.wordpress.com/tag/gbe-gang/
[15] ‘Chief Keef Laughs At The Death Of Rival Rapper JoJo, Who
Was Gunned Down In Chicago’,
http://www.thisis50.com/profiles/blogs/heartless-chief-keef-laughs-at-the-death-of-rival-rapper-jojo-who
[16] Anderson, H, ‘Strategic Marketing Management: Meeting the
global marketing challenge’, 2000.
[17] Frye, C, ‘The Religion and Political Views of Chief Keef’,
http://hollowverse.com/chief-keef/, 2013
[18] Bryant, J, ‘Media Effects: Advances in Theory and
Research’, 2008, Pg. 50
[20] Rosenfelt, D, ‘Feminist Criticism and Social Change’ 2013,
Pg.70
[21] Kontos, L, ‘Encyclopaedia of Gangs’, 2008, Pg.106
[22] Hylton, K, ‘Race and Sport’, 2008, Pg. 130
[23] Chief Keef – Ight Doe, September 2013
[24] Mullet, S,
http://sophiemullettmediaa.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/7-young-and-rubicam-4-cs.html
[25] Brain, C, ‘Approaches and Methods’, 2000, Pg.116
[26] Sands, M, ‘Moral Panics’, http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Students/lcs9603.html,
November 1988
[28] Black Youth Project, ‘Chief Keef’s Participation in
Online Anti- Violence Campaign Stirs Controversy’
http://www.blackyouthproject.com/2013/03/chief-keefs-participation-in-online-anti-violence-campaign-stirs-controversy/,
March 2013
[29] DeLuca, M, ‘Anti-violence campaign draws criticism for
rapper Chief Keef photo’
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/27/17485146-anti-violence-campaign-draws-criticism-for-rapper-chief-keef-photo, March 2013
[30] Burns, H, ‘What are Moral Panics?’ 2000
[31] Deblois, S, ‘The real facts of the Chicago murder rates’
http://scottdeblois.wordpress.com/2013/04/27/the-real-facts-of-the-chicago-murder-rates/, April 2013
[32] Fourie, P, ‘Media Studies: Media History, Media and
Society’, 2010
[33] N.W.A. – ‘Fuck the Police’, 1988
[34] Giovacchini, A, ‘Poverty and Prejudice: Media and Race’
June 1999, Pg.1
[35] Magoon, K, ‘Media Censorship’ , 2010, Pg.8
[37] The Breakfast Club Interview,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAGD4oZJ-cE, 2012, 2013
[38] Mills, S, ‘The Media Effects Debate’,
http://www.englishandmedia.co.uk/mm/subscribers/downloads/archive_mm/mmagpast/Effects_debate_trash_TV_MM18.html,
2008
[39] IOSS, LLC,
‘Communication Theory’, 2001, Pg.81
[40] Galil, L, ‘Chief Keef: Chicago’s Most Promising Anti-Hero’,
http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/chief-keef-might-be-a-solution-to-chicago-violence/Content?oid=7521203,
2012
[41] ‘Modelling or Copycat Theory’,
http://www.slideshare.net/MrsUzumaki/modelling-or-copycat-theory, 2010
[42] Bogazianos, D, ‘5 Grams: Crack Cocaine, Rap Music, and the
War on Drugs’, 2012, Pg.67
[43] Fourie, P, ‘Media Studies: Media History, Media and
Society’, 2010
Monday 17 March 2014
bibliography
Bibliography
Work Cited
Books
Bennett, Peter, Slater, Jerry (2003): A2 Media Studies The Essential Introduction, Canada, Routledge
Casey, Bernadette, Casey, Neil (2002): Television Studies The Key Concept, London, Routledge
Clark, Vivienne. Baker, James. Lewis, Eileen (2003) Key Concepts & Skills for Media Studies:
London. Hodder Headline
Dines, Gail, 2003, Gender, Race and Class in Media, UK, Saga Publications
Humez, Jean M (1994): Gender, Race and Class in Media, London, Sage
Hall, Stuart (eds) (1980): Culture, Media, Language;Working Papers in Culture Studies , 1972-79, London, Hutchinson
Hebdige, Dick( 1979): Subculture The Meaning Of Style, London, Methuen
Jewkes, Yvonne, 2004, Media Studies Readers, London,
King, Geoff, (2002): Film Comedy, London, Wallflower
Laughey, Dan (2009): Media Studies Theories and Approaches, Harpenden, Kamera Books
Nelson, R (1997): TV Drama in Transition Forms, Values and Cultural Changes, Basingstoke, Macmillan
O'Sullivan, Tim (2008): The Media Studies Reader, London, Edward Arnold
Stevenson, N (1995): Understanding Media Cultures, Social Theory and Mass Communication, London, Sage
Williams, Kevin (2003) Understanding Media Theory: New York. Arnold Publishers
Internet
The Amistad Case in Fact and Film
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/74/
Stuart Hall from
http://changingminds.org/disciplines/sociology/theorists/stuart_hall.htm
The representation of black people in film from
http://www.helium.com/items/398554-the-representation-of-black-people-in-film
The White Corporate Tradition: Hollywood Representation of Black People from
http://www.africaresource.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=297:thewhite-corporate-tradition-hollywood-representation-of-black-people&catid=136:race&Itemid=351
Black British Film from
http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/1144245/index.html
Black Hollywood from
http://ivythesis.typepad.com/term_paper_topics/2009/06/representation-of-race-and-ethnicity-in-hollywood-films.html
African-American Motion Pictures from
http://www.liu.edu/cwis/cwp/Library/african/movies.htm#race
2010 Haiti earthquake from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_Haiti_earthquake
Amistad from
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118607/quotes
Representing racial groups from
http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=Lhjf5VbWQMF22X1k7bGb4nk1kvkys4vgJV1KMHpsycVxJZhpNL27!-1196327867!1517079229?docId=5001386632
Magazines/Newspapers
Racial Stereotyping from
http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/2005/feb/08/guardianobituaries.film1
Black people in films from
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2000/jun/25/2
Hollywood Films from
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/dec/06/film-precious-lee-daniels-sidibe
James Earl Jones from
http://www.independent.co.uk/stage/2009/nov/23/james-earl-jones-cat-roof
Is the media to blame for racism? from
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/britains-black-actors-now-enjoy-bigger-better-parts-still-they-go-unrecognised-is-media-racism-to-blame-588948.html
Will Smith from
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/jan/10/will-smith-seven-pounds
Will Smith from
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2006/dec/18/willsmith
Moving Image
Rush Hour (USA, 1998, dir.: Brett Ratner)
The Pursuit of Happyness (USA, 2006, dir.: Gabriele Muccino)
Snakes of Plane (USA, 2006, dir.: David Elis)
48 Hrs (USA, 1982, dir.: Walter Hill)
White Chicks (USA, 2004, dir.: Keenen Ivory Wayans)
Gone with the Wind (USA, 1939, dir.: Victor Fleming)
Amistad (USA, 1997, dir.: Steven Spielberg)
Save the Last Dance (USA, 2001, dir.: Thomas Carter)
Coach Carter (USA, 2005, dir.: Thomas Carter)
Scary Movie (USA, 2000, dir.: Keenen Ivory Wayans)
Down to Earth (USA, 2001), dir.: Chris Weitz)
Lethal Weapon (USA, 1987, dir.: Richard Donner)
Malcolm X (USA, Japan, 1992, dir.: Spike Lee)
Ghost (USA, 1990, dir.: Gerry Zucker)
The Book of Eli (USA, 2010, dir.: Albert Hughes)
Mission Impossible, (USA, 1996, dir.: Brain De Palma)
James Bond (USA, 1962, dir.: Terence Young)
Work Cited
Books
Bennett, Peter, Slater, Jerry (2003): A2 Media Studies The Essential Introduction, Canada, Routledge
Casey, Bernadette, Casey, Neil (2002): Television Studies The Key Concept, London, Routledge
Clark, Vivienne. Baker, James. Lewis, Eileen (2003) Key Concepts & Skills for Media Studies:
London. Hodder Headline
Dines, Gail, 2003, Gender, Race and Class in Media, UK, Saga Publications
Humez, Jean M (1994): Gender, Race and Class in Media, London, Sage
Hall, Stuart (eds) (1980): Culture, Media, Language;Working Papers in Culture Studies , 1972-79, London, Hutchinson
Hebdige, Dick( 1979): Subculture The Meaning Of Style, London, Methuen
Jewkes, Yvonne, 2004, Media Studies Readers, London,
King, Geoff, (2002): Film Comedy, London, Wallflower
Laughey, Dan (2009): Media Studies Theories and Approaches, Harpenden, Kamera Books
Nelson, R (1997): TV Drama in Transition Forms, Values and Cultural Changes, Basingstoke, Macmillan
O'Sullivan, Tim (2008): The Media Studies Reader, London, Edward Arnold
Stevenson, N (1995): Understanding Media Cultures, Social Theory and Mass Communication, London, Sage
Williams, Kevin (2003) Understanding Media Theory: New York. Arnold Publishers
Internet
The Amistad Case in Fact and Film
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/74/
Stuart Hall from
http://changingminds.org/disciplines/sociology/theorists/stuart_hall.htm
The representation of black people in film from
http://www.helium.com/items/398554-the-representation-of-black-people-in-film
The White Corporate Tradition: Hollywood Representation of Black People from
http://www.africaresource.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=297:thewhite-corporate-tradition-hollywood-representation-of-black-people&catid=136:race&Itemid=351
Black British Film from
http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/1144245/index.html
Black Hollywood from
http://ivythesis.typepad.com/term_paper_topics/2009/06/representation-of-race-and-ethnicity-in-hollywood-films.html
African-American Motion Pictures from
http://www.liu.edu/cwis/cwp/Library/african/movies.htm#race
2010 Haiti earthquake from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_Haiti_earthquake
Amistad from
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118607/quotes
Representing racial groups from
http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=Lhjf5VbWQMF22X1k7bGb4nk1kvkys4vgJV1KMHpsycVxJZhpNL27!-1196327867!1517079229?docId=5001386632
Magazines/Newspapers
Racial Stereotyping from
http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/2005/feb/08/guardianobituaries.film1
Black people in films from
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2000/jun/25/2
Hollywood Films from
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/dec/06/film-precious-lee-daniels-sidibe
James Earl Jones from
http://www.independent.co.uk/stage/2009/nov/23/james-earl-jones-cat-roof
Is the media to blame for racism? from
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/britains-black-actors-now-enjoy-bigger-better-parts-still-they-go-unrecognised-is-media-racism-to-blame-588948.html
Will Smith from
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/jan/10/will-smith-seven-pounds
Will Smith from
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2006/dec/18/willsmith
Moving Image
Rush Hour (USA, 1998, dir.: Brett Ratner)
The Pursuit of Happyness (USA, 2006, dir.: Gabriele Muccino)
Snakes of Plane (USA, 2006, dir.: David Elis)
48 Hrs (USA, 1982, dir.: Walter Hill)
White Chicks (USA, 2004, dir.: Keenen Ivory Wayans)
Gone with the Wind (USA, 1939, dir.: Victor Fleming)
Amistad (USA, 1997, dir.: Steven Spielberg)
Save the Last Dance (USA, 2001, dir.: Thomas Carter)
Coach Carter (USA, 2005, dir.: Thomas Carter)
Scary Movie (USA, 2000, dir.: Keenen Ivory Wayans)
Down to Earth (USA, 2001), dir.: Chris Weitz)
Lethal Weapon (USA, 1987, dir.: Richard Donner)
Malcolm X (USA, Japan, 1992, dir.: Spike Lee)
Ghost (USA, 1990, dir.: Gerry Zucker)
The Book of Eli (USA, 2010, dir.: Albert Hughes)
Mission Impossible, (USA, 1996, dir.: Brain De Palma)
James Bond (USA, 1962, dir.: Terence Young)
Sunday 16 March 2014
critical investigation
My Critical Investigation
“This
highly stylised, energetic music movement took its inspiration from diverse
black American cultural forms to create an idiosyncratic, inventive – and
sometimes controversial – music style.” [1]
How do hip-hop artists such as Chief Keef
represent violence, sex and drugs through their music and what is the effect on
their audience?
Rap culture has change and has been heavily manipulated over the years in
order to entertain the audience as years go on. Rap music videos are a media genre that is attracting considerable
attention [[2]],
old school rap and modern day are arguably binary opposites and do not in any
way serve the same purpose. Today’s rap is of violence whereas old school rap
was seen in a more positive light for a number of reasons. In old school rap it was not seen as cool to
be involved in a drug scene and many songs from the 80’s era were dedicated to
slandering the drug use taking place; even going as far as saying on records “If you smoke caine you a stupid motherfucker!” [[3]]. Chief Keef is a modern day rap artists who is from Chicago, Illinois –
a city which in “2012 saw a drastic uptick in the number of shootings and
murders across the city” [[4]].
It is arguable that Chief Keef has had one of the biggest influences on
modern day rap music and the meaningless messages being passed through it and
continues to spread his message of violence, sex and drugs throughout the
industry; being involved in over 8 mix tape projects and over 100 songs in the
past year. Chief Keef has become the face of rap music and has ultimately
defaced the very genre which was once against the things it portrays now. So
Chief Keef is a prime example as to how hip hop and rap music have changed over
the years in terms of the messages being delivered, in the past it was not seen
as cool to be using drugs but now in modern day rap music it is seen as the
norm. “Nothing to gain but killing your brain” [[5]] was once the message being
sent in rap and hip hop music however it has taken a dramatic turn for the
worst and has become extremely defamatory towards women, glorifying violence,
sex and drugs. Many people have taken to the blogs to critique Chief Keef’s
music in a number of ways, many seeing that Chief Keef is merely “a product of
his environment” [[6]]
and describing him as “a little crazy gangster” [[7]].
In the
media today we see a number of representations, a lot of Chief Keefs’ music are
considered to be negative and violent, which therefore re-enforces the negative
stereotype that black males are violent and dangerous. This strongly links to
Alvarado’s theory (1987) on racial representations of black males stating that
they are four things: Exotic, dangerous,
humorous and pitied. This is considered to be a very negative representation of
black males however Chief Keef presents all of the four aspects in his rap
videos. For example his song “Love no thotties” presented strong aspects of
humour as well as the dangers he can pose to society; waving loaded guns in the
air whilst driving. Additionally fellow rapper and Chief Keef’s inspiration –
‘Waka Flocka’ took pity on the 18 year old Chief Keef and stated “you can’t
blame a kid... everybody aint grow up in Chicago in the murder capital...” [[8]].
This is one of many representations
of black men present in the music industry alone. Within the music industry it
can be seen through videos that there is a strong presence of drugs and so this
is another example of some of the stereotypes surrounding black people; that
they are drug users and since chief keef has been known to take drugs this
links to perkins theory that stereotypes contain some element of truth.
“Violence in Chicago is not a new occurrence and neither is the imagery of
violence portrayed in hip-hop” [[9]]. Chief
Keef’s music contains all types of different things including violence but not
limited to; drugs are also shown, which can have a very negative impact on the
audiences watching especially those of a younger age. One of Chief Keef’s
primary audience would have to be males with a socio-economic classification of
E, aged between 13- 19, at this age the males are still young and are easily
influenced. And so Chief Keef’s music can ultimately have a negative effect as
the drug use that he glorifies in his music will appeal to a younger audience
whore may aspire to be like him; additionally some bloggers “urge radio
stations to stop playing his music because of the negative effect he has on the
city’s youth” [[10]]
indicating that Chief Keef and his music are somewhat a stature of negativity
within the city.. The bobo doll experiment is one that suggests that children
can mimic what they see in the media which is one way in which Chief Keef’s
music has a negative effect on the audience as his younger audience may copy
the actions he does. Medhursts theory applies to chief keef as he can be seen
as a stereotype and therefore a short hand in the media that everyone is able
to identify easily.
When researching into Chief Keef I
was able to find a number of different dominant stereotypes in today’s media in
regards to black males, analysing in depth the iconography in Chief Keef’s
music I saw that their were a number of guns and many videos such as “my lil
ni*gas” contained a group of over 20 black males which could connote a gang
thus re-enforcing the common stereotype that all black males belong to a gang
and also linking to Perkins theory that stereotypes contain some element of
truth. Chief Keef has been no stranger to guns and in 2011 was sentenced to
home confinement for pointing a loaded firearm at police officers [[11]].
The lyrics present in his music are also sexist towards women and speak about
women as objects rather than human which is just one way in which Chief Keef
negatively represents women in his music. The abbreviation “THOT” (that hoe
over there) is one commonly found in Chief Keef’s music and is seen as
derogatory towards women and could in fact have a number of effects on the
audience for example younger male audiences may hear this and start to use the
term themselves thinking it is acceptable. This is yet again a dominant
stereotype present in the media today that men are above women in many aspects
and this is re-enforced strongly by Chief Keef.
“Throughout time there have been a
number of panics over a variety of issues, ranging from crime and the
activities of youth, to drugs and sexual freedom” [[12]]. Moral panic can be put into focus by the use
of stereotypes repeatedly being used, as previously discussed modern day
hip-hop has a number of stereotypes that are common in society today; many of
which are negative. Chief Keef’s music can ultimately create moral panic in a
number of ways, firstly through violence. When people see the image of Chief
Keef they see a black male with dreadlocks posing with a loaded gun which anchors
with the stereotype that black males are all violent and dangerous so when the
people see his imposed figure they feel as though the idea of brutality that
Chief Keef represents is becoming the norm thus creating moral panic. However
Chief Keef has been involved in a number of anti-violence campaigns [[13]]
which has drawn a lot of criticism with comments such as “who thought this was
a good idea?” [[14]].
The concept of moral panic revolves
around the idea that a certain (usually small) minority pose a threat to
society. Chief Keef is part of a growing minority of males from Chicago that
are part of the gun violence, with 433 murders in the year 2011 [[15]]
the city is one that is considered to be a “murder capital” [[16]].
This links to Chief Keef as his music on numerous occasions has glorified the
use of guns and murder for example in his music video ‘ight doe’ [[17]]
the rapper is seen swinging a 30. Calibre pistol which creates moral panic, in
addition to this it has a negative effect on the younger audience who aspire to
be like the 18 year old rapper as they will think what they see is cool and
therefore could pose threat to society if many children adopt the lifestyle
Chief Keef lives. However the moral panic that young audiences may adopt what
they see has been around for a very long time, dating back to the mid 1980’s
with the releases of song such as “Fuck tha police” [[18]]
by N.W.A which “...portrayed images of
gangs, guns, violence, and sexism” [[19]]
similar to Chief Keef.
Moving on
from moral panic it could actually be argued censorship is equally as troubling
as the music being produced from rap artists nowadays. Many examples from Chief
Keefs music shows poor censorship which would arguably have an affect on many
of the audiences who are able to view the music such as the younger audiences
as they will become influenced and aspire to become the somewhat negative image
of Chief Keef. Unfortunately it is easier for these younger audiences to have
access to this music due to video sharing sites such as YouTube as they don’t
have such strict regulations. Radio stations are unable to play some of Chief
Keefs’ music due to the explicit language that can be found in some of his
songs for example his hit single ‘I Don’t Like’ was not played by a number of
radio stations and was too explicit for some radio stations to play; “We cant
play that on the radio its dirty!” [[20]]. Despite the censorship
and the radio stations that did not play the song, the single
became a hit sensation and managed to accumulate over 30 million views on
YouTube.
Radio stations do contribute to the
success of the song as some did “clean up” the song by getting rid of the
inappropriate content however some felt as though “censorship is making it
really difficult to figure out what it is exactly that Chief Keef doesn’t like”
[[21]]
and ultimately the song is not the same without the full lyricism. This clearly
has an effect on the audience as it means that with the poor censorship going
on in the music industry that they are exposed to all the inappropriate content
that is out there which can have a negative impact on the audience. However on the other hand some feel that it
is not up to censorship in radio and T.V to decide how young audiences act but
instead feel as though “how your child responds to these negative forces is
entirely up to how they are raised” [[22]].
Despite Chief Keef now being a strong figure within the rap industry
there are a number of stereotypes surrounding Chief Keef in regards to his
ethnicity, gender, age, etc. However he tends to re-enforce the stereotypes
around him rather than subverting from them. Chief Keef possesses many of the
attributes that are associated with the minority he comes from in Chicago which
would be violent, aggressive and scary which links to Alvarado’s theory of
racial representations of black males being
Many stereotypes that can be seen in the media are consistently negative
and this is usually for entertainment purposes [[23]]. In the music video
“3hunna” by Chief Keef you can see the rapper at the age of 15 in possession of
firearms with a group of people. This is one stereotype that was then applied
to Chief Keef that due to his ethnicity he is part of a gang however being seen
in the video with so many people does not help to subvert from the stereotype.
However Chief Keef and the stereotypes surrounding him have been brought
to the spotlight via twitter, twitter not only targets Chief Keef and the
stereotypes surrounding him but now comments about his fans “fuelled by
stereotypes about class and poverty” [[24]] and so ultimately now his
music is having a stronger affect on the audience as they are become part of
the stereotype of poverty and class that Chief Keef faces.
A number of theories can be linked to Chief Keef and the music he creates
which ultimately helps to decide whether these representations of Chief Keef
are accurate or false or have been created for the media in order to fit a
certain agenda [[25]].
One theory that links to Chief Keef would be the copycat theory [[26]], this theory simply suggest
that audiences will copy what they see and Chief Keef himself could be an
example of this theory.
And so
ultimately Chief keef represents drugs, sex and violence in an extremely
negative way. Whilst targeting such a large demographic his music provides
audiences a sense of escapism (Kats & blumlers theory of uses and
gratification) from their lives and listens to his music. In the media today
some audiences may feel his music is something they are able to relate to
especially with the medias constant re-enforcement of what chief keef raps
about – ‘violence, sex and guns’.
[1] National
Film Theatre, ‘National Film Theatre June 2005’, BFI, June 2005, Pg.16
[2] Gina, M,
‘A Prospective Study of Exposure to Rap Music Videos and African American
Female Adolescents’’ Health, March 2003, Pg.437
[3] NWA , ‘NWA
– Dopeman’, 1998
[4] GSP, ‘Chief
Keef and Chicago, Illinois’ Murder Rate: The Glorification of Youth Violence’,
Pg.1
[5] Grandmaster Flash and Melle Mel, ‘Grandmaster
Flash and Melle Mel - White Lines’, 1994
[6] Griffin, T, ‘Wild Shit Sells (Chief Keef’s Fame),
2012, http://blackexcellencex.wordpress.com/tag/gbe-gang/
[7] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4rplnVtnko
[8] http://hollowverse.com/chief-keef/,
‘The Religion and Political Views of Chief Keef’, 2013
[9] Griffin, T, ‘Wild Shit Sells (Chief Keef’s Fame),
2012, http://blackexcellencex.wordpress.com/tag/gbe-gang/
[10] http://hollowverse.com/chief-keef/,
‘The Religion and Political Views of Chief Keef’, 2013
[11] Konkol,
M, http://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20130114/chicago/cops-shot-at-chief-keef-2011-after-teen-rapper-pointed-gun-police-say,
‘Police Shot at Chief Keef After Rapper Pointed Gun at Them, Cops Say’, January
2013
[12]
http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Students/lcs9603.html
[15]
http://scottdeblois.wordpress.com/2013/04/27/the-real-facts-of-the-chicago-murder-rates/
[17]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLWDM2uZr60&list=RDABw_Phi-kPU
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