EJ Habina
March 28, 2010
Acad. Wrt
Mon. 6:30
Poetry from Poverty
Imagine growing up in an environment where one reacts to the explosion of
gunfire and the dodging of bullets as casually as a veteran who has experienced the
horror of war. Imagine an environment where drugs are so prevalent that the stranglehold
of addiction is as visible as the bright colors found in the graffiti lining your neighbor’s
homes. Also, picture an environment where the everyday atrocities observed would cause
most to flee as far as possible, yet the means of escaping this urban hell are so far out of
reach that life becomes a living representation of the saying “stuck between a rock and a
hard place”. Growing up in this harsh environment is terrifying to the average person, and
it is unfortunately the reality for millions who are forced to live in horrible conditions due
to poverty. At the same time, rooted in the terrifying and appalling conditions are flowers
of artistic expression that have slowly grown into some of the most raw, honest, and
beautiful forms of expression. The two most evident examples of poetic expression from
poverty are the musical genres known as the Blues and Hip-hop. These two forms of
music contain a poetic element that other genres seem not to achieve. The brutally candid
view of life and the tribulations associated with poverty displayed in both genres. The
Blues and Hip-Hop are a more poetic form of music not only because of their brutally
honest and often harsh representations of daily life, but also because of each genre’s
heavy emphasis on spoken word and rhythm, as well as the frequent use of various
literary terms used throughout both genres. To fully understand the poetic elements of the
two genres, one must first know the history of both these musical genres and how each
genre is a form of poetry.
Despite emerging almost a century apart, both the Blues and Hip-Hop are directly
related to one another. Both genres trace their roots back to African music, culture, and
oral traditions (Kopp, Ed). These oral traditions can be traced back hundreds of years to a
group of traveling poets and singers in West Africa known as griots. The griots would
travel from village to village and perform various poems and songs, often being
accompanied by a form of rhythm or drumming (Baker, Robert M.). Ironically, the vocal
style found in both the Blues as well as Hip-Hop music today are nearly identical to that
of the African griots (Kopp, Ed). With the beginning of the Slave trade in the 1600’s,
those unfortunate enough to become slaves brought with them this oral tradition (Kopp,
Ed). Through years of assimilation with European culture, the oral traditions and music
the slaves brought with them began to emerge into solemn, rhythmic chants known as
“field hollers” (Kopp, Ed). Slaves were forbidden to learn how to read or write so these
hollers were not only a way for the slaves to pass the time as they worked in the fields,
but also were a form of expressing the incredible suffering they faced everyday (Baker,
Robert M.).
The only real way of dealing with the overwhelmingly oppressive environment
that they endured was through song. These chants eventually evolved into what we know
today as the Blues (Kopp, Ed). The raw nature of the Blues entranced audiences a century
ago just as much as it does today. The Blues transformed from the field songs sung by
slaves into a mainstream genre of music loved by both Blacks and Whites (Kopp, Ed).
Over the years this blend of African and European musical influences branched off into
other genres such as Jazz, Rhythm and Blues, and, later, even Funk (Baker, Robert M.). It
was not until the “rebirth” of the core African tradition of blending spoken word with
heavy rhythm, thought to be lost through years of assimilation with White culture that
years later it emerged in the projects and hallways of New York City as Hip-Hop
(Scaruffi, Piero).
Hip-Hop first appeared in the 1970’s in the section of New York City known as
the Bronx. Jamaican immigrants traveling to New York blended their own form of music
descended from African oral traditions called “Toasting” (Scaruffi, Piero). Toasting was
a form of music where reggae artists would record themselves talking over the prerecorded base of percussion, bass, and horns (Scaruffi, Piero). Since in Jamaica many
Jamaicans could not afford individual record players, it became popular to have one
record player connected to loud speakers around which people would gather and dance to
the music (Scaruffi, Piero). The person who controlled the music, or the “disc jockey”
(DJ), used Toasting to comment on the songs being played or to even urge the crowd to
dance (Scaruffi, Piero). This method originally emerged as a means of providing non-stop
music for people to dance (Scaruffi, Piero). With the increased popularity of block parties
during the 1970’s, many of these Jamaican immigrants began to DJ these parties and
incorporate the idea of Toasting with more popular styles of music such as Soul and Funk
(Scaruffi, Piero). As the block parties and DJ’ing became more and more popular, each
individual DJ began to incorporate varied vocal rhymes and rhythmic styles in an effort
to distinguish themselves from one another and entertain their audience (Scaruffi, Piero).
These efforts to entertain and separate themselves from each other eventually led to
longer and longer vocal rhymes, which eventually evolved into full blown lyrical songs
(Sotto, Theresa). The popularity of this musical style along with the improved technology
of turntables and the experimentation of various turntable techniques such as “scratching”
and “cutting” eventually blossomed into the genre of music known today as Hip-Hop
(Scaruffi, Piero). As its popularity began to grow, the music slowly began evolving from
simply something to dance to into a form of artistic expression that could be used to
reflect the social, economic, and political problems of the time. Hip-Hop, just as the
Blues had a century before, captured mainstream audiences not only because of the
original sound both genres had, but also because of the honest and often harsh
representations of everyday life found in the music.
Due to both the Blues and Hip-Hop tracing their roots back to slavery, there is
little debate regarding the impoverished origins of both the musical genres. The Blues
evolved from the trials and tribulations African Americans faced in such an oppressively
racist environment as existed both South and North (Baker, Robert M.). After the Civil
War and the abolition of slavery, the Federal Government did not seize the numerous
plantations in the South (Conrad, D.E.). This allowed the former planters to continue
their massive agricultural industries. Since slavery was abolished and money had to pay
for worker’s wages, this caused a problem for the planters. Simultaneously, the newly
freed slaves had few options due to their denial of basic education and availability of
good land. The need of cheap labor for the planters and the newly freed slaves need to
work developed into the system known as Sharecropping (Conrad, D.E.). This was a
system where the planter would lease the land, equipment, money, etc. to the African
American workers in exchange for a percentage of whatever they are able to produce
(Conrad, D.E.). This system was highly corrupt and unfair to the African American
workers (Conrad, D.E.). The workers, having no money for supplies, were forced to
borrow money from the planters at an extremely high interest rate, making it nearly
impossible to repay the planter (Conrad, D.E.). They were also often required to shop at a
store owned by the planter where the prices for goods were outrageously high and often
caused the worker to only increase their debt by borrowing even more money from the
planter (Conrad, D.E.). This created a vicious cycle in which the worker was ultimately
indebted to the planter, and any money they were able to produce went immediately to
pay off their never ending debt (Conrad, D.E.). This extremely unfair system that kept the
worker subservient to the planter was nothing more than “legal slavery”, and created an
extremely impoverished African American class that lasted well into the 20th century
(Conrad, D.E.). This oppressive environment helped give birth to the Blues, and the hard
times and depressing life of the African American sharecropper is exemplified
throughout Blues music. One example is the song by Bobby “Blue” Bland entitled
Poverty, in which he sings:
“Up every morning with the sun
I work all day ‘til the evening comes
Blisters and corns all in my hands
Lord, have mercy on a working man
I guess I’m gonna die, just like I live, in poverty
My pay goes down and my tax goes up
I drink my tea from a broken cup
Between my women and Uncle Sam,
I can’t figure out just what I am
I guess I’m gonna die, just like I live, in poverty”(“Songs About Poverty”)
This song shows the viewpoint of those who were forced to live in such
conditions, and how grim their view of any improvements to their way or life was. Here
the worker works all day, only to see very little if any improvement to his impoverished
situation. He continues to explain the hardships in his life, talking about how little he is
paid yet is responsible for more and more payments as well as the fact that he seems
“hopeless” that he will never get out of poverty. Another example of how the Blues
demonstrated the harshness of everyday life African Americans faced at the time is in
Stephen Foster’s “Hard Times”.
“Let us pause in life’s pleasures and count its many tears
While we all sup sorrow with the poor;
There’s a song that will linger forever in our ears;
Oh hard times come again no more
‘Tis the song, the sigh of the weary
Hard times, hard times, come again no more
Many days you have lingered around my cabin door;
Oh hard times come again no more”(“Songs About Poverty”)
Here Foster compares the “sorrow” of the poor to a meal because being poor
usually means one has little or no food, and yet the only plentiful commodity due to the
oppressive conditions is the sorrow he feels. He also compares the “sighs of the weary” to
a song “that will linger forever in our ears”. This shows the gloomy outlook that he had
on his condition ever improving. Both of these songs represent the overwhelmingly
oppressive life faced by many African Americans at the time. These songs, despite being
quite depressing, grab the reader’s attention and allow the reader to transcend into the
mindset of each songwriter. These brutal representations cause the reader to appreciate
the hardships these people faced and, and almost “glamorize” the deplorable conditions
of their life. These songs, just as the Gospel spirituals their enslaved ancestors sang,
became not only a way to express their despair but also a way to keep people distracted
as well as motivated that there would be a “happier tomorrow”.
Unfortunately for many, this “happier tomorrow” never manifested despite the
unprecedented steps to improve the life of the African American. Even with such
landmark legislation as the abolition of the legal segregation in the Jim Crow Laws and
the signing of the Civil Rights Act, the everyday hardships of African Americans did not
improve much. Many flocked to the major cities in order to escape the oppressive
institution of sharecropping and deeply entrenched racism only to find similar obstacles
when they arrived in the city. African Americans were denied jobs and good housing due
to their skin color and were forced to live in the dilapidated sections of the cities or in
public housing since this was all that was affordable. Instead of improving their life, the
reality of the situation was that many were no better off than when they had been living
as sharecroppers. As more and more African Americans began moving to the cities, many
of the middle-class businesses promptly left the city for the suburban areas. This left few
adequate jobs for African Americans only acting to cement their poverty further. This
kind of environment eventually led to an increase of crime and violence associated with
the struggle of survival (Guarino, Allison). Living in an environment of gangs, violence,
drug abuse, and extreme poverty caused many to begin to look for an attainable way to
escape their lives (Scaruffi, Piero). The famous author and poet Victor Hugo once said
that “Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be
silent”(Guarino, Allison). The music of Hip-Hop featured harsh representations of
everyday life as a way to express their frustrations and distract themselves from the
realities of living in such an oppressive environment just as their predecessors in the
Blues had nearly a century before. One example of this is in the song “The Corner” by
Common.
“Memories on corners with the fo's and the mo's
Walk to the store for the rose, talking straightforward to hoes
Got uncles that smoke, and some put blow up they nose
To cope with the lows, the wind is cold and it blows
In they socks and they soles, niggaz holdin' they rolls
Corners leave souls opened and closed, hopin' for mo'
By the foes I was told, either focus or fold
Got cousins with flows, hope they open some doors
So we can cop clothes and roll in a Rolls
Now I roll in a Olds, with windows that don't roll
Down the roads where cars get broken and stole
These are the stories told by Stony and Cottage Grove
The world is cold, the block is hot as a stove
On the corners” (Sotto, Theresa)
This song demonstrates not only the various hardships of living in this kind of
environment, but also gives an exclusive insight into the mindset someone who lives
there as well. He starts out almost setting the scene by describing some of the “slang” one
would hear spoken as well as the nonchalant attitude he has towards prostitutes he
encounters while walking down the street. He then talks about the use of drugs to “cope
with the lows” of living in this kind of environment, and he compares these hardships to
something as ever-present and inescapable as the wind. Common then describes the drug
pushers who frequent corners and uses the analogy of money, or their “rolls”, as
something that they keep close to themselves both physically (in their “socks”) as well as
internally (their “soles”) as a way to possibly escape this environment. He then begins to
describe the hopeful mindset of someone in this type of environment. He describes that
he has cousins with “flows”, which means that his cousin has some rapping skills and that
with these skills they hope to better their life and “open some doors” to wealth, clothes,
and cars. He then almost returns to the reality of his situation by stating that he has an old
car that doesn’t work right and is driving through his neighborhood. Here he describes his
neighborhood as not safe and as a place where there is a lot of crime. His line “these are
the stories of Stony and Cottage Grove” describes other neighborhoods in the city and
shows that this type of environment is widespread throughout poor African American
communities, and shows the brutal quality of life that the members of the community
face everyday. Another example of this in Hip-Hop is a song by artist Mikkey Halsted
called “The Liquor Store”. Here Halsted describes a typical scene at a very central
location of inner city life.
“Dope fiends in the doorway
Dice game behind the gate
Dub on the fade, 20 more on the 6 ‘n’ 8
Hypin’ to rush the game
“Chill bitch that shit can wait,
I know you don’t want credit, you owe me from the other day!”
Shortys run up in the store
Arab on their every move
Last year he shot a 10 year old just for stealing juice
Gauge by the counter
9 behind the register
Hates George Bushs’ guts, but he gotta love America
He’s getting money here
Ships his bread back home
Banks give him easy loans
Lets 1 nigga work, dude sitting on the crate
Making sure his brothers don’t take
Charlie welcome to the liquor store
It’s goin’ down at the liquor store
It’s the center of the slums
The only place to buy cigarettes and Henny
Way before you 21
For breakfast they serve us Flamin’ Hot cheetos and Honey Buns
No wonder why we die so young
I heard the owner tell the cashier “As-Salamu Alaykum”
If he follow the Qur’ran
Why the fuck he sell bacon?
Why the milk $5?
Its only 3 at the grocery store, fuck it
Give me these Black and Milds, pop, and these okie dokes
Open my popcorn, pass my change to a shorty
He grabbed the red juice
Right next to the 40’s
Picked up a loose Swisher
I smacked it out his hands
Little man,
You don’t understand
Get the fuck up out the liquor store” (Mikkey Halsted)
This graphic representation is one of the most blunt descriptions of life that many
face living in the inner city, and requires little deciphering to get to the point of the song.
Halsted begins the song describing the scene of drug addicts on the corner waiting for the
dealers and the common sight of a dice game being played in an alley behind the store.
He continues with the scene at the store, describing the gun-toting Arab owner who
distrusts his patrons and only employs one African American to make sure no others steal
from him. He also describes the corrupt practices of selling to underage kids and raising
prices on healthy foods so that the only affordable things to eat are higher priced junk
food. Halsted ends the song with the description of a young child to whom he gives his
change. The child is forced to buy juice that sits right next to beer and liquor, and even
tries to buy a loose cigar to smoke weed before Halsted smacks it out of his hand and tells
him to get out of the liquor store. This song describes the poor quality of life many face
in the inner city, and also shows the type of environment kids are forced to grow up in.
The grow up surrounded by drugs and alcohol because of the lack of other options other
than shopping at a liquor store. According to Princeton University, they define poetry as
“any communication resembling beauty or the evocation of feeling” (“Poetry”). The
examples of both the Blues and Hip-Hop lyrics stated previously most certainly evocate
feelings if not also resembling beauty in some form, and therefore can certainly be
classified as a form of poetic expression.
The songs of both the Blues and Hip-Hop artists represent the harsh realities of
poverty and display within the lyrics a poetic element of despair and hardship which
captivates audiences with its brutal honesty and solemn outlook on life. The hardships
displayed through both genres certainly can be argued as poetic, but this is not the only
characteristic that classifies the music of these genres as poetry. The backbone of these
genres is the actual structure of these two genres that helps to further understand how
both of these genres are forms of poetry.
As stated before, the musical genres of both the Blues and Hip-Hop trace their
roots back to African poets known as “griots”. These were traveling poets who performed
their poems while incorporating some form of rhythm or drumming while orally reciting
the poems. This tradition of spoken word and rhythm survived centuries of assimilation
with “white” culture, and is one of the most distinctive characteristics of both the Blues
and Hip-Hop (“Poetry: Blues Style”). The Blues, having evolved directly from the songs
sung by slaves working in the field, exemplify this raw form of oral rhythm throughout
its songs. Since slaves in the field were not permitted to play any musical instruments, the
best way to maintain rhythm was to structure the lyrics of the song in a rhythmic way
(Ford, Karen J.). They would do this by simply repeating lines, organizing their songs
into stanzas, as well as through rhyming schemes. What this means is that the lines of a
song would follow a specific rhyme line by line (Harris, Robert A.). An example of using
a rhyme scheme, repeating line rhythm, as well as stanzas is shown in the song
“Crossroad Blues” by Robert Johnson.
“I went to the crossroad
Fell down on my knees
I went to the crossroad
Fell down on my knees
Asked the Lord above “Have mercy, now”
Save poor Bob, if you please
Mmmmm, standin’ at the crossroad
I tried to flag a ride
Standin at the crossroad
I tried to flag a ride
Don’t nobody seem to know me
Everybody pass me by” (Lavender, Catherine)
One can see from looking at this song that the use of repeated rhyme schemes
from line to line is used, as well as the repetition of lines within stanzas, to help establish
the rhythm of the song. This use of rhyme schemes is an example of poetry due to the
fact that this use of rhyme schemes is a major characteristic of traditional poetry as well
as the organization of the lyrics into stanzas from these rhyme schemes.
These same characteristics of rhyme and rhythm found in the Blues eventually
evolved into the musical genre of Hip-Hop. This tradition of attention to rhyme and
spoken word soon coupled with the use of drum machines and provided a whole new way
for the centuries old African tradition to expand (Scaruffi, Piero). The heavy use of
repetitive drum tracks as well as the careful attention to rhyme and rhythm is one of the
most obvious characteristics of Hip-Hop music today (Sotto, Theresa). The drumbeat
provides the rhythm for the spoken lyrics, just as the drums of the African griots centuries
before had when they recited their poems. However, the rhythm of the lyrics themselves
and how they coincide with the song’s beat also add a rhythm to Hip-Hop’s music
(Scaruffi, Piero). This attention to rhythm in both of the genres create a form of poetic
structure that rivals that of traditional modern poetry as well as that of traditional forms
like a Shakespearean sonnet (Sotto, Theresa). Although one of the most obvious
characteristics in both the genres, it is not the most important when arguing the genres as
forms of poetry, since many poems often contain no rigid rhythm or rhyme structure at
all. The heavy use of poetic and literary terms throughout the lyrics of both genres is the
most definitive evidence of the poetic nature of both the Blues and Hip-Hop.
The definition of poetry according to Princeton University is “any communication
resembling beauty or the evocation of feeling” (“Poetry”). The strongest example of what
constitutes a poem is the use of various literary and poetic devices. These devices when
used properly allow the words to transcend their original meaning and become imagery,
sound, emotions, etc. The use of these poetic devices is one of the most obvious
characteristics of what a poem consists of. These same literary devices are employed
throughout the music of both the Blues and Hip-Hop, and are the most evident proof that
both the Blues and Hip-Hop are a form of poetry. There are a variety of poetic devices,
which include figures such as simile, personification, imagery, rhyme, metaphor, as well
as many others (Harris, Robert A.). The use of these devices give a feeling of a “soul” to
a song. This allows the reader to experience a variety of feelings that might otherwise not
be available with just words alone. One of the most defining characteristics of the Blues
is the ability of the music to induce feelings of sadness, longing, and love, as well as
countless others while still maintaining a raw and simple song construction (“Poetry:
Blues Style”). An example of this is shown in a song by Robert Johnson called
“Hellhound on My Trail”.
“I got to keep movin’
I got to keep movin’
Blues fallin’ down like hail
Blues fallin’ down like hail
Umm mmm mmm mmm
Blues fallin’ down like hail
Blues fallin’ down like hail
And the day keeps on worryin’ me
There’s a hellhound on my trail
Hellhound on my trail
Hellhound on my trail” (Lavender, Catherine)
Despite this being only a short excerpt from the song, this selection contains a
multitude of poetic devices. The most obvious of these is the repetition of lines
throughout the stanza, which is the grouping of two or more lines of a poem that have a
certain rhyme scheme (Harris, Robert A.). There is also the rhyme scheme of “hail/trail”
that is featured throughout the stanza. In the line “Blues fallin’ down like hail” there are
two poetic devices employed. The first is the use of simile, which is the comparison
between two objects using words such as “like” or “as” (Harris, Robert A.). This line can
also be considered as personification, since it gives an inanimate object (“blues”) a
characteristic found in animals or nature (“fallin’ down like hail”) (Harris, Robert A.).
The next poetic device in this stanza seems as if it would not be considered an aspect of
poetry, but actually is. This is the use of onomatopoeia (“Umm mmm..”), which is the use
of words to imitate the sounds the words represent (Harris, Robert A.). The next device
that can be found in this song is when Johnson says “There’s a hellhound on my trail”.
This is an example of imagery, which is the use of words or phrases that appeal to any
sense or any combination of senses, since it invokes both the fear of being chased as well
as creates the image of a man on the run from something (Harris, Robert A.). Although
theses poetic devices can be found throughout a multitude of literature and lyrics, it is the
combination of all of these devices while still seeming “simple” at first glace that proves
the music of the Blues is a form of poetry. This use of poetic devices is also common in
Hip-Hop music.
Even more so than the Blues, Hip-Hop was a way to vent the frustrations many
have had about the political, social, and economic injustices they had to deal with
everyday (Guarino, Allison). The use of these various poetic devices came from the
desire for musicians to be as creative as they could with their lyrics while still trying to
get their message out to the public (Scaruffi, Piero). The song “The Food” by rapper
Common is one example of this.
“You love to hear the story, again and again
About these young brothers, from the City of Wind
Like juice and gin, in the city we blend
Amongst the hustle, titties and skin, fifties and rims
Y'all know the Sprewells and trucks that's detailed
Heartless females that wanna ride in em
On the block white is selling like Eminem
On the block it "Jump Off" like Kim and them
On the block it's hot, you can feel it, in your skin and then
Shorties get the game but no instructions to assembling
Eyes bright, it seems like the fight is dimming them
Call my man cuzo, like I'm kin to him
He trying to stay straight, the streets is bending him (Sotto, Theresa)”
The first poetic device used in this verse is in the third line of the verse, where
Common says “Like juice and gin, in the city we blend”. Here he is using symbolism
because he is comparing the blending of alcohol and juice to the blending of peoples,
cultures, etc. which occurs in the city (Harris, Robert A.). The next poetic device used is
internal rhyme, or the rhyming of words within a line instead of at the end, which is used
in the line “titties and skin, fifties and rims” (Harris, Robert A.). This same line is also an
example of imagery since it invokes pictures of scantily dressed women and cars driving
around. He also uses imagery in the next two lines when he talks about both the
“detailed” cars and the “heartless” females, creating images of nice cars and shallow
minded women who are only attracted to money. He continues with the use of metaphor
when he says “On the block white is selling like Eminem”. Here he compares the amount
of money made selling “white”, or cocaine, to the success of Hip-Hop artist Eminem and
also uses the word “white” as a comparison to the artist himself since he is a white artist.
He continues with the use of personification in the line “on the block it ‘Jump off’ like
Kim and them”. In this line he uses the human trait of “jumping off”, which is basically
just going wild or being confrontational, to the environment of the city block itself.
Common demonstrates the use of metaphor again when he says “On the block it’s hot,
you can feel it, in your skin and then”. Here he compares the amount of police patrols and
gang violence to the actual heat one can feel on their skin. There are also examples of the
use of metaphor and symbolism in the next line, which reads: “Shorties get the game but
no instructions to assembling”. Here he compares the trials and tribulations of selling
drugs to a “game”, and uses the line “but no instructions to assembling” to symbolize
how people get into selling drugs without realizing what that choice entails and the
dangers involved with such activities in the long run. Finally, Common uses symbolism
in the last line, where he says “He trying to stay straight, the streets is bending him”. Here
Common talks about how despite this person’s best attempts to stay “straight”, or out of
trouble, they cannot do so because of the cultural environment of the streets is “bending
him” in the direction of crime, drugs, or some other form of negative temptation. Another
example of poetic devices in Hip-Hop is a song by the group Jurassic 5 which is called
“Freedom”.
“Yo my forefathers hung in trees to be free
Got rid of slavery but kept the penitentiary
And now freedom got a shotgun and shells wit’ ‘cha name
Release the hot ones and let freedom ring (Jurassic 5)”
In the first line of the stanza, the line “my forefathers hung in trees to be free” can
be a variety of different poetic devices. First, it can be a form of imagery, since it invokes
the sight of old lynching pictures and racial injustice that was endemic only half a century
ago. Also, this line can be considered an example of an internal rhyme, which is the use
of rhyming that occurs within a line of a stanza rather than at the end (Harris, Robert A.).
This can also be considered an example of a paradox, since one would not usually kill
themselves by hanging to gain their freedom while still alive (Harris, Robert A.). The
next poetic device is found in the line that says “got rid of slavery, but kept the
penitentiary”. This line is an example of a metaphor, since a comparison is being made
between the institution of slavery and that of our penitentiary system today. The next line,
in which the author says “now freedom got a shotgun and shells wit’ ‘cha name”, also
contains more than one poetic device. First, this line can be considered a form of
personification, since the author is giving the idea of freedom human traits of anger and
resentment. Also, it can also be an example of a symbol since freedom could never really
obtain weapons since it is an inanimate idea. Finally, the last example of a poetic device
used in this song is on the last line of this excerpt, where the author says “Release the hot
ones and let freedom ring”. First, this line is an example of using a symbol, since the
author refers to those who are oppressed as the “hot ones”, which is meant to resemble
bullets fired from the shotgun mentioned in the previous line. Also, when the author says
“let freedom ring” he uses another example of symbolism since once again the author
uses the idea of freedom having a shotgun and firing this shotgun, causing freedom to
“ring” from the concussive blast. Despite being only 4 lines long, this excerpt is an
example of how intricate Hip-Hop music is and how much of a deeper meaning is
contained within the lyrics of the genre. According to the definitions previously stated,
this most certainly makes Hip-Hop a form of poetry due to its use of these various poetic
devices to communicate and invoke some kind of emotion within the reader.
However, there are many critics surrounding the argument of the Blues and HipHop consisting as a form of poetry. Many feel that both of the musical genres do not
qualify to be labeled as a form of poetry, and instead are merely just mediums of
expression just as all music is (Alexander, Kwame). One author argues that the
“uniqueness” of Blues music to trace its roots back to African oral tradition is not so
unique as it seems due to the fact that all literary poetry has its roots in oral forms (Ford,
Karen J.). However, this also acts as an example of supporting evidence as well for the
argument of these genres as poetry since it solidifies that all forms of literary poetry can
trace their roots back to oral traditions, therefore linking these genres with poetry.
Another argument against these musical genres is from famous South African poet and
political activist Keorapetse Kgositile. In his book Approaches to Poetry Writing
Kgositile comments on the musicians saying that “They are shallow. They lack depth of
feeling and thought. They do not move anyone at any level”. He argues that the music
Hip-Hop musicians make today is not considered poetry because of the lack of
“sentimental value” and therefore any message the musicians present is “quickly
forgotten” (Kgositsile, Kekeorapetse). Poet, author, and literary critic Kwame Alexander
makes a similar argument in his article The Def of Poetry. Here he defines a poem as
words arranged through the use of imaginative language that suggests something
interesting, orginal, or insprings rather than simply stating it directly. He claims that HipHop music and its “Cristal-laced banal tales of pulling yourself up by the hoodstraps” is
not “interesting, original, or inspiring” (Alexander, Kwame). However, this same
argument can be said about all poetry, since the amount that a particular poetic piece
“moves” someone is entirely up to the person themselves and what they get from reading
the piece and not simply up to one person to decide.
According to the definition by Princeton University, poetry is any form of
communication that resembles beauty in some way or the evocation of feeling. The
musical genres of both the Blues and Hip-Hop can be categorized as a form of poetic
expression for this very reason, as well as a variety of other more specific examples. The
history of these two musical genres is one important piece of evidence because both
evolved from the institution of slavery and other social injustices and is the reason why
these genres have such deep roots in poverty. The effect of having these genre’s roots in
poverty has created more poetic elements than other musical genres are able to achieve
due to the brutal realizations of life contained within the music of both genres. Also, both
of these musical genres can trace their roots back to African oral poetry dating back
thousands of years, which was characterized by the use of spoken word accompanied by
a strong drum rhythm. This attention to rhythm is not only one of the most defining
features of the Blues and Hip-Hop music, but also is a key characteristic in the structure
of classic poetry. Finally, the extensive use of various poetic devices such as simile,
personification, symbolism, etc. creates a deeper meaning and poetic element in the
music of the Blues and Hip-Hop that shows the poetic nature of the genres. Alone these
pieces of evidence might not be enough to argue that the Blues and Hip-Hop are indeed
forms of poetry, the use of graphic imagery, classic poetry structure, as well as the use of
many poetic devices within the music create not only interesting music but also a form of
poetic expression unrivaled and incredibly underappreciated by many.
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