Leo Thom--- Social Commentary / Social Discourse

Today’s popular hip hop scene is typically dominated by hyper-masculine figures who berate the female sex to prove the gangster lifestyle their lyrics portray. Much of the time, the content within popular rap is anything but substantial or conscientious, with the usual references to one’s masculinity, sexual prowess, and wealth being somewhat ubiquitous of the top ten rap hits at any given time. Commercial and popular success are often directly correlated with how “real”, or authentic, a rapper is, with a misogynistic attitude being one of prerequisites for obtaining street credibility. The lack of respect for women in contemporary hip hop is alarming and a cause for concern, with women being viewed as either tools for sexual pleasure or annoyances that need to be dealt with.

However, highly influential rapper Tupac Shakur was one of the few artists who not only openly respected women, but also produced female-positive songs including “Dear Mama” and “Keep Ya Head Up” to much commercial and critical acclaim. Although Tupac did indeed live the gangster lifestyle depicted in his music, his street credibility, fan base, or record sales did not falter because of his female-positive messages. Arguably, because Tupac was considered authentic by his peers and listeners, his messages of female empowerment did not fall upon deaf ears.

Tupac’s social commentary through his song “Keep Ya Head Up” touches upon the hardships many women face in the ghetto community, namely sexual abuse and single-motherhood. The artist questioned the behavior he saw in the ghettos:

And since we all came from a woman / Got our name from a woman and our game from a woman / I wonder why we take from our women / Why we rape our women, do we hate our women?

Using his influence in the hip hop community, Tupac, an ever conscious artist of social dilemmas, was able to comment on the troubling issue of the degradation of the female image in the ghetto. Amid the plethora of artists that spout misogynistic, almost predictable lyrics, Tupac was one of the leading forces behind female-empowerment through hip hop.

Discussion Question Has there been any male rappers, as of late, taking up Tupac's cause for female empowerment through hip hop? Why do you think Tupac was so influential on the conscious level, yet able to maintain his "thug life" image?