The experiment started in a lab known as New York City some 30 years ago. A handful of first and second generation Americans of Caribbean ancestry began laying down beats, blending sounds and catalyzing a reaction between rhythm and rhyme.
The effects were explosive. Hip hop blew up.
In the days since DJ Hollywood and Grandmaster Flash, hip hop has permeated every layer of American society, helping to define our nation’s cultural identity through art, dance and music while also delivering political and economic messages. Revenues from the multi-faceted hip hop industry are estimated at $10 billion per year, according to a Feb. 11, 2004 CBS News report. Georgetown student John Vaccaro (CAS ‘05) was shocked to learn that the dividends from record sales come largely from the pockets of white suburban teenagers: 70 to 80 percent of hip hop records sold annually are purchased by white consumers. That discovery got him thinking.
“I went to [sociology] Professor [William] Daddio with the idea of studying hip hop,” he said. “I explained to him how I had worked at a major record label (Virgin Records) the summer before, and had seen firsthand how every major label was trying to make hip hop its linchpin.”
Vaccaro proposed a private tutorial based on the notion that because hip hop’s appeal spans economic, cultural and social boundaries, it has become a springboard for the discussion of many significant issues. Vaccaro and fellow student Eric Burns (CAS ‘05) explained to Daddio that they believed in the potential of hip hop to spark social and political change, and Daddio was sold on the idea of creating a class focusing on this argument.
“I have been fascinated with music as a change agent and as a symbol of the current social condition,” Daddio said. “I was also impressed how John and Eric developed such a good research plan. So I said great idea, let’s do it.”
Aleksandra Trpkovska (CAS ‘06) heard Vaccaro and Burns discussing their tutorial and was taken with their study. Trpkovska’s fellowship with “Young People For,” a division of the People for the American Way Foundation, helped to put her into contact with men and women who use and represent hip hop in their work. As a member of Georgetown’s Lecture Fund, Trpkovska organized “Hip Hop Generation: Hip Hop’s Role in Society Today and in the Future,” held Tuesday afternoon in the ICC Auditorium. The event featured Citizen Change executive director Alexis McGill, poet and activist Toni Blackman, Def Jam artist and repertoire director Shalik Berry and MC TrueBless who discussed the very subject matter of the tutorial that Vaccaro and Burns created.
McGill spoke of the power of hip hop at a political level.
“Seeing hip hop as a way to bridge the gap could redefine the look of politics in this country,” she said, citing Sean “Puffy” Combs’ “Vote or Die” campaign. The campaign, publicized by MTV during last fall’s presidential election, utilized the influential nature of hip hop to encourage young Americans to vote.
“Hip hop is powerful” was the message that echoed throughout the presentation. Blackman also delivered her first remarks with a command illustrative of that theme.
“I am an invisible woman,” she bellowed, performing lines from one of her poems with varied vocal inflections and sweeping arm motions. “I may not be seen, but I’ll be damned if I won’t be heard!”
The California native and Howard University graduate became the U.S. Department of State’s first-ever Hip Hop Ambassador in 1999, and has traveled throughout Africa teaching free-styling workshops and learning how hip hop influences other cultures. She rapped her closing words with the help of fellow panelist TrueBless, from whom she spontaneously requested a “beatbox”-a form of vocal percussion. The audience exploded with applause after a one-to-two minute performance that sounded rehearsed but, true to free-style form, was simply spur-of-the-moment.
Georgetown students were excited to take part in a dialogue on hip hop in an academic setting. “Hip hop is never discussed on campus,” said Ian Thomas (MSB ‘05), a hip hop fan and drummer for the Georgetown-based funk band Mordecai, which will play at Hoya Blue’s Saxapalooza Concert this Friday. “It’s nice to be able to talk about [hip hop] in depth.”
Vaccaro and Burns will use footage from Tuesday’s event as part of their final project. The two students have been conducting interviews throughout the semester with different representatives of the hip hop industry, including authors and record company executives. Their final assignment will be a documentary chronicling their studies.
“I can’t thank Professor Daddio enough for giving Eric and me this opportunity,” Vaccaro said.
