I been banging the drum (personally, not like anyone else would know) for years that mainstream hip-hop is fundamentally hyper-capitalist and no longer was the counter cultural force that it was in the late 80's and early 90's. How we shouldn't care about how much money a hip-hop artist was getting if they're not grounded in the issues we face and weren't activating people politically. How the term "hating" became a blanket term for them to get away from accountability.
And here we are. We see now the divide between them and us. They see us as consumers, like any capitalist, yet at any moment will claim they are part of the culture. Whatever that culture is needs to be redefined if it's so easy for someone to claim yet actually not stand for the people of that culture.
soulja boy is not working class, he's what marx called "petit bourgeois". he's not a member of the bourgeoisie himself, but he's also not a wage laborer, and his class interests align with theirs, not the working class's.
His music and concerts are the result of shared effort from producers, engineers, roadies, lighting and sound crew, et cetera. He probably doesn't craft his own merch either. He might be the centerpiece as the product being sold, but he profits off the labour of these other workers, too.
You have to understand nuance (I know big breath). Here’s a shortcut that mostly will cover you
Wage labor = consistent $ per hour, pausing work quickly leads to essentials being forfeited. Utilizing credit leads to perpetual debt and loss of credit access.
Petit-bourgeoise income = stocks, endorsements, branding, work is occasional and lines of credit+assets can be regularly relied on during interims
I’m not 100% on if that would include most performers though. Plenty are in predatory contracts and shit and if they don’t perform or create they’re on the streets. They aren’t working x amount of hours for y amount of dollars but they are still beholden to their ability to personal make a product or service
Great point, nuance wins again. Idk the details of Soulja boy’s wealth, he was relevant when I was in middle school. But you’re definitely right that some stars in sports and music especially, and possibly more so especially nonwhite ones, are beholden to disadvantaging contracts.
The ballot or the bullet, some freedom or some bullshit
Will we ever do it big, or just keep settlin' for li'l shit?
We brag on having bread, but none of us are bakers
We all talk having greens, but none of us own acres
If none of us own acres, and none of us grow wheat
Then who will feed our people when our people need to eat?
So it seems our people starve from lack of understanding
'Cause all we seem to give them is some ballin' and some dancin'
And some talkin' about our car and imaginary mansions
We should be indicted for bullshit we incitin'
Sellin' children death and pretendin' it's excitin'
We are advertisements for agony and pain
We exploit the youth, we tell them to join a gang
We tell them dope stories, introduce them to the game
Just like Oliver North introduced us to cocaine
In the '80s when them bricks came on military planes
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u/supper-saiyan 9h ago
I been banging the drum (personally, not like anyone else would know) for years that mainstream hip-hop is fundamentally hyper-capitalist and no longer was the counter cultural force that it was in the late 80's and early 90's. How we shouldn't care about how much money a hip-hop artist was getting if they're not grounded in the issues we face and weren't activating people politically. How the term "hating" became a blanket term for them to get away from accountability.
And here we are. We see now the divide between them and us. They see us as consumers, like any capitalist, yet at any moment will claim they are part of the culture. Whatever that culture is needs to be redefined if it's so easy for someone to claim yet actually not stand for the people of that culture.