The Role Of Hip Hop In The Civil Rights Movement

Kömives Dániel
Can we consider Hip Hop as the new Civil Rights Movement?
Chapter 1: What does the Civil Rights Movement gave to the African-Americans compared to Hip Hop as a subculture/movement. African-Americans through their history faced the toughest ways of oppression, racial segregation, racism and slavery. Their affliction led to the emergence of the Civil Rights Movement which was one of the biggest social movements in the history of mankind. The legacy of this movement had a powerful impact on the formation of Hip Hop as a subculture, community and subsequently one of the biggest music industry. Hip Hop also plays a very important role in modern culture and society of African-Americans.
After the abolition of slavery, African-Americans

The block parties, graffiti art, rapping, disc jockeying and diverse forms of dancing built Hip Hop by the black youth. They expressed their feelings, thoughts, but most importantly the problems they had to face, which were related to their race, gender and social positions. The rights that were given to black people during and after the Civil Rights Movement left the following generations at a lack of how to continue the fight for black rights. Hip Hop gave them this platform and with the usage of black nationalism, Hip Hop can explore the challenges that confront American-Americans in the post-Civil Rights Movement era. In the 1990’s Hip Hop lived its prime, sub genres started to appear and famous groups, MCs led the whole community, providing a voice to a group of people trying to deliver their message. Through their lyrics they were able to express their opinions about society, the government and the treatment of African-Americans in the U.S. for decades. The black community used this platform to protest against social attitudes and try to change them. The famous MCs like 2Pac, Biggie, Snoop Dogg and rap groups for instance the one and only Wu Tang Clan or the generally known gangster rap group from Compton called N.W.A. were orators of a generation with the intention of raising the black culture and community from the oppression remained in the

Hip Hop produced similar idols and ambassadors through the years and decades. Kendrick Lamar is one of the most influential MC in the United States. His lyrics containing strong statements about the situation of African-Americans in the present-day society where the black community still have to face issues of racism and police brutality. Kendrick is a similar character to Martin Luther King considering his commitment towards his community and culture, his voice has a strong influence on black people. Sometimes when social injustice and racial issues drench the society, music is one of the best way to demonstrate against these problems. Protest songs played important roles during the Civil Rights Movement giving people hope and outlook for a better tomorrow. Famous ones were Bob Dylan’s “Blowin in the Wind” or “A Change is Gonna Come” by Sam Cooke. These songs were products of the disconcerting oppression and racism and they still considered to be the most powerful protest songs ever written. Kendrick Lamar managed to follow the footsteps of these musicians and create impressive contemporary protest songs. He is the undisputed “king” of present-day Hip Hop, influencing generations from younger to older all around world. “To Pimp a Butterfly” is Kendrick’s third studio album which was a Grammy winner for the best rap album in 2016. Also he won seven Grammy