November

Hip Hop Wednesdays on Fuse TV November 5th, 2009

Fuse TV has increased their Hip-Hop offerings by dedicating each Wednesday to music and Hip Hop content. The “Hip Hop Invasion” will consist of  specials on various rappers like Tupac, Lil Wayne, Jay-Z, and many others.

Every Wednesday, Fuse will air a variety of documentaries, music videos, interviews and concerts starting at 7PM / 6C.

Fuse has been expanding its Hip Hop offerings since September, when the network aired Jay-Z’s “Answer the Call” concert at Madison Square Garden.

In September, author/journalist former BET host/journalist Toure joined the network as host of the “Hip-Hop Shop” TV show.

To see schedule click here

McNally Smith College of Music embraces Hip Hop November 5th, 2009

McNally Smith College of Music, located in St. Paul, Minnesota, added a three-semester program this year dedicated to hip-hop studies. The Diploma program is for prospective students who want to explore and develop in a cross-departmental curriculum that covers music, recording technology, language, music history, and music business.

While a supporter, College President Harry Chalmiers stated the move may worry some scholars. “There are people who might say, ‘If you have Hip Hop in a college, isn’t that almost a contradiction in terms?’” he told CNN.com.

However, seeing the potential of a music genre that includes different cultural aspects, Chalmiers continued, “When we look at Hip Hop closely, we see that we can study its impact on people’s lives, on society. Where does this music come from? When it’s angry, when it’s sometimes vicious, vile or rude, why is that? What are people trying to say? These are important questions to ask.”

Faculty member Kevin Washington compared the possible backlash of Hip Hop being taught in schools to that of another musical genre. “Jazz started like Hip Hop — out of the urban neighborhoods, black neighborhoods. There was a language, there was clothing, there was a style that everybody started copying. So when they started putting jazz in schools, there was controversy at first…I felt that we [are] in the same situation with that.”

Students who enroll in the Hip Hop program get hands-on technical training on recording and mixing music in a studio. They take part in a three-course history sequence that grounds hip-hop in its cultural origins and learn the fundamentals of language through creative writing and performance.

See footage from Hip Hop program here.

Examing Hip Hop Culture  November 10th, 2009

Tavis Smiley airs a special on Hip Hop issues featuring commentary by Talib Kweli, KRS-One, Common, Nelly, LL Cool J, Dr. Gail Wyatt, Erica Kennedy, Bakari Kitwana, Heavy D, and Master P.

Since hip-hop emerged from the South Bronx in the 1970s, it has become an international, multi-billion-dollar phenomenon. It has grown to encompass more than just rap music—hip-hop has created a culture that incorporates ethnicity, art, politics, fashion, technology and urban life.

While keeping much of its original fan base, hip-hop music and culture have become popular among mainstream consumers—particularly suburban youth. Some believe that as commercial and “gangsta” rap emerged, so did lyrics that glorify drugs, violence and misogyny. Many artists who choose, instead, to feature socially conscious and politically oriented lyrics are considered alternative or underground.

For full read click here