It has been six months since the death of Mike Brown in Ferguson. It has been only one month since the cop who was involved with Eric Garner’s death was not indicted. The world responded to the injustice in ways that showed we, as a nation are connected even hundred of miles away – though not in the most positive of ways. The protests, the riots, even twitter hashtags such as #Blacklivesmatter, #Alllivesmatter, and through social media even citizens in Palestine sent praise and support to the protestors. It seems every country has shown appreciation for the resilience to be complacent for the ongoing injustices.
There has been support from hip hop, mainly through twitter messages and wearing t-shirts. My question is: Where are the songs and concerts from mainstream hip hop showing support? Aside from one track released by J. Cole, I was expecting more from the hip hop world. There seemed to be more responses to Kendrick Lamar’s “Control” verse than support songs for the protestors. It would be unreasonable for every artist to dedicate an album for the cause, but hip hop was once a medium to display political and social issues. It seems most of the artists who have achieved commercial success, refrain from talking about real issues.. instead, they are more than ready to try and “Break the Internet”.
Typically liberal artists such as Nas, Jay-Z, Kanye, Nicki Minaj and Rick Ross have stayed surprisingly mum in the current social matters. Perhaps their voices have been silenced in fear of backlash from corporate sponsors. One would think artists, especially those who have spoken out before against mistreatment from police, would be itching to capitalize on this moment and turn it into some revolutionary beginning. This is in no way a suggestion to overthrow the government, but there is a missed opportunity hip hop greats do not seem to want to touch. That is my opinion on the matter, but what are your thoughts? Speak out!
