Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Can't Stop Won't Stop (189 - 299)

Summary: In Can't Stop Won't Stop, Chang gets deeper into the hip hop generation and most importantly how it began to change. Hip hop was extremely "hip" and cool in high school, but kids in school got older and looked at legends like they were old news. Kids were developing and looking for the next big thing. As Hip hops tombstone prepared itself, music industries and managers tried to get as much artists and music as they could out there for their own benefits. The Dj's also wanted more, they didn't want to just rock parties, they wanted to make a living out a Dj-ing. Industries started signing people and the people that wanted to keep it real like Flash, stayed far away from the deals. New Rappers were coming out from nowhere and were made famous in an instant; they did not have a reputation to protect, they couldn't lose anything that they didn't have, no one was expecting anything out of them, so there was really nothing to lose which made it easier on them. Records were now being made, which caused some controversy because many like DJ Eddie Cheeba thought that Hip Hop couldn't be put onto a record. He felt that it was a whole gig, and that 3 full hours of strictly music cannot be shortened to a 15 minute record, but it was.  These Records starting playing on the Radio and making sales, radio stations then started to shorten it even more to a 3 minute song like we have now. There was a crossover, from the "Hip Hop Scene" to Black Radio and then American Top 40. These records were selling and a lot of people in the industry were benefiting. Shows did not consist that much of Dj's, the Dj's participation was decreased and it would strictly be the record playing.  Hip Hop was another meaning, the game had changed and it seemed like if you weren't with "it" then you would simply be left behind.
At the time Hip Hop was in a way the only thing changing, the habits of revolutionaries, the separation, racism and the whole package had stayed the same, the only thing that changed was the time era. It all began in South Africa were the South African Apparatus of law had outnumbered Blacks which resulted in whites maintaining political and economic power over the Blacks. Although angered, many people around the world were inspired to "throw off the shackles of the white rule." These events were also shifted into America, particularly in the South. Children were going against the constant separation and wanted a change. They had their own war to fight now and wanted to change history; they wanted their voices to be heard and weren't going to stop until everyone started listening. Back in South Africa however, so many underground/undercover deals were being made to support the whites. They did everything they could to keep their power, which included arresting Nelson Mandela and taking strict actions to control the resistance that Blacks were performing. Fortunately, the youth didn't stop and thankfully their perseverance came with a positive outcome, after several years of fighting acts were passed like the Anti-Apartheid Act of 1986, which banned any new investment in South Africa, except for Black owned firms and ended arms sales and military aid. Mandela was released from prison and later became the first elected Black president of the country.

Quote: "I Stand Boldly in America without an army, with no guns, and i speak against the wickedness of the United States Government." (Chang 224)
2. " We don't have to waste time discussing whether racism exists. Racism is so pervasive it has corrupted religion, politics, education, science, economics, and every vital function of life. (Chang 224).

Reaction: These 2 quotes are deep because it is coming from a very brave man named Louis Farrakhan who fired up the imaginations of Black youths that were enraged and for those who needed to take part in what was going on. He stepped up to the United States government, basically called them out, with no back up, protection, or weapons. He stoop up to the people and let them know that enough was enough, he did not want any more violence and was the bigger person by just coming out and saying what was on his mind.
The second quote, i think is more aggressive, that he just wanted to get down the point, he was tired of hearing the pointless arguments of whether racism existed or not, and that in fact it was very apparent. And that this whole idea and actions of racism has affected many aspects of the country negatively and if it continued it would make things even worse. That racism was taking over everything and affecting every ones lives no matter what there color, race, or ethnicity was.

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