The deconstruction of gender and sexuality in hip hop has become a reoccurring theme among class discussions in the past couple of weeks. Women’s lack of representation within hip hop subculture and the struggles they face to not only obtain but maintain that representation reinforce the harsh realities of this suppressive male-dominated culture. Through the analyzation of this perpetuating issue, we can clearly see the disparities between men and women existing within the same space. In a male-dominated subculture such as this one, women must endure an endless amount of criticism to gain the credit they deserve. Their endless attempt to make room for themselves in hip hop comes with an array of difficulties, far more than their male counterparts. Receiving constant criticism from the male perspective is, unfortunately, the reality of surviving in the hip hop industry as a woman.
The idea that women must go above and beyond to prove themselves in hip hop is hard to fathom. I mean I understand it but I, of course, don’t agree with it and I can’t understand why so many fixate on the gender identity aspect. Personally I don’t think this should even be a deciding factor as to whether someone has the skills necessary to succeed. If anything, this factor is completely irrelevant. Men are considered to already have the so-called desired attributes expected from hip hop culture. The typical tough guy, aggressive and assertive. The overbearing alpha complex and toxic masculinity that we are so used to seeing. This persona carried out by the men in hip hop makes it harder for women to obtain space. Women are left with little to no room for self-expression and a chance to share their own stories.
In (Ph)feminists of the New School, Morgan discusses the differences between the type of criticism women receive compared to men in hip hop. She explains that the negative feedback that women often receive is typically accompanied by misogyny and or sexism when realistically it should be based solely on the actual skill that the individual possesses. (135).
One aspect of hip hop specifically relating to the genre is the emphasis placed on the title female artist, performer, musician, etc. The concept of gender is constantly applied to the title. This goes for all genres of music not only Hip Hop. I can’t reiterate this enough, female-fronted is NOT a genre. Rarely will you hear the term male-fronted because being male is considered the default in this case. The reality of the narrative, unfortunately, consists of women once again being judged based on their gender. While men in hip hop continuously profit off the objectification of women, women are still dealing with the long-lasting effects of oppression and degradation. It’s as if these actions are naturally condoned and even encouraged by the culture itself.
One point in particular that stuck out to me from the chapter “Performing Feminist Masculinity in a Postfeminist Era” from the book Graffiti Grrlz was the idea that whether or not women choose to come forward and vocalize their participation in hip hop does not mean they’re not present within that culture nor does it invalidate their work or efforts to participate. I liked this because many times a lack of representation provides a skewed perception of what’s actually occurring around us or in a particular culture. Essentially theres usually more going on than just what’s on the surface.
I think for women to remain persistent in an environment where they are constantly being evaluated by the male perspective that is so heavily valued just goes to show that women aren’t performing for others, but for themselves. I think that’s one of the biggest takeaways from these past few readings. The objective of their participation is not to gain acceptance from this male-dominated culture, but to create and maintain a space for women to perform while also protecting their right to engage in this subculture.
Overall, I’d just like to know if it’s truly possible to eradicate the gender gap that continues to plague hip hop culture. Will women ever be credited the same as their male counterparts? If we push the concept of gender identity to the side, can the skills that men and women possess be measured the same? I think as time progresses we will eventually see a bigger shift towards a more egalitarian society, one that demands equal representation for all and refuses to tolerate any bit of misogyny and or sexism that currently suppresses women’s ability to share the same space within any male-dominated culture, specifically within hip hop sub-culture. Until then I guess we’ll just have to keep on fighting!
