Islamic Rap Helps make the Hip Hop Press
One isn’t sure where it comes from, but as all true hip-hop fans know, there’s something about
Islam that naturally speaks to rap music and hip-hop. Somehow, the
hip-hop creed of personal strength, self-respect, and opposing the
whole world regardless of how outnumbered of you are, finds
great strength in the established principles of Islam that he stand
for the same kind of personal strength. It may be unnerving to
some, but the latest hip hop press is full of new artists, most of
whom came of age after the September 11 attacks, rebelliously
Standing up for what they believe in, in a refreshingly stylistic
and vociferously unapologetic manner often promoting
American Islam, promoting in the best traditions of the hip-hop
art, the feelings of everyday life that an American Arab or other
American Muslim faces. Islamic hip-hop raps about personal growth,
spiritual commitment, and social change.
Hamza is one such popular Islamic rapper, who made the hip hop
reports recently for starring in a documentary on PBS, called New
Muslim Cool. The theme you see in Islamic hip-hop is, depending on
how you see it, disturbingly familiar. Just as Gangsta rap does,
Islamic hip-hop seems preoccupied with death, prison, drugs, and
harsh betrayal. However, commensurate with Islamic restraint, they
rarely bring in vulgar jewelry, cars or women into their rants.
Familiar themes include sounding off against corporate
soullessness, praise for God and berating the war in Iraq.
An element of what Islamic rap tries to do is show with its lost
youth how music and religion can give them something to anchor
themselves to life with. The way samples of Martin Luther King’s or
Malcolm X’s speeches often make it into hip-hop background music,
samples of Louis Farrakhan’s speeches often make it into both
hip-hop news and hip-hop music. The only problem is, that Islamic
rap often tries to “go back to the roots” when it deals with
religion. You’d see it right away at any Islamic rap concert; where
in a regular rap concert you’d see plenty of skimpy dressing and
beer, at an Islamic rap concerts, you would see mostly men, and
fruit juice or milk shakes.
The strict religious code on drink, extends to the music itself.
There’s been hip hop news made recently about how Islamic high
priests have let it be heard how they did not approve of music that
represents religion. You have come across how the Taliban shoots up
music shops in Afghanistan. Islamists had to stand against music.
Conservative Islam sees music as corrupting and evil. Mos Def and
Everlast are two such Orthodox Muslims, who find themselves in a
dilemma. On the whole, Islamic hip-hop doesn’t really find a
following. The less they bring religion into it, the better it
looks for their new popularity.
But still, Islamic hip-hop
is a nascent artform; it still needs to find its niche, and
make sure that the hip-hop press, reflects the hard work it does to
grow.