WE HAVE THE TOOLS-WE JUST DON'T USE THEM

Last week I flirted with the idea of writing an article on the current state of hip hop in Philly. Once I got started I realized that I have been gone for so long that I didn’t have an accurate depiction of what the scene of hip hop in the area actually is anymore, so I decided to hold off on the story. What initially inspired the idea however, was the beef that we reported on between Oschino, formerly of State Property under Roc-A-Fella records, and Tommie Hill, formerly of RAM Squad. I found myself getting caught up in the war of words and even taking sides in the dispute.

Then a good friend of mine pointed out that by just looking at the situation in its entirety, maybe I would be able to get a pretty good idea of why Philly rappers don’t get the national attention and notoriety that maybe their talent should permit. Its kinda like that old cliche about the crabs in a barrel, but much more serious.  Hip hop/rap/music in general has the power to shape and influence thought patterns, habits, decisions. So many local and international rappers get caught up in making a name for themselves, or making their mark in this world of music by tearing somebody else down. Yeah, it sounds fly and all to hear somebody getting slammed on a track, especially when what they are saying is true, but what are we really accomplishing when we take interviews, write songs, do concerts where the focal point ends up being not about your music or ability, but about that fly sh*t that you said about that other cat.

I was surfing through the internet and came across this video of  Steve Harvey, yes the comedian/actor/radio personality/author (sheez, how many titles does this man have?) – well lets add three more very important ones. Father, husband, and mentor.  It speaks so much on where we are as a community and what is really needed. Now you might not agree on EVERYTHING that he says or even how he says it, but the overriding premise is that we have an responsibility of accountability. We can get so caught up in promoting our own agenda in life, or sometimes just getting through our daily routine, that we are not putting forth much effort to instill something of value into the young people that we encounter every  day. We complain about the way things are changing, and the young boyls out here are reckless and how the girls are almost, if not more, crazier than the boys. When we actually have the power to empower so many lives through what we say, what we do, what we write, what we sing and rap about and how we live.  We’d rather scream about who is a rat, (and trust me I personally have no love for rats after doing 6 1/2 years upstate behind one), or who is a homosexual, or who don’t got this kinda money or that kinda whip, that we are missing that the solution to our crime rate, our constant and consistent trips to the penitentiaries, our murder rate, our sexually transmitted disease numbers,  our pregnancy rate and our bitter hatred for anything positive lies in what we choose to allow to come out of our mouths once we have a platform.

Eventually, in the very near future, I will have something to say about the current state of hip hop in Philly, but for now just listen to what Steve Harvey has to say and reflect on what it is you can personally do as an artist, producer, parent, brother, uncle or friend to become a part of the solution. Stop being willfully blindfolded.