How are the modern royalty (celebrities) possibly be polluting youth culture with self destruction, and what must be done to counter any toxicity?
What is the responsibility of celebrities, valued as high as royalty and regarded as role models by entire cultures, to lead with awareness of how their actions negatively affect oppressed groups of people?
Is their significance only based on popularity or is it also characterized by responsibility?
Misogynistic rap has grown to become the new Rock and Roll and is widely accepted in society, so are artists who contribute really doing anything wrong? Is it perhaps the responsibility of the people to shift their attention towards more educated thinking?
What we intake is what we become. Diet is not limited to what we eat, but rather extends to the type of media we engage in and the people we surround ourselves with.
Even the lyrical content of the music that we listen to alone and in our communities directly influences how we think, act, and feel; therefore, anyone in a position to have their art broadcasted to a wide stream audience has an obligation to be aware and cautious of the subliminal messaging of their lyrics.
Pointing fingers to blame rappers for contributing to negative stereotypes for women might not get far though, as how they behave is what they have surrounded themselves with and thus, is probably all they know.
Instead of degradation, this issue should be handled with positive reinforcement for the people out there who are making conscious efforts towards equality.
These artists must be sought out, as the youth will not just settle for wholesome rap. Their discographies must be rich and their songs must be just as good as the legends who raise the bar for rap music (even if their lyrics are toxic).
Jaden Smith not only sets the standard for popular modern music musically by exploring many genres and creating different “eras” through combinations of aesthetics and sounds as all the greats do, but is also setting the standard that highly famed people are expected to hold by intentionally providing lyrical content with healthy subliminal messaging.
Subliminal messaging could be cared for more by the population. The force affects people in such subtle ways that they might never think to consider it important; however, it is one of the easiest ways to better or worse our own minds.
Some may believe that the lyricism of rap music is not harmful because it allows young men to uplift themselves. This may be true, a huge factor in why so many young rappers so rigorously attempt to portray themselves as money driven, without care for women's emotions, and violent is probably because they have seen so many others find success that way.
The industry uplifts toxic music and creates an incentive to produce it. The popular themes in rap music might be considered helpful because they allow black men from the bottom to get to the top, but opportunities to flourish can not be justified if they rely on the degradation and exploitation of others.