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Old School Hip Hop with a Positive Message A friend of mine is putting together an educational grant proposal, and she's looking for lyrics to old school hip hop songs that have a positive (and educational would be good, too) message. Any suggestions? Not corny, but uplifting and/or positive. I've given her a few titles, but thought I'd post here for more. | |
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MC Lyte's "Cappucino" is anti-drugs. In the song she's in the wrong place at the wrong time (a drug sale). She gets shot and dies. She then raps about the people she encounters in the after life, people whose lives were destroyed by drugs. | |
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Ooh. Good one! Thanks Deb. Others...?
edit - you'd think "thanks" were an easy enough word to spell [Edited 2/6/05 14:47pm] | |
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Anything by Boogie Down Productions and KRS-One. [Edited 2/6/05 14:08pm] "I saw a woman with major Hammer pants on the subway a few weeks ago and totally thought of you." - sextonseven | |
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NWA "Fuck The Police" | |
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CinisterCee said: NWA "Fuck The Police"
Yeah, cuz I can see the foundations giving up the bank for a proposal that extols the virtues of that tune. | |
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RipHer2Shreds said: CinisterCee said: NWA "Fuck The Police"
Yeah, cuz I can see the foundations giving up the bank for a proposal that extols the virtues of that tune. OK, How about Roxanne Shante "Runaway" | |
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Come on, y'all. All the hip hop fans here, and this is it? Gimme more, please! | |
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How about lyrics from "Self-Destruction" or maybe "The Message". You might want to check out the Sugar Hill Gang or Grandmaster Flash, too. | |
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I don't know what the hell rap records to play in front of a financial committee!
Like, I think Public Enemy is hugely positive but they could be really offensive to other people. | |
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CinisterCee said: I don't know what the hell rap records to play in front of a financial committee!
Like, I think Public Enemy is hugely positive but they could be really offensive to other people. I wanted to say Public Enemy, too, but you're right, some people might get offended. | |
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Sorry, she's not playing them in front of a committee or anything like that. She's going to be quoting some lyrics in the proposal. If she were playing songs for them, that would be a different story entirely. | |
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RipHer2Shreds said: ...hip hop songs that have a positive (and educational would be good, too) message...
what about a bit of education on Black history? (I mentioned this song in another thread today, but anyway.. yes I knew all of those by heart.. and still do lyrics taken from http://www2c.airnet.ne.jp...s%20T.html (careful, you will mainly find just the lyrics to the edited version on the Internet) THE CROWN - Gary Bird & the GBE Experience (featuring Stevie Wonder) (1983) People of the world wherever you be Welcome to Cosmic YOUniversity Where life is the journey and love is the trip And the study of them will make you hip I'm professor of the rap and when I speak I guarantee that my lines will not be weak They say a mind is a terrible thing to waste That's why I'm here and on the case Rapping up every mind with a special degree In socio-psycholo G.B.E. The Gary Byrd Experience is my course When you take my class you will feel the force 'Cause I know the roots that the rap is from When I speak to you I am not dumb Hear my rap and begin to dance And I promise you this you will advance You may have seen the Raiders of the Lost Ark But you still left the theatre in the dark So clap your hands to the beat as the Wonder sound And the G.B.E. shine on the Crown Chorus (Background) You wear the Crown I wear the Crown So proud to say that we all wear the Crown, the Crown I said a once upon a time in Alkebu Lived the kings and queens who looked like you It was a land of sun with a golden shine A place that once was yours and mine Home of many great dynasties Who created science and astronomy Where the Romans came to study math And the Greeks found out about the path In case you wonder what else they did The Alkebu-lans created the pyramids And before Napoleon could even blink In Alkebu there stood a giant Sphinx Some say they came from outer space But they are a part of the human race If you know the place where they can be found You may be the one who can wear the Crown Chorus (Background) You wear the Crown I wear the Crown So proud to say that we all wear the Crown, the Crown I wear the Crown You wear the Crown So proud to say that we all wear the Crown, get down We wear the Crown (Crystal Blake) We wear the Crown (Stevie Wonder) Not the greatest dancer with the baddest shoe Not the slickest rapper that you ever knew Have worn the Crown though they wanted to But they'll want to until they die Not a man of science with a Ph.D. Not a lady of law Masters' Degree Will wear the Crown unless they can see A unique reality You see when you say you wear the Crown Make sure you know it is profound In case it sounds like a mystery I'm talking about our story It can make Akhnaton nod to you It can make Nefertiti beckon you With the Crown you will begin to glow When its secret you begin to know Next time you feel like you're in a rut Go see the mighty kingdom of King Tut It will blow your mind no doubt it's true 'Cause guess what King Tut looks just like you You were Cleopatra Queen of the Nile The sun would wink when it saw you smile You were the Hannibal of the history book And the earth would tremble at your very look You were the builders of the pyramids You were the face upon the Sphynx You rode on the Nile in grace and style Look at yourself today and think See the hieroglyphics upon the wall Like the dancers on the floor they will not fall If you take one look it will astound And then you will see who wears the Crown Chorus (Background) You wear the Crown I wear the Crown So proud to say that we all wear the Crown, the Crown I wear the Crown You wear the Crown So proud to say that we all wear the Crown, get down (repeat chorus 2 more times) Stevie Wonder- I do recall so very well When I was just a little boy I used to hurry home from school I used to always feel so blue Because there was no mention in the books we read about my heritage So therefore any information that I got was education Bums, hobos at depot stations I would listen with much patience Or to relatives who told the tales that they were told to pass ahead And then one day from someone old I heard a story never told Of all the kingdoms of my people And then how we fought for our freedom All about the many things we have unto the world contributed You wear the Crown We wear the Crown (Crystal Blake) We wear the Crown (Stevie Wonder) It's not Star Wars, it's not Superman It's not the story of the Ku Klux Klan The Crown will appear in the G.B.E. But it's never seen on your T.V. It's in black and white in your gold mine A picture so old it defies time Alex Haley drew it in his book It's what Kunta kept in his other foot Ghana Songhay and old Mali They are the roots of your own family tree Kingdoms so vast and knowledge wise They removed cataracts from human eyes And yet today some refuse to see And live in fear of their discovery Now in fourteen hundred and ninety-two Columbus sailed the ocean...true But years before in Alkebu A ship set sail with a chocolate crew 2,000 years before Columbo came The Olmecs paid tribute to their fame Stone heads with faces eight feet high That the Hulk could not lift to his thigh Though the facts historians avoid First to arrive was the Africoid It may shock the House and Shockley, too And if you're not prepared it may shock you While some had doubts that the world was round In America guess who wore the Crown Chorus (Background) You wear the Crown I wear the Crown So proud to say that we all wear the Crown, the Crown I wear the Crown You wear the Crown So proud to say that we all wear the Crown, get down When you wear the Crown you will not need To smoke, to coke, to dust or speed With the Crown you can become the high And you will make it if you try But don't you ever forget what it will take To wear the Crown you cannot fake If you gonna lead you got to be a king And give the world your everything Or be a man like Malcolm X And demand for all the very best Or conduct a railroad like Harriet We all owe her a lifetime debt If you gonna fight don't do it free Make 'em pay to see just like Ali Or sing like Ella and make them guess Is it you or is it Memorex If you play a sport become number one Like Joe Louis and Jackie Robinson Make Doctor "J" your shining star Shoot like Magic, dunk with Jabbar Or if you can write then write some books Like Langston Hughes or Our Miss Brooks And if you think you're smart Don't deceive us be an Imhotep, be a genuis And don't let anybody confuse the fact You don't wear the crown just because you're black Everybody in the world has a Crown and place That becomes their culture and their face And so it is, we will not deny Our history or buy the lie We have no claim to be renowned When we were first to wear the Crown Chorus (Background) You wear the Crown I wear the Crown So proud to say that we all wear the Crown, the Crown I wear the Crown You wear the Crown So proud to say that we all wear the Crown, get down (Repeat Chorus) Vanglorious... this is protected by the red, the black, and the green. With a key... sissy! | |
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RipHer2Shreds said: A friend of mine is putting together an educational grant proposal, and she's looking for lyrics to old school hip hop songs that have a positive (and educational would be good, too) message. Any suggestions? Not corny, but uplifting and/or positive. I've given her a few titles, but thought I'd post here for more.
"You Must Learn" -- BDP "You Don't Know Who You Are" -- The Jungle Brothers "The Message" "Fear of a Black Planet" -- Public Enemy Good night, sweet Prince | 7 June 1958 - 21 April 2016
Props will be withheld until the showing and proving has commenced. -- Aaron McGruder | |
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RipHer2Shreds said: Sorry, she's not playing them in front of a committee or anything like that. She's going to be quoting some lyrics in the proposal. If she were playing songs for them, that would be a different story entirely.
In what kind of educational grant proposal do you quote rap lyrics? "Dis research on cell cycle regulation is the shiznit, yo! Fo' shizzle. Cough up dat dough, bitches." [Edited 2/7/05 13:57pm] | |
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not perhaps old school but by an old school group
De La Soul's "Trying People" from their "Art Official Intelligence;Bionix" gives me goose bumps every time. | |
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Well it is not really old school but there is this rapper named Aceyalone. His album The Book of Human Language has some really great poetry. You might like the lyrics of his song The Energy. | |
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Roxanne Shante- Independent Woman....."about womens liberation"
Salt N'Pepa- Let's Talk About Sex...."About safe sex" Queen Latifah- The Evil That Men Do...."about the world we live in" Princess Ivori- The Crack Pipe...."about drug abuse" Antoinette- I Wanna Be Me...."about inspiration and achieving goals" M.C.Lyte- Cauppicino....."about drugs" Monie Love- Swiney Swiney...."about why you shouldn't eat pork" M.C.Trouble- Gotta Get A Grip...."about black people rising" Nikki D.- Daddy's Little Girl...."about teen pregnancy" Harmony- The Art Of War...."about black awarness" Ms.Melodie- Anti Ho...."about woman self respect" Ice Cream Tee- Can't Hold Back..."about self impowerment" Heather B.- Don't Hold Us Back..."about self motivation and impowerment" Yo-Yo- Sisterland...."about black women uniting" Precious- Protect Your Jewel...."about not giving it up" Isis- Rebel Soul (entire album)...."Vanglorious,protected by....." Queen Mother Rage- Vanglorious Law (entire album)..." with a key you sissies" Nikke!Nikole?- I Believe...."about achieving goals" [Edited 2/8/05 3:41am] I am not African. Africa is in me, but I cannot return.
I am not taína. Taíno is in me, but there is no way back. I am not european. Europe lives in me, but I have no home there. I am new. History made me. My first language was spanglish. And I am | |
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I'd give you suggestions but you listen to Joss Stone and probably wouldn't get it anyway | |
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Paid In Full- Erik B & Rakim “If I can shoot rabbits/then I can shoot fascists” | |
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How 'bout Grandmaster Flash's "White Lines."
Kane! Sugar! Kane! Sugar! Kane! Queen Latifah "Ladies First" [Edited 2/8/05 6:27am] | |
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De La Soul - Baby Phat | |
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EmeraldCity said: I'd give you suggestions but you listen to Joss Stone and probably wouldn't get it anyway
Yeah, well Emerald City is a terrible album by a wannabe. So there. | |
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BT, that's quite a list. Thank you, and thanks to everyone else! Lots of goodies. | |
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KRS-One "Plan Up Your Family" | |
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NWA "Express Yourself" | |
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RipHer2Shreds said: EmeraldCity said: I'd give you suggestions but you listen to Joss Stone and probably wouldn't get it anyway
Yeah, well Emerald City is a terrible album by a wannabe. So there. Oh hell no you didn't! If I took your quote and started a thread there would be a riot and I'd have to you down to indivually pluck out your pubic hairs so HUSH! | |
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EmeraldCity said: RipHer2Shreds said: Yeah, well Emerald City is a terrible album by a wannabe. So there. Oh hell no you didn't! If I took your quote and started a thread there would be a riot and I'd have to you down to indivually pluck out your pubic hairs so HUSH! I ain't scared of you. I'll say it again - it's a tuhrrrible album. | |
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Even though i don't agree with the message
De La Soul - Say No Go | |
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RipHer2Shreds said: EmeraldCity said: Oh hell no you didn't! If I took your quote and started a thread there would be a riot and I'd have to you down to indivually pluck out your pubic hairs so HUSH! I ain't scared of you. I'll say it again - it's a tuhrrrible album. Sunny Skies. Love Me Down Easy. Lips to Find You. You So Heavy. My bad you must be right. Teena Marie is a wannabe and Emerald City is terrible. And Joss Stone is a classic. | |
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