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Why the fall of Hip-Hop is a good thing (Buddhist Perspective Thread)
Hip-Hop started out incredibly. It was born of activism in the NYC area - most agree this occurred in the Bronx. I’m not racist; when people in your tribe are getting wiped out, fighting back is noble.
Growing up in the 90’s as a kid in NYC (in Harlem no less), I was at the Mecca of it all. As I grew into my teens, I soaked up all the beauty of verses from Nas, Tupac, Biggie, Eminem. Those guys were my favorites, but I also enjoyed the underground guys too...
The intense creativity, masculine edge, and frustration were a natural macro outgrowth of smart, talented people (especially ethnic guys) who were fed up with the manipulation of their race as a whole based on the bad behavior of (to be fair, MANY of) their brothers.
AOL Chat rooms and hip-hop forums exploded in the 90’s and early 2000’s with people all over the world participating in battles, freeform, and topical verses. Extremely creative and high IQ individuals were absolutely slaying verses on obscure websites...
Now, as much as I’m a fan of lyricism + wordplay, I have to say the hip-hop has overall been a net minus these past two decades. In the 90’s, (despite gangster rap’s effect on violent attacks) I’d say hip-hop was a net positive - it evoked masculine expression and channeled it.
Now, with crime rates way down...people are still talking about “trapping” and “shooting” - with far too much regularity for all of the verses to be rooted in truth. Basically, kids get together, take drugs, and spit verses about lives they’ve never led and never will lead.
Looking back at the Rodney King era, I can sort of see Tupac’s point about racism. Yet I can’t help but think - if Tupac were still alive, would he still be whining? Would he be an advocate for the toxic “Social Justice” which has been fomenting for decades??
It is good that rap has died out. Macro, if it stayed as prevalent today as it had been in the 90’s, many legendary rappers would be speaking out for social justice - in accordance with their fan base. Yet, supporting a movement based on fear & jealousy is a big no-no.
These days, I listen to lesser known guys like Marcus D, and various instrumentals from time to time; even writing some verses of my own down. Mostly, I try to avoid the mainstream though. There’s still the odd banger that comes out, but overall I can’t support it like I used to.
To sum: Hip-Hop involved some incredibly smart, insightful, talented people spreading powerful messages and telling stories over beats which stirred the soul with regularity. Now, it is more harmful than good - and should move indefinitely to the shadowy underground.
If there is ever a resurgence of hip-hop, I’d like to see something that points towards all the mass manipulation and indoctrination of the proletariat. Something which expresses the warrior ethos in a generative manner against those in power who are using us.
This is what the Social Justice people -think- they are doing, but really they’re doing the opposite. It is MUCH easier to control a destabilized and emotionally volatile public. Any psych 101 class will tell you this: (wo)man is more susceptible to influence when EMOTIONAL.
The renaissance of hip-hop should echo the good points of the golden age, w/ more focus on harnessing emotional control, stepping away from indoctrination, and moving from away consumerism. The focus should be the buddhist precepts of peace- mixed with a feral, focused savagery.
Hip-Hop should move closer to the ideal I have created in this free PDF below. Download it and navigate life as a savage Bodhisattva in the disintegrating age of the 2020’s... https://gumroad.com/l/BeastModeBuddhist
