the push and pull of hip-hop

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DOI: 10.1177/0002764205277427 2005; 48; 1482 American Behavioral Scientist

Erin Trapp The Push and Pull of Hip-Hop: A Social Movement Analysis

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The Push and Pull of Hip-Hop

A Social Movement Analysis

ERIN TRAPPUniversity of Colorado–Boulder

This article explores how hip-hop music—with its grim portrayals of urban reality and youthmanifestos—can be both the mirror and engine of a social movement, based on two divergenttheories, new social movement theory and political opportunity theory, as well as the work ofW. E. B. Du Bois. Contrasting the work of two prominent artists, the author examines the por-trayal of women in rap and finds that these artists attempt to “represent” and influence real-ity and that they comfortably carry the mantle of movement leaders.

Keywords: rap; hip-hop; social movements; Du Bois

Much scholarly effort has been devoted to hip-hop (also known as rap) musicin the past two decades as this art form has spread from the slums of the Bronx tothe West Coast, fueling record sales and fashion trends for youths everywhere inbetween. Almost as soon as it was born, hip-hop was assailed by parents and pol-iticians as an evil influence on impressionable youth. Critics dismissed rap as aflash in the pan, but undaunted millions propelled its stars to icon status andemulated their favorites. A great deal of scholarship now supports the view ofhip-hop as a social movement that harnessed the energy of disenfranchised, pri-marily African American, youth (Duncan, 1996; Gladney, 1995; Henderson,1996; Ogbar, 1999; Watkins, 1998). However, the importance of hip-hop is notyet fully explored. Music long has been used by social movements to disguisethreats: spirituals fueled African American protests from the era of slaverythrough the civil rights movement and pithy folk songs masked sharp antiwarmessages during the Vietnam conflict. Here, I explore the role of hip-hop as boththe engine and mirror of a social movement by examining the work of two exem-plary artists and by emphasizing, in particular, female hip-hop artistry, which isof utmost importance given the portrayal of women in rap.

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Author’s Note: Jason Boardman, Anne Costain, and Leslie Irvine provided invaluable advice onearlier versions of this article. Direct all correspondence to Erin Trapp, University of Colorado–Boulder, 483 UCB, Boulder, CO 80309-0483.

AMERICAN BEHAVIORAL SCIENTIST, Vol. 48 No. 11, July 2005 1482-1495DOI: 10.1177/0002764205277427© 2005 Sage Publications



THEORETICAL CONSIDERATIONS

I consider two competing social movement theories to understand hip-hop—new social movement theory and political opportunity theory—and draw on theseminal work of W. E. B. Du Bois (1903/2000). First, hip-hop can be under-stood—in the framework of new social movement theory—as a reflection of ashift in identity that already has occurred. Alberto Melucci (1996) popularizedthe notion that movements express ideas and transitions that already have hap-pened, and they engender action by uncovering contradictions between theexisting system(s) of power and changing identities. As characterized byMelucci,

Contemporary movements are prophets of the present. . . . They force power outinto the open and give it a shape and a face. They speak a language that seems to beentirely their own, but they say something that transcends their popularity andspeaks to us all. (p. 1)

From this perspective, movements are instruments of identity that push polit-ical systems and mainstream culture in the direction of a subgroup. In the con-text of hip-hop, music asserts the shifting identities of (largely) African Ameri-can youth into the larger culture that could not previously accommodate theideas and practices expressed in these identities. Henderson (1996) noted,“Black nationalism has structured hip-hop in the past and continues to do so . . .[it] developed from the collective ethos of the Black community that spawnedthis new genre” (p. 315). Thus, by surfacing an alternate and preexisting con-sciousness, hip-hop artists, as prophets of the present, give voice to changesbeing lived by other citizens.

Alternatively, hip-hop can be understood as a response to a specific, albeitcultural, threat of the sort described by Doug McAdam’s (1982) political oppor-tunity theory. McAdam outlined several factors in social movements—includ-ing the double-edged sword of threat and opportunity and the “cognitive libera-tion” that explains how disadvantaged actors rise above their subordinate placeto respond to threats by exploiting opportunities, using nontraditional means ofsocial protest to form a movement. Hip-hop artists, then, are leaders of a socialmovement who pull and shape identity in their community and foment action forsocial change. Watkins (1998) followed this line of reasoning, arguing that thethreat of neoconservative ideology faced by African Americans in the Reaganera, which blamed the poor for deteriorating values and poverty, led Black artiststo start a social movement through music, capitalizing on opportunities affordedby their position in the music industry. Thus, hip-hop artists adopt a critical—even hostile—stance toward the White-controlled state, government, and media,often seeking to delegitimize these institutions and draw attention to racialinjustice and social neglect.

Trapp / THE PUSH AND PULL OF HIP-HOP 1483



The rhetoric surrounding early hip-hop reflects these two very different por-trayals of hip-hop as a movement, encapsulating the dispute concerning whetherhip-hop is the cause (see Ogbar, 1999; Rose, 1991) or effect (see Henderson,1996) of social fractures. I find three concepts from Du Bois to be particularlypertinent when considering these divergent interpretations. First, in The Souls ofBlack Folk, Du Bois (1903/2000, p. xli) described a “veil”—a metaphysical bar-rier—that separates two distinct worlds—the Black world within and the Whiteworld without the veil. A second and related concept that Du Bois characterizedis double consciousness: “This sensation of always looking at one’s self throughthe eyes of the others, of measuring one’s soul by the tape of a world that lookson in amused contempt and pity” (p. 5). In social movement terms, double con-sciousness means that for African Americans, cognitive liberation—the knowl-edge of an unequal place in the social structure that must be overcome—pre-dates the civil rights movement. But Du Bois also spoke of the “exceptionalman” that pulls along his brethren; indeed, improving the situation of AfricanAmericans required the insight of exceptional men and women to give voice tothe double consciousness, pushing others to see the inferiority of their positionbehind the veil. Du Bois’s expansive work leaves room, then, for both the intu-itive view that musicians give voice to silenced segments of society (i.e., push)and the view that hip-hop artists are leaders whose voices are a clarion call toother African Americans that social injustice not only exists but also can befought (i.e., pull).

Double consciousness also instructs gender identity construction. Feministscholars have argued that identity is so unbounded and pluralistic as to bediverse within a single individual (Butler, 1990; Haraway, 1991). Furthermore,Harding (1998) argued that hierarchical gender relations force women to capi-talize on their different political standpoint because of their particular resourcesand experiences. Sandoval (2000) expanded the concept of differential socialmovements to African American women functioning within, yet separate from,dominant African American and White ideologies. These movements producethe means of transforming contemporary social conditions and creating spacefor oppressed consciousness. In this way, gender—like race—can be viewed asan alternate consciousness among a subordinated group that can be developedinto a source of strength for a movement.

In contemporary society, individuals possess multiple, fluid, and sometimescompeting identities based on race, ethnicity, sex, class, or numerous others.Thus, I apply the concept of the double consciousness of race to the AfricanAmerican hip-hop artists who can deliberately reject the system that subordi-nates their experience. Similarly, I acknowledge the meaningful differences inthe experience and perspective of female hip-hop artists. But it is not solely theexistence of multiple identities but rather, the manner in which they are shieldedfrom others by a veil that provides a subjugated group a unique perspective onthe dominant system and allows for a critique based on the veiled identity.

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But let us not mistake this social movement and its leaders for an attempt toerase distinctive identities, nor should that be misunderstood as the goal. DuBois (1903/2000, p. 10) himself had no wish to lose either consciousness, but herefused to see himself through the eyes of the other. Hip-hop seeks not to obviateAfrican American identity but, rather, to provide equal room for it as a distinctand legitimate identity within society. Thus, the music may be a continuous car-rier of oppositional Black consciousness. Alternately, it may be the spark forcollective action in response to threats perpetrated by the political and legal sys-tems. My intent is not to reduce hip-hop to the function of either an engine ofsocial change or a mirror of culture—most likely it can be both or neitherdepending on the context, as the work of Du Bois suggests.

DATA AND METHOD

Far more data than are currently available would be required to demonstratefully how hip-hop could be both an engine and mirror of social transformation.Facing such a situation, Clemens and Hughes (2002) suggested analyzing peri-odicals and ephemera of the era. In this case, I rely on the primary evidence thathip-hop leaves behind—the work of its key artists.

I first analyze the work of Queen Latifah, an early female rapper who exhib-ited the staying power of many male artists. Although others, particularly SisterSoulja, were more overtly political, I selected Latifah to examine how a com-mercially successful artist may undertake a role as commentator and leader. Ianalyze all of Latifah’s solo albums from 1989 to 1998, excluding songs fromfilms, which likely reflect themes in the film. I sought evidence of the two possi-ble directions addressed earlier: descriptions of existing social life and interpre-tive and instructive messages to reshape social reality. I also discovered twothemes that I did not anticipate: an internal debate in hip-hop about the portrayaland role of women in society and a response to gender-based criticism aboutLatifah’s hip-hop virtuosity.

I then contrast these themes in Latifah’s work with a prominent male artist ofthe time—Tupac Shakur. In addition to commercial success, Tupac enjoyedsome of the most intense adoration and hatred of any hip-hop artist and wasviewed as an outspoken social commentator. I present a limited analysis ofTupac’s work as an abbreviated comparison to Latifah’s gender-specific ideasand as a result, bring to the fore the message found in Latifah’s music. In addi-tion to songs, I analyze Latifah’s autobiography and a biography of TupacShakur so as to understand better the motivations and standpoints of each.

The work of two artists does not represent the totality of a dynamic and heter-ogeneous art form with several decades of history, nor does it capture howthe art is received and interpreted by different audiences.1 Nevertheless, Icharacterize the work of these exemplary artists first in terms of descriptive




social commentary—giving explicit voice to existing identities—and alterna-tively, as providing a vision of a different type of society in reaction to specificthreats. This analysis, then, begins to frame an ongoing discussion of how andwhy these artists can affect segments of society in multitudinous ways and inparticular, how these artists demonstrate the push and pull of hip-hop.

“EXCEPTIONAL” MEN AND WOMEN

Latifah and Tupac possess backgrounds that provide them with unique per-spectives on their communities because of firsthand knowledge of poverty andsignificant intellectual preparation for advocacy. Queen Latifah was raised by asingle mother in a public housing project (Latifah, 2000, p. 25). Despite eco-nomic privation and a barren inner-city setting, Latifah’s mother, a teacherworking three jobs, fostered a sense of empowerment in the face of “a dishonor-able mentality bred in the inner city” (Latifah, 2000, p. 25) and nurtured herdaughter with a sense of strong self-esteem buoyed by a positive female rolemodel.

Tupac Shakur possessed a similarly contradictory background. Tupac’s sin-gle mother was a leader in the revolutionary Black Panther movement and politi-cally active until crack addiction robbed her of her productive abilities (Dyson,2001). Tupac grew up in sometimes-desperate poverty while nurtured by a con-siderable intellectual community of his mother’s activist friends. He wasextremely well read and benefited from high-quality arts education in publicschools (Dyson, 2001). Like Latifah, Tupac experienced many different sides ofthe African American experience, and he was perhaps uniquely suited to reflecton the worst of the ravages of late 20th-century poverty and inequity.

Although Du Bois (1903/2000) did not outline specific characteristics ofexceptional leaders, I feel confident in portraying both Latifah and Tupac in thiscategory, as both experienced the worst effects of poverty and racism yet wereequipped with education and motivation to change the society they found.

LADIES FIRST

Queen Latifah’s (1989) debut album All Hail the Queen set the stage for hercareer, advocating self-esteem among African American women. Many songson the album—including “Dance for Me,” “Come Into My House,” “Latifah’sLaw,” “Wrath of My Madness,” and “The Pros”—explicitly claim the label ofhip-hop virtuoso. Lines such as those from Latifah’s “Wrath of My Mad-ness” (Owens & James, 1989, track 14)2—“I’m coolin’ teachin’ those needingschoolin’ / this mic, this mic in my hand, I’m rulin’”—simultaneously addressLatifah’s own proficiency as a freestyler and the criticism she faces as a womanin a field dominated by men. In her early work, such as “Ladies First” (Owens,




Johnson, Apache, & James, 1989, track 7), Latifah expressed a female stand-point: “Who said the ladies couldn’t make it, you must be blind / if you don’tbelieve, well here, listen to this rhyme / a female rapper with the message tosend.”

Also in “Ladies First” (Owens et al., 1989, track 7), Latifah defended herselfagainst negative characterizations of female rappers, daring the audience to lis-ten to her work and maintain that women are inferior, but her commentary is notlimited to an internal debate within hip-hop. She also consciously defied femi-nine stereotypes and noted in her biography, “I don’t act the way society dictatesthat a woman ‘should.’I’m defining what a woman is for myself” (Latifah, 2000,p. 126). She expressed similar sentiments in her music. In “Evil That Men Do”(Parker & Owens, 1989, track 10), Latifah depicted some of the most difficultsocial problems of the day: “A woman strives for a better life, but who the hellcares? / because she’s living on welfare.” Latifah has characterized her work as“message” music, and in this song, she directly addressed the phenomenon ofimpoverished women living on welfare with inadequate housing, describing asociety ambivalent to their plight. Latifah’s stance is defiant—“It’s a sucker whotells you you’re equal” (Parker & Owens, 1989, track 10)—and she ridiculed thenotion that women have equal opportunities to better themselves. Latifah hasreacted explicitly to inequality in society and the irony of public officials whoderide the poor but fail to provide solutions to rampant problems such as drugaddiction, instead choosing to criminalize it: “Someone’s living the good lifetax-free . . . the government can’t come up with a decent housing plan / So she’sin no man’s land” (Parker & Owens, 1989, track 10).

Latifah’s work is more than mere commentary. Although she initially describeda threat to African American women from an unequal system, she instructed lis-teners about a new way to react to problems they see—comparing a consump-tive culture with help for the homeless and daring the listener to understand theirony of want in the midst of waste. Finally, she has taken on hypocrisy withinthe Black community. In “Evil That Men Do” (Parker & Owens, 1989, track 10),Latifah rapped, “Black-on-Black crime only shackles and binds / you to a doom,a fate worse than death,” arguing that crimes among Blacks hurt the entire com-munity as much as external attacks. But her ultimate message in this song is notone of despair but hope, and Latifah called for a change in attitudes and behavior:“Stop putting your conscience on cease / and bring about some type of peace /not only in your heart, but also in your mind / it will benefit all mankind.”

Thus, in her first album, Queen Latifah (1989) surpassed mere description,identifying threats from within and without, discussing inequity and hypocrisyin the system, and proposing positive change. In her autobiography, Latifah(2000) discussed her role as advocate, describing rap as a common language ofyouth: “It wasn’t even just communication. It was an expression, a culture, anattitude. . . . The consciousness movement was emerging. It was not just simplerhymes over the most popular songs” (p. 48). Latifah, who considered a career inlaw, noted that “hip hop showed me another way to communicate, another way




to reach people, another way to state my case” (p. 58). Thus, from her ownwords, a picture of an artist intent on not only entertaining or portraying a realitybut also informing and shaping society emerges.

Furthermore, Latifah has expressed specific intent in crafting a message ofsocial uplift. In addition to rejecting misogynistic language, she has rejected“gangsta” culture. Latifah (2000) acknowledged the role of hip-hop in shapingsuch culture, noting, “I don’t want any business glorifying the fast lifestyle that alot of rappers promote when they talk about smoking blunts, drinking forty-ounce beers, and getting fucked up. My music is too powerful to put drugs intothe mix” (p. 122). Latifah has acknowledged the realities of poverty, with whichshe is intimately familiar, and the seductive power of drugs and crime, but shebelieves that “All I can do is put a message in my music about what it means tofeel good. . . . That’s why I have chosen to make my music about beinggrounded, about treating yourself as royalty” (p. 122).

Latifah’s (1991) album Nature of a Sista’ continues her role as women’sadvocate. In “Nuff of the Ruff Stuff” (Owens, 1991d, track 2), Latifah acknowl-edged and accepted this role of “feminine teacher” and noted, “Love my cultureand show appreciation / you’re looking for the Black influ? / I do want to give itto you.” In “Latifah’s Had It Up 2 Here” (Owens, 1991b, track 1), Latifah againreacted to her detractors, but again with a positive message, noting “Mama Zulu[Latifah’s nickname] stands for positivity and grace”; yet she acknowledgedattacks from “commercial entertainers” but distained their words: “Talk is cheapand if talk got any cheaper / they’d be sellin’ Nike tongues instead of sneakers.”Latifah is clearly situated within hip-hop and engaged in an internal debate thatincludes polarizations between commercial and message music. So althoughthe debate is internal to the movement, inasmuch as the movement addresses thelarger society, internal debates have relevance beyond hip-hop. In criticizingcommercial entertainment and the pervasiveness of must-have name brands,Latifah criticized not only rappers of this genre but also the society that valorizessneakers but fails to address pressing social problems.

Throughout her album, Latifah (1991) explicitly claimed hip-hop virtuositywhile weaving social critique into every song. In “Love Again” (Owens, 1991c,track 5), Latifah expressed despair that “we’re living in an age / where peopledon’t care about their fellow man,” and she asked, “Why is it so hard to be sistersand brothers?” Again, Latifah has addressed external threats but also namedinternal divisions along gender lines that highlight the lack of cohesiveness inaddressing social problems. She has advocated attitudinal and behavioralchange: “The things that you good do in life will always come on back to you it’strue / you can do the right thing now and it will be alright I know somehow”(Owens, 1991c, track 5). Although the solution Latifah proposed—learning tolove again—is more ambiguous than those of many typical social movementleaders, her words echo the eloquent attempts of Dr. Martin Luther King andmany others to change the hearts and minds of citizens.




Latifah has taken particular aim at the pervasive misogynistic language inmany rap songs. In “Fly Girl” (Owens, 1991a, track 7), Latifah addressed thestereotype of sexual promiscuity—putting herself forth as a positive role model,addressing and rejecting the typical advances of a fictional male suitor—“Treatme like a lady / and, no, my name ain’t yo and I ain’t your baby.” Latifah, further-more, addressed the dangers of promiscuity in “That’s the Way We Fly”(Owens, 1991e, track 10), attempting to bolster women who resist stereo-types—“And I say peace to all the girls who tryin’not to be hos”—and acknowl-edging both the tremendous pressure and danger involved in sexual promiscuity.Resistance in the face of sexual stereotyping is a recurring theme in Latifah’swork. Perhaps the pinnacle of her work is the song “U.N.I.T.Y.” (Owens & Sam-ple, 1993, track 12) from the album Black Reign (Latifah, 1993), for which shewon a Grammy Award. The song directly attacks the use of bitch and ho toderide African American women. In her autobiography, Latifah (2000) describedher motivation to respond to the portrayal of women by both male and femaleartists:

But I decided to address the ladies first. We have the power to set the men straight.If you don’t feel like a bitch, no one can call you that and make it stick. I realized itwas more important to start building women up and making them look insidethemselves than to bash the fellas. (p. 4)

This passage provides clear evidence for Latifah as movement leader. She reactsto specific cultural threats—misogyny in rap or abuse—and suggests a rem-edy—action, rather than shame, and positive self-esteem.

Throughout her first three albums, several themes recur in Latifah’s work.She has trumpeted her own virtuosity, presumably in response to critics. At thesame time, she has claimed the label of female role model and addressed specificmisogynistic threats from within hip-hop and the larger culture. Latifah’s (1998)album Order in the Court often is seen as a departure for her. Latifah (2000) her-self called the album “edgier” than prior work that was “starting to feel too safe”(p. 124). And although her words on the album are somewhat more militant, top-ically, Latifah remained true to her message, defending her stature as a preemi-nent rapper and role model.

I believe repeated questioning of Latifah’s sexual orientation (which fueledthe song “Get Off Mine”), along with the cover art portraying Latifah in midroarwith hair ablaze, fueled the portrayal of Order in the Court (Latifah, 1998) as adeparture; yet her message and style are true to previous albums. If there is a sig-nificant change in this album, released after several years of absence fromrecording, it is Latifah’s impatience with the continued criticism of her work. In“Paper” and “Bananas”—during which Latifah roared “I’m tellin’ you straightup / all sleepin’beauties better wake up / I’ll tear your state up / so set the date up”(Owens, Siskind, Peaks, & Crapps, 1998, track 1)—she has expressed fatigue atthe constant criticism. Here, the queen persona—Latifah’s metaphor for a




strong woman—is under continued attack, and Latifah reacted to her inability tochange her own image.

Although it would be difficult, if not impossible, to attribute the change inLatifah’s demeanor to events in the larger society, it is possible to say that eventsof the era chart a temporal terrain of continued subjugation of African Americanwomen. The sex-specific debates in hip-hop and Latifah’s own progressionpoint to a similar pattern, one born of defiance, but a defiance that is weatheredby years of struggle. Latifah’s early work pushes a message and continually standsup to critics and societal forces denigrating Black women. Latifah’s (1998) lateralbum carries these themes, but it also portrays impatience and fatigue. After adecade and a half characterized by rioting in the streets, subjugation of AfricanAmerican women at the hands of men (as in the Anita Hill/Clarence Thomashearings), and a continual failure of political leaders to address pressing socialproblems, Latifah’s fatigue almost undoubtedly represents a similar sentimentamong thousands of voiceless other women.

Thus, Latifah’s work expresses both fuel for social change and its residue.She can be judged by her songs and her words to be an exceptional leader com-mitted to fomenting social change by prodding her community to change behav-iors and address pressing problems and by encouraging African Americanwomen to develop high self-esteem. Yet she also is a mirror of the heartache anddisillusionment of unfulfilled promises and in this sense, very much a woman ofher era.

GHETTO ELVIS

Like Latifah, Tupac Shakur’s music is at times overtly political. But unlikeLatifah, Tupac was an active participant in a gangsta rap—a subgenre that tomany critics personified the breakdown in values that created cultural poverty inthe 1990s. According to Kephra Burns, hip-hop music shapes a worldwide neg-ative impression of African Americans, and it undermines efforts to combatnegative stereotypes (Dyson, 2001). Burns wrote, “Despite years of striving todistance ourselves from the negative ways in which white folk once portrayedus, we have come at last to the point of portraying ourselves to the world in thisway” (as quoted in Dyson, 2001, p. 111). Artists such as Tupac answered suchcritics, claiming that their music did not create but rather, described the desper-ate conditions of urban poverty. The motto Keepin’ It Real expressed the“authentic” hip-hop experience of artists such as Tupac who said, “I’m just try-ing to speak about things that affect me and about things that affect our commu-nity. . . . Sometimes I’m the watcher, and sometimes I’m the participant, andsometimes it’s just allegories or fables that have an underlying theme” (Dyson,2001, p. 111).

Although artists such as Tupac intended to portray reality, their community isfar from homogeneous, and much of the description in hip-hop is antithetical to




many African Americans—particularly those older than age 40—who believethat “giants of black faith have in their latter years been replaced by young menwhose talent has lifted them to a height whereby they gained the ear of Americaprematurely, having more talent than statement” (Dyson, 2001, p. 124). Andyet, artists such as Tupac arguably had the same impact on their communities asmany acknowledged leaders. Dyson (2000) compared Tupac with Dr. King notas moral equivalents but as defining figures. Although the comparison enragessome, it is difficult for critics to deny the impact of hip-hop when in fact it is thepervasive proliferation of rap that fuels such criticisms.

Tupac often used bitch and ho to describe Black women and exhibited trou-bling sexism in many of his songs. Yet he and his work expressed conflictingthoughts on gender. In an interview, Tupac decried the success of “bad boys,”arguing that his approach of respecting women and “telling girls not to let themcall you these names” will eventually catch on if he keeps saying it (Dyson,2001, p. 176). In “Keep Ya Head Up,” on the album Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z,Tupac (Shakur, Anderson, & Troutman, 1993, track 11) acknowledged andpraised “my sisters on welfare” while condemning the men that abandonedthem. He advised abused women that “when he tells you ain’t nuttin’ don’tbelieve him / and if he can’t learn to love you should leave him / ’cause sista’youdon’t need him.” Despite Tupac’s rampant descriptions of sexual conquests,acknowledgements of single mothers are common in his work. In “Cradle 2 theGrave,” on the Thug Life album, Tupac (Shakur, Harding, Himes, Burns, Rivers,& Gass, 1994, track 9) sang of “Mama always workin’ tryin’ to make endsmeet,” leaving her children to be raised on the street. He addressed some of theworst abuses of women directly—including paternal abandonment, rape, andmisogyny. Here, Tupac acknowledged the important role of women, particu-larly single mothers, in the lives of African American men; but rather than sim-ply describing, he lamented their poor treatment and suggested a different path:“I think it’s time to kill for our women / time to heal our women, be real to ourwomen” (Shakur et al., 1994, track 9). Tupac went on to describe the possibleconsequences of inaction and invoked a powerful image of a “real man” as a dareto those who would mistreat women. He maintained a militant stance of oppos-ing wrongs with strength but turned his ire back on his own community, and herepresented a clear instance of an artist attempting to pull society in a particulardirection rather than merely advocating for the acceptance of a particular reality.

But Tupac’s social commentary extended far beyond hip-hop. In the musicvideo, 2 of America’s Most Wanted, Tupac, with Snoop Dogg, portrayed gang-sters from classic mob movies and commented, “We wanted to put the mirror upto show you where we got these gangster ideas” (Dyson, 2001, p. 127). Thus, heagain described a segment of society that is not a deviation of the larger societybut rather, a product of its excesses. Still, Tupac’s work is indelibly linked toThug Life (Shakur, Syke, Macadoshis, Mopreme, & The Rated R, 1994), analbum rife with obscenity, describing “dope fiends,” “bitches,” and “hos,” alongwith murders, substance abuse, and crime in unrelenting detail. Most of the




work is descriptive, not portrayed with a message of uplift but edgy, in-your-face “representing.”

Perhaps the most poignant theme of Tupac’s music, in light of his violentdeath at age 25, is his obsession with death, no doubt reflective of the tremen-dously high rate of mortality among young African American men in the era(Anderson, 1999). In “How Long Will They Mourn Me,” Tupac (Shakur,Himes, Burns, Rivers, & Gass, 1994, track 6) sang, “It’s hard to be optimistic /when your homies lyin’ dead on the pavement twisted.” A key difference fromLatifah is that despair populates Tupac’s music from the start, and his responseis militancy in the face of a racist system rather than the moderate culturalchange Latifah advocates. Tupac (Shakur & Ervin, 1993, track 6) specificallycited the Rodney King riots as a justification for killing police in “Soulja’sRevenge,” and the pervasive theme in his work is the relentlessly negative anddestructive reality of the street.

Tupac, whose premature death granted him iconic status, continues to sur-vive through his work, which frequently is sampled by other artists. His legacy isa “fairly unsubtle critique of a society that produces the need for the thug per-sona Tupac grew into during his twenty-five years” (Dyson, 2001, p. 263). As amovement leader, Tupac comfortably occupies the place described by Melucci(1996) as prophet of the present. Like Latifah, however, Tupac defies simpledescription, at times annotating description with social instruction for changeswithin the community. There can be little doubt that although Tupac provided amirror on the urban reality of his time—including misogynistic views ofwomen—he also stepped out of that role to orchestrate changes in the reality herepresented to the world, at times advocating more respectful treatment ofwomen.

CONCLUSION

This consideration of two important hip-hop artists underscores how move-ment leadership helps explain the roots of action. If hip-hop exists to reflectidentity—to push forward an existing agenda—then artists merely are conduitsfor the ideas of others. If, however, the hip-hop artist creates and activates move-ment consciousness, then she or he is more appropriately viewed as a movementleader. One principle of general agreement in social movement theory is thatinnovative leadership is important to the success of movements and that leaderscan create new and culturally resonant frames that inspire action in a previouslyinactive population (McAdam, 1982). Perhaps the most widely accepted exam-ple of a movement leader of tremendous importance is Dr. King, who drew onreligious symbols to frame the civil rights movement in terms of equality. Soalthough Dr. King’s value as a leader is not in doubt, the components oftransformative leadership are less well understood. Du Bois (1903/2000) notedthe importance of the leader that is very much grounded in a community yet who




may take many different forms. Although Dr. King was a leader in a traditionalsense, the possibility of different forms and modes of leadership makes possiblehip-hop artists as movement leaders, particularly a woman such as Latifah whouses self-esteem as a lever for change. Although many hip-hop artists haveembraced the lexicon that relegates Black women to “Other,” Latifah hasemployed forms of resistance to counteract the negative portrayal of women inhip-hop and recommended another course.

To understand the impact of hip-hop, we must view it not as monolithic but asone of the most diverse contemporary cultural expressions that possesses some-thing of a “triple consciousness” in terms of race and gender. As a diverse form,it seems inevitable that female artists would respond to the misogyny within hip-hop and society at large with a new strain of commentary. Although Dr. Kingwas known for nonviolence, Latifah’s legacy may be an inner transformationthat is violent only in militantly rejecting misogyny and subjugation of AfricanAmerican women and insistent in its construction of positive identities. In lightof such diversity and triple consciousness, Tupac is not an anarchic threat toAmerican values but instead, a leader who pushes society to understand andconfront the realities behind the veil of the urban African American experience.

The role of hip-hop in reflecting and shaping culture is not easily character-ized. Du Bois (1903/2000, p. 203) recognized both the velocity and stagnancy ofidentity 100 years ago, writing that double—or in this case multiple—lives“must give rise to double words and double ideals, and tempt the mind to pre-tence or revolt, to hypocrisy or radicalism” (p. 203). Hip-hop exploded out of anera of desperate poverty and savage racial inequality, and extricating cause fromeffect is problematic at best. No doubt, hip-hop has both shaped and been shapedby culture, perhaps in a cyclic fashion. This examination of how hip-hopresponded to and shaped African American identity provides evidence for bothperspectives.

Exceptional figures such as Latifah and Tupac leave a mark on society, andtheir work clearly is shaped by their own cultural seatedness. Queen Latifah, aproduct of an impoverished home rich in character, set out to criticize the worstravages of poverty and self-hatred she observed in her community. Her vehiclewas not political office or the bar but instead, a form of music arising from hercommunity, from which she stood apart. She self-consciously has conveyedmessages in her work and at times, expressed identities and experiences thathelp advance this consciousness into the mainstream. Likewise a product ofboth privation and wealth, Tupac was an artist of his time and community whosometimes struggled against its misogyny and hatred but ultimately brought thereality of the harsh conditions of life to an awestruck world. Both of these artistsrepresent the complex and diverse influences of hip-hop, and both deserve aplace in the realm of social movement scholarship.

The analyses in this article provide fertile ground for future research, whichcould explore the symbiotic role of cultures and movements and discuss therecursive manner in which identity and culture interact. The field of social




movement scholarship is rich and complex, and examining cultural move-ments—such as hip-hop—and their respective leaders should both clarify andadd complexity to the phenomena it seeks to understand.

NOTES

1. Although the presence of White rappers and fans is a worthy point of consideration, asWimsatt, West, and Ignatiev (1997) pointed out, appreciation does not by itself challenge Whitesuperiority. Space limitations prevent a full discussion here.

2. Queen Latifah uses her given name, Dana Owens, in writer credits.

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ERIN M. TRAPP is a doctoral student and research associate at the Institute of BehaviorSciences at the University of Colorado–Boulder. Her current research focuses on youthsocial and cultural movements and child and adolescent human capital in developingcountries.




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