Nevermind The 36 Chambers or What do Black and NWA have in common?

Yet another article that appeared in The Stall originally.....

Both exploded into the public conscience in New York City during the late 1970’s. Both tackled the impact that society, politics and the economy have on youth. Both are to this a day a constant influential presence on popular music. However, the vast similarities between the two are constantly overlooked simply because one is looked at speaking to a mostly white perspective while the other is perceived to look at life through a mostly black/minority perspective. I feel that both have the same outlook on things but due to the racial perspectives that each one has somewhat unfairly had pinned on them. These unfair perspectives have unfairly painted these two genres as different when in reality they are quite the complimentary pair. What I’m referring to is the genres of rap and punk.

One of these most glaring similarities between the two types of music is the way that both genres started. Both genres came from not-so-glamorous parts of NYC, the seedy L.E.S where punk rock mecca CBGB’s was located and the South Bronx where hip-hop “godfather” DJ Kool Herc threw monster block parties that spawned rap music and the hip-hop movement as a whole. The first few years of each genre spawned such iconic artists like Afrika Bambaataa, Television, The Talking Heads and Kurtis Blow.

As the 70’s turned into the 80’s, you can see the linear progressions that the two genres made. As the influence of punk and hip-hop moved west, you can the message of the two genres becoming darker, narrower and more abrasive once they got to southern California. Groups like Black Flag and The Circle Jerks popularized the hardcore brand of punk which was created by Minor Threat while N.W.A took the message that Public Enemy broadcasting and added a little Compton flair to it.

Once the 90’s came, both genres exploded into the forefront of the music scene. The much talked-about East Coast/West Coast rivalry between Biggie Smalls and his partner P.Diddy and Diddy’s Bad Boy label beefing with Tupac and Death Row Records which was owned by Suge Knight and also had Snoop Dogg signed on to the label. This feud/beef/whatever it is signed a light onto other MCs on both coast to get noticed by hungry executives who want to cash in off of the feud. Some of these MCs include Jay-Z, Nas, Warren G and Kurrupt.

On the other side of the coin, punk was becoming a moneymaker like hip-hop was, without the whole feud thing of course. The Offspring’s 1994 album “Smash”, which features the classics “Come Out & Play (Keep ‘Em Separated)” and “Self-Esteem”, became the biggest selling album to ever come from an independent label, in this case Epitaph Records. “Smash” was selling so much (over 16 million to date) that Epitaph founded had to step away from his band, Bad Religion (also selling quite well), right as they were about to sign with Atlantic Records. Also in 1994, Green Day released their major-label debut, “Dookie”, which sold over 15 million records worldwide. The success of ‘Smash” and “Dookie” paved the way for band like NOFX, Rancid and Blink-182.

The success that both genres experienced in the 90’s paved the way for what we have today. The continued success that Green Day have has paved the way for bands like Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance and other emo (and its many made-up subgenres) to have a stranglehold on the popular rock scene. The swagger emitted by Hova and Snoop has led to the South and the Midwest becoming the new epicenter for popular rap music thanks to artists like Lil’ Wayne, Slim Thug and Kanye West. Both genres nowadays, due to the constant need to be in the forefront, delved into more and more over-production (I’m looking at you, T-Pain!!) Thanks to the overly-produced sounds that these artists have gone into, there’s been a growing call for these genres to return to their roots that made them so interesting.

However, there are a couple of artists that fully embrace both genres’ similarities. Jacksonville punk band Whole Wheat Bread consist of three black guys who love Less Than Jake as much as they love Lil’ Jon (who they have covered in the past and are currently collaborating with on his solo album, “Crunk Rock”). Another one is Sage Francis, a white MC who is not only signed to iconic punk label Epitaph, but has also played on the Warped Tour and has opened up for bands like Against Me.

As you can see, the history of rap music and punk rock are actually quite similar in addition to the messages in the songs being the same, just delivered a little different. So next time you see a kid rocking a Clash shirt walking around the hall here at the Dale, don’t scoff because chances are the message they get from listening to “London Calling” is quite similar to the one you’re listening Nas rhyme about on your iPod.