Tahjay Louis
Professor Pabon
WOM324
Blog #2: De/Construction
23 September 2019
Some of my earliest memories of experiencing hip hop were the times where I’d be running “errands” with my dad. Sitting in the back of his maroon Nissan Maxima, feeling the vibration of the stereo pulse against my leg with the beat, as words and phrases I could not fully comprehend flooded the car with a lyrical deluge. It was intoxicating to me, growing up one of only a handful of students of color in a rural school district often lead to me holding on to any semblance of cultural identity I could with a vise grip.
“I don’t really listen to women rappers.” My dad said. “Not that they’re any bad, I’ve just never been able to relate to it.” He explained.
This was the answer to the question I asked sitting in those fuzzy, tan seats that day. I echoed that answer, despite not believing it, for many years to come, even long after coming out as a queer trans woman. From my perspective, hip hop was a vector to express emotions I associated with growing up presenting as male: power, pride, and rage. Therefore, to me Hip Hop was incredibly uninviting to women, let alone queer folk, in allowing them to express their identities. However, since then I have been exposed to both women and queer folk of color unapologetically expressing their individuality regardless of whether it contradicts the gender binary, challenging what is truly feminine and masculine.
One of my favorite artists to blur these lines is a Brooklyn based queer rapper named Cakes da Killa. Despite being a femininely presenting gay black man, Cakes da Killa music is often filled with aggressive and sexual language often associated with traditional rap, while still using language that reinforces their unique identity. Many examples of this can be found in the songs I will link below.
In summary, for as long as I can remember, I have always associated hip hop, and more specifically rap music, to be unashamedly hostile to women and queer folk, catering almost solely to the male fantasy. However, since being exposed to various Hip Hop artists both in and outside of class, I have learned that Hip Hop can be used as a tool for deconstructing the association between hip hop and toxic masculinity by allowing individuals to truly express their unique identity.
Keep it Coochie:
New Phone (Who Dis):
I Run This Club:
