All Hip Hop did was start reporting the news and the news just happened to be bad.”

There has been debate within the African-American community to figure out exactly what happened in the relations between Black men and Black women and why females are depicted and treated so negatively.

The finger of blame has been pointed directly at Hip Hop as the culprit of the images displayed on television and the lyrics rapped on records. This only feeds into the minds of the consumer and force feeds them into believing that this is how women are meant to be treated.

That is, however, only one side of the coin and only one perception being displayed.

Blame is placed on other outlets in order to relieve the strain from the image that are reflected in the mirror. Men didn't just start degrading women in Hip Hop, it started way before then and just happened to transition to it.

Releasing the book, Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man, Steve Harvey caught up with Rollingout.com to speak on how Black men haven't taken charge to mold the minds of the younger generation and make them realize the error of their ways.

“We forgot to teach the generation under us the business of just being cool. We messed around and let cool go out of style. Now they replaced cool with hard. Now ain't nobody cool no more, everybody wanna be hard now. Once you take cool out the business, cool affects a lot of stuff.”

The ripple effect has promoted negativity and as young Black men have continued to embrace this aspect, they believe that it's acceptable and bring it with them to rap and usher in a negative misconception of how women should be regarded.

“We are the only race of people, Black men, that degrade our women in our music. We are the only race of people, how did we manage to do that?”

Citing that being a gangster is locally accepted now, Harvey adds that men feel that emotions are irrelevant and only stand behind what makes them feel as though they are “hard."

“It has resulted in how we talk to our women. We don't talk to our women smooth no more cause we ain't cool no more. Now we talk to our women hard.”

No matter how much people look at the television and debate and say, ‘Look at the music, this is what kids feed into,' let's take a better look at the history that had pimps and gangsters. Every perception conceived is originated from real life situations.

“It ain't Hip Hop's fault, we caused all of this to happen. If we would get in the business and teach our young men the business of how to be men, we could stop some of this, but we steady pointing our finger at them saying, ‘Hip Hop did this and Hip Hop did that.'

So to end the debate, Hip Hop was not and is not the reason behind the “hatred of women” that exists in the African-American community and makes men treat them like trash. History and a lack of growth within men has created a rift where it is considered routine, which is utter ignorance. Older generations point at the youth, but why blame when you can teach? Why allow ignorance to continue and even engage in it instead of providing the younger generation a clear view of how things should be?

Hopefully, there will be a mass enlightenment, but that's very doubtful. In the end, the world will blame Black people as Black people blame each other. It is time to take charge and find a way to educate instead of continuing to let stupidity flood the culture.

Steve Harvey has a point, but the people that need to hear the message aren't listening. People have been complaining about the current state of hip hop for several years now, but the record companies haven't changed yet. They keep releasing the same old BS.
The only way hip hop will change is if the record companies can't make a profit/musicians refuse to make this kind of music anymore. The statistics show that the majority of the people that buy hip hop CDs are white. This leads me to believe that white America likes it when minorities make fools of themselves. I'm sure there are plenty of musicians that create positive, uplifting music, but the record companies are not interested. Unfortunately, there are plenty of musicians that are willing to be used as puppets, so this doesn't help our image in pop culture.

jeami said:

Ever watch Vh1?

No, other folks degrade women, too.

Steve has found his cash cow, and he's milking it for all he can.

I wonder if he gets hate mail from Terry McMillan for stealing her hustle.

jeami said:

Nail.Meet.Head.

Pre-NWA, record labels were afraid to touch "hard" rappers and when they slowly but surely invaded the scene,,,they adopted the "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" method, true to their form.

If artists collectively defied this bullshit,,,you better believe that record companies will jump on the bandwagon too.

As far as black folks making fools of themselves,,,,,coonery & buffoonery has ALWAYS been a big profit, its not a coincidence that Tyler Perry is the most prominent black filmmaker(and the ONLY black filmmaker with a steady work).

But I can't blame white folks alone, we share a BIG chunk of the blame as well,,,,,Its like Spike Lee said "When John Singelton made Boyz N' The Hood, the theaters were flooded but when he made Rosewood, nobody showed up".

A shit load of us will be ready to fight you if you talked shit about Tyler Perry but will nod if you talked the same way about Spike Lee instead.
[Edited 12/24/09 17:30pm]

ThreadBare said:

OUCH!!!!

babybugz said:

This is a common out for artists, but I only think it's partially true. Life influences art of course (art is made by people after all!), but art also influences life--especially something as popular as hip hop, movies, rock & roll, TV, etc.

It's too easy to give up all responsibility by saying you are "just a reporter" Hell, we know the actual news is guilty of spreading negativity & fear, too!

In this modern world that argument doesn't hold water, entertainment & media are just too influential.

Either way, artists are people and, therefore, responsible for their own actions and the consequences of them.
[Edited 12/24/09 17:53pm]

Harlepolis said:

I was trying to make that point to the bolded part. Women and minorities have a difficult time in the entertainment industry. Most of the puppet masters are money hungry whites and they don't treat minorities fairly because they don't see them as their equals. I'm sure that they probably accept crappy jobs just so they can pay their bills and get some kind of recognition. That's not to say that black folks are completely innocent. Beyonce can sing, but her image and her songs are not up to par because she chooses to do what she's doing now. Christina Aguilera went through that phase, but she has moved on. It's a shame Beyacky can't do the same.

I also hate it when a decent black project is a succes, but the puppet masters don't see it as an opportunity to make more positive things. Movies like The Color Purple, Roots, etc. were lucrative. You'd think that the movie industry would make more movies like that, but no. Maxwell's having a great comeback, but is that influencing the industry to find more talented, scandal-less people? Of course not.

It's been said before, but I'll type it once again. In order for things to improve, Black people need to own their own businesses. Unfortunately, most of us don't have the money or other resources that we need to start running thangs. Tyler Perry became successful without the help of Hollywood. He had enough money to fund his own projects and Hollywood knocked on the door because he's making money and they wanted a piece of the pie. I don't have a problem with him or Spike Lee. Black people are not all alike and we're not one-dimensional. We need all different types of people in the entertainment industry. Now if they could get some black female filmmakers/record company owners in the mix.....
[Edited 12/24/09 18:23pm]

Did Steve just say that Black Men were the only race of people that degrade women in Music Videos???







Yep, it's just us!!!

Paris9748430 said:

You have to question why someone would continually throw his ilk under the bus.

ThreadBare said:

Part of me thinks that Steve has no idea about these Rock Videos.

To me, it seems like he pretty much only keeps to old school R&B and Funk. The only reason why he even listens to hip-hop is because of his Radio Show and he has to keep current.

Misogyny isn't something that's a new phenomenon.

You would think he'd be smart enough to know that there were Congressional Hearings about the content in Rock Music 25 years ago.

These rappers aren't doing anything that Motley Crue wasn't doing in their videos.

While I don't agree with him about his generalization of black men and their sole stance of degrading women.

I DO think that nowadays, most mainstream black "entertainers" are comfortable with degrading women,,,,but ALSO, their record labels are as much to blame for glorifying that by promoting their products.

Where there's smoke, there's fire, people. We shouldn't discredit that just because it makes us "cringe".

And before you guys say "well white people do it too and blah blah blah".

Should we still give ourselves a pass for doing the same bullshit when we should do better?

We should stop blaming music for our problems and yes I'm not just talking about the black community.

Harlepolis said:

Hey, I think you know I'm not taking up the argument that "everyone else is doing it, so we can't be so bad."

I'm not. I agree with Harvey's comment that there has been a failure to impress upon younger folks how important it is to treat women (and men, people in general) with respect. But his hyperbole is also troubling.

I said a few days ago about Lady Gaga's criticism of hip-hop that it seems some people find highlighting dysfunction of a certain segment of society can benefit their careers and to expect more of the same. And, here he comes.

Yes, let's uplift but let's do it without exploiting the folks we claim we want to help.

He could say that there are many black men today who take degradation of black women to higher heights on the grand scale compared to other races, and it is notorious.

Art is reflecting life.

angel345 said:

What's your basis for comparison:

Anecdotal observations of rap videos?
Domestic violence statistics in predominantly black neighborhoods?
Outright violent attacks?

How does the degradation you speak of in America compare with women who suffer attacks where acid is thrown on them or who are burnt alive under suspicion of being witches?

I raise extreme examples to raise a point: The hyperbolic characterization of young black men as being especially misogynistic often entails an abandonment of realistic context.

I'm not defending misogyny. I'm not defending the objectification of black women in pop culture. I'm suggesting it's part of a global degradation of women, a global objectification, a global abandonment of respect for women.

The resistance of American society to see that speaks, to me, of its level of delusion. I'd wager American Apparel CEO Dov Charney just as much (if not more, given the scope of his influence and success) an agent of misogyny than the gangsta rapper du jour.

But that's too uncomfortable a concept for America to embrace.

Place the blame on those who perpetuate the cycle. Man writes a song degrading a woman >>> Woman hears the song and auditions to be in the video (She's doing it to reach her own goals) >>> Video makes the song more popular than ever (Especially on BET) >>> Man writes more songs degrading women because it sells and the women DID help him make it a success. So it can be all bad? Right?

ThreadBare said:

It's in your face. Accept it for what it is. If the shoe fits, wear it. If it don't, then it doesn't pertain to you, and this madness has got to stop.

angel345 said:

I agree with you.

ThreadBare said:

yeah, but it won't anytime soon


the big mugs profit too much from it
[Edited 12/24/09 20:28pm]

Since when is Steve Harvey, "black" Dr. Phil?

Of course black men have been degrading women before shit hop and so have white men also. But shit hop is full of degrading images more than ever before. And what's worse, it is THE dullest form of music EVER. It makes classical music sound full of rhythm and funky. I'm all for people blaming shit hop for anything that's wrong in the world. Hell, if you're unhappy that it's raining outside, blame shit hop for it. If people don't have the good taste to let it go out of style, then find other ways of killing it by any means necessary.

And Steve Harvey with his old fashioned country ass gets on my nerves anyway. I'll never forget he was telling one of his standup comedy jokes and referred to a gay person as sweet. I know it was a joke but that just irks the hell out of me. I'd rather be called a straight up fag than sweet because ain't a damn thing sweet about me. Sweet is weak and I'm a bitch. He reminds me of a jheri curl, gold tooth wearing motherfucker straight from the backwoods of Bolton, Mississippi.

sunsetdriver1999 said:

Who said he was? He has an opinion, and it seems to be a relatively valid one. He's a smart man. What...as if comedians can't talk seriously about culture or society? Come on now.

I can see where he is coming from to a point, but he can only speak from the vantage point of being an older black male observing the art of the younger generation. As posters here have illustrated, misogyny wears different faces in different eras musically speaking.

There is enough blame to go around: the single parent household, the media, social institutions, peers, and the community itself to name a few. These problems have simmered below the surface for generations and hip hop/rap provided the voice. The young black males that were at the forefront of the movement were to some degree affected by the factors mentioned before.

The industry itself is one in which some young black men can come up (become rich) without the need for a proper education, just what they know and how they say it. When you create/profit from an industry in which the gatekeepers (record companies) exploit the naivete/ignorance of their employees (rappers), you have what we have in the industry where the black female is denegrated instead of celebrated.

The attitudes these rappers may have should be explored at the root level. Instead of going after Black Men for misogyny, see what triggers that attitude. Can it be eliminated from entertainment? No, because sex sells, but misogynistic attitudes exist throughout all media on a surface and subconsious level.

Steve Harvey, Bill Cosby, C Delores Tucker and others are concerned and rightfully so because the attitudes manifested itself into the most popular art form of the Black community. This in itself paints the picture that as a community, we do not appreciate our mothers, sisters, wives, and daughters beyond being eye candy and that is a damn shame.

COMPUTERBLUE1984 said:

And just to reference Sunsetdriver1999's comment about Steve being a black Dr. Phil., and my rebuttal - let's not forget that Bill Cosby is, in fact, holds a Doctorate degree (in Education), and is quite smart when it comes to social issues, although he's had a few rants that have went a bit off the curve.

ThreadBare said:

Cater to women to get their $$$$?


Tell them that women are never to be blamed for misogny?


A good number of women love to tame a Misogynist.. They love it. They love being seen as sex objects by a man who is a Misogynist. A man who is known for chasing and gaining attractive women, can make a woman feel proud about her looks. It's vanity. They just want to be the "special one" to end his game. The Queen who tames the Tiger.. especially a rich tiger..(no pun intended-npi).

Being a Thug was not cool until they appeared on Videos and TV, and promoted by 2Pac..

Before the late 90's, "thugs" were drunk Irishmen fighting in pubs, and Europeans fighting after soccer games..

NWA promoted "ganstas". 2 Pac promoted Thugs or Thugz.


These women already know why they are single.


YHWH is Elohim and Yahoshua is King
[Edited 12/25/09 10:48am]