National Collegiate Athletic Association
NCAA News Archive - 2007
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Here to stay - hip hop culture
It amuses me, hearing the shocked and stunned reactions of those who suddenly realize how much influence hip hop has on today’s youth and in particular sports. What else has American youths’ attention the way the hip hop culture does? Commercials, music, clothing, movies — what else inundates their lives with the same consistency, attraction and appeal?
The first misunderstanding I detect is that people think hip hop is only music. It is a culture, a language, a fashion statement, a set of individualized values and a unique perspective embraced by a restless generation. Hip hop is about dance, art and expression. The hip hop style as a whole has outright broken through its humble roots to declare a lasting influence on magazine publishing, television, sexuality and social policy.
There is more. Hip hop is an economy. Ask music industry executives and Hollywood producers.
If you examine the situation, the dark side of hip hop is shamelessly exploited. These masters of illusion use their magical ability to take the inner-city system of hustling on streets — pushing illegal drugs and guns, pimping and gang banging — and expertly turn it into multimillion-dollar businesses and a billion-dollar enterprise. Glorifying violence and exalting materialism is fattening a lot of pockets.
Advertisers have wised up. Social engineers of market capitalism have tapped into the hip hop generation “by any means necessary.” Data on generational differences state that the Millennials (those born between 1980 and 2000) are “the most marketed-to” generation ever.
Multimedia conglomerates have greedily embraced hip hop to reach and to capture the attention of all young people, not just African Americans. This genre doesn’t just influence student-athletes from urban backgrounds; the intoxicating impact of hip hop is worldwide. It has seeped into the global culture, providing international crossover appeal. All the while, Corporate America benefits exponentially.
With the creative brilliance of hip hop kings and queens and the money-hungry establishment, hip hop has embedded its way into our society with the intent to mold youthful attitudes and shape spending habits.
Most will struggle to pinpoint a strong countervailing influence that has the same persistency and far-reaching depth. We are speaking of a generation who mourned the deaths of rappers Tupac Shakur, Christopher Wallace (The Notorious B.I.G.) and Jam Master Jay (Jason Mizell) with intense passion and genuine reverence typically reserved for presidential and royal acclaims like John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr.
Anyone who looks at hip hop and just sees rap music doesn’t truly understand its history or its power.
Athletics isn’t immune to the infectious appeal or the prominence of hip hop. Take a look at artists in videos or performing center stage who don their favorite athlete’s number or beloved sport team’s jersey. When hip hop celebrities attend athletics events, the media cameras pan the crowd to give viewers close-up shots of the famous faces that appear to be diehard fans. The catchy lyrics and pulsating beats that blast from arena loud speakers are by and large radio-ready hip hop tunes.
Nothing portrays the relationship between hip hop and sports better than joint business ventures. Multi-talented hip hop entrepreneurs are major financial investors in professional sport teams and fashion lines appealing to athletes of all levels of play and specifically to the hip hop nation.
Hip hop is a reflection of a generation. Along with their talent and ambitions, some of the young men and women who represent our college sport teams come from backgrounds that reflect aspects of the urban life portrayed in hip hop music. Others are simply imitating what they have seen in videos and heard in the lyrics of music.
Neither our backgrounds nor our ages are an excuse for us not to educate ourselves on this phenomenon that is impacting the attitudes and behaviors of student-athletes. When it comes to critical life-skills issues such as disordered eating or hazing, we read books, attend workshops and seek the expertise of speakers and consultants. Look at hip hop as you would any other student development issue.
Understanding it does not mean you have to like it or even condone it. Educating ourselves helps to better reach, teach and guide the precious lives of the student-athletes left in our care. Regardless of how you feel about the saggy pants, the gold grills or the earth-shaking beats, you can’t ignore the significant impact of the genre on student-athletes. As educators, our role is to show student-athletes that “it’s not where you’re from...it’s where you’re at” (to quote lyrics by the rap artist Rakim).
Although their backgrounds and upbringings will affect their perspectives and their approach to life, students should be encouraged to focus on the possibilities of their future and the validity of their actions. Let us consider formulating strategies that use hip hop to foster students’ interest in academics and, ultimately, degree completion. Some campuses have cultivated environments that include programs like Scholar-Baller (see the December 21, 2006, issue of The NCAA News). Young men and women can live and experience the positive empowerment of the hip hop culture without perpetuating the negative and empty stereotypes of its flipside. Our charge should be to find ways to use the genre to empower student athletes.
The impetus of hip hop largely encompassed party beats, storytelling and the use of rap to address racism, oppression and poverty. Hip hop is a medium that entices you to move physically and urges you to shift mentally. Hip hop isn’t to blame for the decay of social norms. Hip hop culture can plant positive seeds in the consciousness and the minds of young people.
Hip hop is not without flaws. However, criticizing hip hop won’t discourage the fascination. Hip hop isn’t going anywhere. It is here to stay. Critics thought jazz was a fad too.
Felicia Martin is assistant executive director of the Division I-A Athletic Directors’ Association and a member of the 2006-07 class of participants in the NCAA Leadership Institute for Ethnic Minority Females.
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By Felicia Martin
Division I-A Athletics Directors’ Association
Division I-A Athletics Directors’ Association
It amuses me, hearing the shocked and stunned reactions of those who suddenly realize how much influence hip hop has on today’s youth and in particular sports. What else has American youths’ attention the way the hip hop culture does? Commercials, music, clothing, movies — what else inundates their lives with the same consistency, attraction and appeal?The first misunderstanding I detect is that people think hip hop is only music. It is a culture, a language, a fashion statement, a set of individualized values and a unique perspective embraced by a restless generation. Hip hop is about dance, art and expression. The hip hop style as a whole has outright broken through its humble roots to declare a lasting influence on magazine publishing, television, sexuality and social policy.
There is more. Hip hop is an economy. Ask music industry executives and Hollywood producers.
If you examine the situation, the dark side of hip hop is shamelessly exploited. These masters of illusion use their magical ability to take the inner-city system of hustling on streets — pushing illegal drugs and guns, pimping and gang banging — and expertly turn it into multimillion-dollar businesses and a billion-dollar enterprise. Glorifying violence and exalting materialism is fattening a lot of pockets.
Advertisers have wised up. Social engineers of market capitalism have tapped into the hip hop generation “by any means necessary.” Data on generational differences state that the Millennials (those born between 1980 and 2000) are “the most marketed-to” generation ever.
Multimedia conglomerates have greedily embraced hip hop to reach and to capture the attention of all young people, not just African Americans. This genre doesn’t just influence student-athletes from urban backgrounds; the intoxicating impact of hip hop is worldwide. It has seeped into the global culture, providing international crossover appeal. All the while, Corporate America benefits exponentially.
With the creative brilliance of hip hop kings and queens and the money-hungry establishment, hip hop has embedded its way into our society with the intent to mold youthful attitudes and shape spending habits.
Most will struggle to pinpoint a strong countervailing influence that has the same persistency and far-reaching depth. We are speaking of a generation who mourned the deaths of rappers Tupac Shakur, Christopher Wallace (The Notorious B.I.G.) and Jam Master Jay (Jason Mizell) with intense passion and genuine reverence typically reserved for presidential and royal acclaims like John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr.
Anyone who looks at hip hop and just sees rap music doesn’t truly understand its history or its power.
Athletics isn’t immune to the infectious appeal or the prominence of hip hop. Take a look at artists in videos or performing center stage who don their favorite athlete’s number or beloved sport team’s jersey. When hip hop celebrities attend athletics events, the media cameras pan the crowd to give viewers close-up shots of the famous faces that appear to be diehard fans. The catchy lyrics and pulsating beats that blast from arena loud speakers are by and large radio-ready hip hop tunes.
Nothing portrays the relationship between hip hop and sports better than joint business ventures. Multi-talented hip hop entrepreneurs are major financial investors in professional sport teams and fashion lines appealing to athletes of all levels of play and specifically to the hip hop nation.
Hip hop is a reflection of a generation. Along with their talent and ambitions, some of the young men and women who represent our college sport teams come from backgrounds that reflect aspects of the urban life portrayed in hip hop music. Others are simply imitating what they have seen in videos and heard in the lyrics of music.
Neither our backgrounds nor our ages are an excuse for us not to educate ourselves on this phenomenon that is impacting the attitudes and behaviors of student-athletes. When it comes to critical life-skills issues such as disordered eating or hazing, we read books, attend workshops and seek the expertise of speakers and consultants. Look at hip hop as you would any other student development issue.
Understanding it does not mean you have to like it or even condone it. Educating ourselves helps to better reach, teach and guide the precious lives of the student-athletes left in our care. Regardless of how you feel about the saggy pants, the gold grills or the earth-shaking beats, you can’t ignore the significant impact of the genre on student-athletes. As educators, our role is to show student-athletes that “it’s not where you’re from...it’s where you’re at” (to quote lyrics by the rap artist Rakim).
Although their backgrounds and upbringings will affect their perspectives and their approach to life, students should be encouraged to focus on the possibilities of their future and the validity of their actions. Let us consider formulating strategies that use hip hop to foster students’ interest in academics and, ultimately, degree completion. Some campuses have cultivated environments that include programs like Scholar-Baller (see the December 21, 2006, issue of The NCAA News). Young men and women can live and experience the positive empowerment of the hip hop culture without perpetuating the negative and empty stereotypes of its flipside. Our charge should be to find ways to use the genre to empower student athletes.
The impetus of hip hop largely encompassed party beats, storytelling and the use of rap to address racism, oppression and poverty. Hip hop is a medium that entices you to move physically and urges you to shift mentally. Hip hop isn’t to blame for the decay of social norms. Hip hop culture can plant positive seeds in the consciousness and the minds of young people.
Hip hop is not without flaws. However, criticizing hip hop won’t discourage the fascination. Hip hop isn’t going anywhere. It is here to stay. Critics thought jazz was a fad too.
Felicia Martin is assistant executive director of the Division I-A Athletic Directors’ Association and a member of the 2006-07 class of participants in the NCAA Leadership Institute for Ethnic Minority Females.
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