Diaz_AB Midterm

Danielle Diaz

Dr. Jessica Pabon

WOM 324-01

12 February 2018

Annotated Bibliography Midterm

Misogyny in Rap Music

Weitzer, Ronald, and Charis E. Kubrin. “Misogyny in Rap Music: A Content Analysis of Prevalence and Meanings .” Sage Publishing, Sage Journals, 19 Feb. 2009, journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1097184X08327696.

Misogyny in Rap Music: A Content Analysis of Prevalence and Meanings discusses how women are used as objects and degraded through various artists and their lyrics. This article contains various lyrics from artists such as Dr. Dre, Eminem, Snoop Dog, etc. along with why it is believed that they use misogynistic languages within their music and their music videos. Many artists say that they are shaming and degrading because they are just trying to make money from their music. It is also discussed that many times violence and abuse is justified in hip hop because, much like the tactic of shaming and degrading women, male artists do this in order to make a profit off their music. This article contains a table called “Misogynistic Themes” in which the percentages of Naming and Shaming, Sexual Objectification, Distrust of Women, Legitimating Violence, and Prostitution and Pimping are listed, more than of which are used 45% or more in rap music.

Women on the Hip Hop Throne

Johnson, George M. “2017 Reminded Us Women in Hip-Hop Deserve Their Spot on the Throne.” TheGrio, TheGrio. 31 Dec. 2017, thegrio.com/2017/12/31/2017-female-rappers-hip-hop/.

In this article, 2017 Reminded Us Women in Hip Hop Deserve Their Shot on the Throne, pays homage to the women taking the spotlight in hip hop today. Opening with how hip hop has been primarily male dominated, Johnson explains that it has been only recently that women are being given a platform to pave the way for future female hip hop artists. Women artists that have helped open up many opportunities for female hip hop artists are: Queen Latifah, Lil Kim, Missy Elliot, and Salt-N-Pepa. Through their contributions to hip hop, female artists such as: Nicki Minaj, Cardi B, Remy Ma, and so many more female hip hop artists have been able to contribute to the ever evolving style of hip hop and to share their lyrics and voices with the rest of the world.

Black Feminism and Third-Wave Women’s Rap

Chepp, V 2015, ‘Black Feminism and Third-Wave Women’s Rap: A Content Analysis, 1996–2003’, Popular Music & Society, vol. 38, no. 5, pp. 545-564. http://eds.a.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=2&sid=1215ba44-2cc9-4fcd-bbf4-dc8078efe239%40sessionmgr4010

Black Feminism and Third-Wave Women’s Rap: A Content Analysis discusses how black women’s contributions to hip hop since the late 1990s to now have opened the doors for many new female hip hop artists, black females in particular, and feminist hip artists as well to make their marks and share their voices. Chepp provides various tables with different statistics revolving around: Descriptive Characteristic of Artists in Sample; general information such as relationships with men and women, albums, number of songs, religion, drug/alcohol use, etc; Specific Themes around Gender and Sexual Politics. Many hip hop songs sung by black feminist hip hop artists promote women empowering women, self-love, advice for other women going through similar experiences, confidence etc, unlike their male counterparts in hip hop who tend to have misogynistic views of women in their music. The third-wave of black feminism has a main goal of bringing together the past, to fix non-inclusive white feminism , to build upon differences, and to finally build towards having healthy partnerships and relationships with black men within their community and job field.

Summary 

Throughout my three sources, women have been the main theme. In my first article, Misogyny in Rap Music: A Content Analysis of Prevalence and Meanings , it discusses the misogyny against women in rap music. From the various themes that are brought up to how these themes are used to gain money, popularity, or to portray a message. Many times in hip hop music, mainly in rap music, women are referred to as bitches and hoes, that they cannot be trusted, that they are gold diggers, having sex with women so a man can affirm their masculinity, deserve to be abused or raped, or anything of the sort. This is relevant in many songs such as “Gold Digger” by Kanye West; “Bitches Ain’t Shit” by Dr Dre with the famous versus “Bitches ain’t shit but hoes and tricks//Lick on these nuts and suck the dick// Get’s the fuck out after you’re done// And I hops in my ride to make a quick run”;  Mase’s song “I Need to Be” trying to get convince girls to have sex; Kill You by Eminem has explicit lyrics in which in which he verbally and sexually assaults a woman; and so many other songs in hip hop relating to every single one of these themes that were brought up throughout the article.

My second article, explains how many of our current day female hip hop artists have gotten their fame and rise to the hip hop throne. Nicki Minaj has been in the limelight for almost eight years since she had a well known verse in Kanye West’s song “Monster” begining with “Pull up in the monster, automobile gangsta//With a bad bitch that came from Sri Lanka//Yeah I’m in that Tonka, color of Willy Wonka//You could be the king but watch the queen conquer” then making their way all the way to the latest female headliner in hip hop, Cardi B who gained rapid attention after the release of her song “Bodak Yellow” with some lines such as “I be in and out them banks so much, I know they’re tired of me//Honestly, don’t give a fuck ’bout who ain’t fond of me//Dropped two mixtapes in six months, what bitch working as hard as me?”.

I believe that all of the articles I chose to use for this bibliography are extremely helpful and useful, especially in regard to using as sources for a Wikipedia Women’s Hip Hop page because of all the different aspects and themes that are targeted, discussed, analyzed, and further explained throughout all the readings. These articles offer different perspectives and insight to how misogyny, feminism, black women, black feminism, female hip hop artists etc have such a powerful impact on both the creator and consumer of the hip hop music and lyrics that are being put out into the world for all to hear. My last two articles focus on the women involved in hip hop and the marks they are making in the world of hip hop, expanding the horizons of the genre and testing its limits by providing a space for women to preach and speak the same as a man has done years before any women have.  Only thing is that for my second article, 2017 Reminded Us Women in Hip Hop Deserve Their Shot on the Throne, could have provided just a bit more background on the history women played and how female hip hop artists like Queen Latifah and Salt-N-Pepa and others played an important role for women and how their roles have impacted hip hop as we know it today.