Overview of partner violence in hip hop
"Forbes" magazine reported in 2017 that hip hop was the "dominant musical genre" in the U.S. music industry and, for the first time, outsold any other U.S. musical genre. With its cultural foundation in the South Bronx, hip hop has grown in popularity since its beginnings in 1979. Popular dominance of the genre coincided with the international #MeToo movement, which exposed the sexual misconduct of men in positions of power in the field of entertainment. Although women and men from all walks of life worldwide have shared their #MeToo stories, accounts in the music industry (particularly in the genre of rap) were few; the industry evaded public scrutiny, despite its dominance as broadcast and streaming media.
A controversial issue in rap and hip-hop culture since its inception has been the violence and aggression of its hardcore styles. The prevalence of misogyny, sexism and sexual violence in the lyrics of the most-popular gangsta rap lyrics triggered public debate about obscenity and indecency and was a topic of U.S. Senate hearings during the mid-1990s. The common depiction of women as video vixens in music videos and being called "bitches" or "hos" in derogatory and misogynistic lyrics may escalate gender violence and anti-black misogyny (misogynoir). The multi-platinum sales of "The Chronic" by Dr. Dre (featuring Snoop Doggy Dogg) in 1992 bely the genre's lyrics. In 1999, Anthony M. Giovacchini wrote about a song from the album in the journal "Poverty and Prejudice: Media and Race":
"Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" reads:
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'And before me dig on a bitch I have to find a contraceptive.
You never know, she could be earn'n her man and learn'n her man
And at the same time burn'n her man
And you know I ain't wit' that shit lieutenant
Ain't no pussy good enough to get free ride on my [B]ennett.'
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These lyrics portray women as dirty sex toys that have no value other than the pleasure they can provide during intercourse.
Critics say that the pervasive usage of misogynistic language in rap and other popular genres, such as country music, can help normalize attitudes trivializing women and encouraging sexual assault. Misogynistic lyrics in popular music may contribute to rape culture. Songs referring to girls or women of color as usable or disposable, with lyrics suggesting rape, assault and murder, evoke concern and criticism. Feminist critiques insert "new questions about representation, [provide] additional insight about embodied experience, and [offer] alternative models for critical engagement" with hip hop, and misogynistic rhetoric has been discussed in academic literature.
Songs considered misogynistic or sexist may be amplified by artists such as Rick Ross or XXXTentacion in an age of mobile music and technology. People from different age groups (tweens to adults) and backgrounds in the U.S. and abroad have been repeatedly exposed to this content. Artists accused of violence against women or sexual assault may still circulate their music. Case outcomes may be ignored due to love of the music (if not the lyrics) and the artists who perform it. Consumers of rap and hip hop may perceive intimate-partner violence as normal, rather than harmful.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) reported in 2001 that music, film and television convey "sexual messages" which are increasingly "explicit in dialogue, lyrics, and behavior ... These messages contain unrealistic, inaccurate, and misleading information that young people accept as fact." In 2010, another AAP report stated that representations of sexuality in mass media such as music can lead to a "major disconnect between what mainstream media portray—casual sex and sexuality with no consequences—and what children and teenagers need—straightforward information about human sexuality and the need for contraception when having sex."
In "Still on the Auction Block: The (S)exploitation of Black Adolescent Girls in Rap(e) Music and Hip-Hop Culture", a chapter of "The Sexualization of Childhood", Carolyn M. West discusses the effect of rape and sexual images in hip hop. West writes, "Exposure to sexualized images in hip-hop has been found to influence black girls perception of male-female gender roles, attitudes toward sexual assault, physical dating violence, and physical attractiveness ... Music videos and lyrics that perpetuate gender inequality and glorify risky sexual behaviors but rarely provide healthy sexual messages or emphasize possible negative health consequences may increase the likelihood that black adolescent girls will have unplanned pregnancies, early sexual onset, or sexually transmitted disease acquisition, including HIV/AIDS."
Partner and sexual violence in hip-hop lyrics.
Debate about sexist lyrics in various genres of popular music began during the 1980s. According to Ummni Khan, a "kink lens" can be used to identify a feminist reading of rap lyrics as "rapey" or "allegedly perpetuat[ing] sexual violence, misogyny, and rape myths." Some critics see the hypersexualized discourse which targets women in rap songs as a sign of toxic masculinity in a patriarchal culture, and others view feminist critiques as politically correct. Eva Cooke wrote that homosociality (male bonding and patriarchal discourse focusing on black male actors in the lyrics of many rap songs) may be healthy, but can "turn toxic and violent" with misogynistic lyrics denigrating black women.
Timeline of partner violence in Hip-Hop.
1990's.
In January 1991, it was revealed that Dr.Dre had violently attacked an American rapper and TV presenter, Dee Barnes. Although they were not partners, this assault was in line with the same kind of behavior that Dre's previous partners had also reported. Dr. Dre's anger at Barnes was allegedly rooted in her interview with former N.W.A member Ice Cube, he allegedly was angered by how she presented the group in her interview with Ice Cube
Gender violence in Hip-Hop and R&amp;B.
"Surviving R. Kelly", a three-part television documentary which aired in January 2019, described R. Kelly's history of sexual assault. Kelly was charged with 10 counts of sexual assault in the Chicago metropolitan area from 1998 to 2010. Three of the 10 victims were between the ages of 13 and 16. During the 1990s, Kelly was found to be married to 15-year-old Aaliyah. The marriage was annulled, and Kelly said that he thought Aaliyah was 18.
Cardi B has said that she used sex to drug and rob men. She released a video in which she talks about tricking a cheating boyfriend by getting him drunk and forcing him to have sex with a transgender woman. The partner violence in hip hop is not limited to men, although Cardi B says that she has mature. The incidents have been compared to Kelly's, however, and Twitter users have adopted a #SurvivingCardiB hashtag. She said that she reason she did that was to "survive" as a stripper: "I'm a part of a hip-hop culture where you can talk about where you come from, talk about the wrong things you had to do to get where you are."
In 2019, Kodak Black was charged with first-degree criminal sexual misconduct in South Carolina. The rapper allegedly attacked a legally-adult high-school student in a hotel room after a performance in Florence. According to the arrest warrant, Kodak Black forced the girl onto a bed and then the floor, where he committed sexual battery. The victim "repeatedly told the defendant no and to stop. The defendant did not stop." A rape kit was presented as evidence. Black was released on a $100,000 bond while awaiting trial.
In 2009, Chris Brown was charged with two felonies and criminal threats for assaulting Rihanna before the Grammy Awards and was released on $50,000 bail. Before the assault, Rihanna noticed a text on Brown's phone from another women. "I caught him in a lie, and he wouldn't tell the truth. And I wouldn't drop it," Rihanna told Diane Sawyer in a "20/20" interview, portions of which aired on "Good Morning America". "I couldn't take that he kept lying to me, and he couldn't take that I wouldn't drop it ... It escalated into him being violent towards me. And it was ugly."
He punched and bit her, threatening to kill her after she pretended to tell her assistant to call the police. Pictures of Rihanna were leaked showing trauma to her face and body: a split lip, swelling, bruising, a bloody nose, and bite marks on her arms and fingers. Brown was sentenced to five years' probation, and they reconciled in 2012, though that same year he tattooed the face of a battered woman, some say resembling Rihanna, on his neck. In a "Vanity Fair" interview, Rihanna said that she thought she was "built to handle [things] like this"; later, she realized that she needed to "walk away." Although Brown and Rihanna are no longer friends, she still cares about him and wants him to be successful.
Altercation between artists.
Solange Knowles and Jay-Z had a much-publicized physical altercation at the 2014 Met Gala fundraiser. Jay-Z released a statement after the altercation, saying: "We have always had a good relationship. We've had one disagreement. Before and after we've been cool. That is my sister. No sister-in-law, no, my sister. Period."
References.
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