Hip Hop Hooray

Those under the age of 22 probably can't remember a time when hip hop didn't exist. The "spoken word" or "musical lyricism," which debuted in the South Bronx, N.Y., has had a major impact on American society since its inception. With 1979's "Rapper's Delight," the Sugarhill Gang popularized the genre and gave it a unique place in music. \nThe rap artist's ability to express the political, emotional and economic woes of the urban youth has brought hip hop acceptance across the globe. Mainstream hip hop thrives in commercials for products such as Sprite, Pepsi and Coca-Cola. \nHip hop transcends color, gender, culture and class barriers. It has evolved, becoming one of the most popular forms of music in the industry today. Though popular, hip hop is also diverse, as there are different types: gangsta rap, commercial rap, underground, West Coast, East Coast and the Dirty South. These styles are all different, but they come from the same origin. \nTHE BLOOMINGTON SCENE\nChad Horton, an IU graduate and member of the Indianapolis chapter of the Hip Hop Congress, says even though Bloomington doesn't have a large hip-hop community, it has a more diverse hip-hop scene than most towns in Indiana, even Indianapolis. \n"Here in Indy there isn't really a big demand for hip hop. The hip-hop scene here isn't flourishing like it is in most big cities," Horton says. "The DJs play a big part in the demand also. There are not a lot of well-rounded DJs in Indiana that will scratch and mix with hip-hop beats. DJ Quikmix is the only well-rounded DJ in Bloomington -- he will play real hip hop and scratch and mix."\nAlan Jeffroy, a local MC better known as Halfblown, says there is plenty of talent in Bloomington, but you have to look. He says there is a need for a better hip-hop scene in Indiana.\n"I give much love to the Mudkids, Atmosphere and Madwest," he says. "They are all great artists worthy of being checked out."\nIU draws students from St. Louis and Chicago, as well as urban areas in New York, California, Texas and elsewhere. Students bring music from their home towns, exposing others to the sounds of different types of rap music. \nJeffroy came to Bloomington about eight years ago and since has worked hard to get his foot in the door. He says it was hard at first, but he eventually made a name for himself in Bloomington, winning last year's Ante Up MC Battle at Space 101.\nTo get his name out into the local hip-hop scene, Jeffroy says he worked hard in the studio and performed in almost every MC battle he could. \n"I passed out demos at concerts in Indianapolis and in Bloomington," he adds. "Then I got the gig at Axis hosting the Hot Bod contest and being an MC there every Friday night." \nUNDERGROUND HIP HOP\nGetting recognition, especially as an undergound artist, isn't easy.\nUnderground hip hop is the closest genre to original hip hop. It involves the four elements of hip hop -- DJing, MCing, B-boying and graffiti artwork -- as well as freestyling, mixing and scratching beats, and it usually has a political or positive message. Underground hip hop is popular in New York, L.A, Chicago and Detroit and is a large part of the rap scene.\nAlex Fruchter, president of IU's Hip Hop Congress, says even though commercial hip hop has garnered a large fan base, most of the music is still not widely known and accepted by the masses. If the most popular station in Bloomington only plays top 40 hits, then 90 percent of today's hip hop is not being heard.\nFruchter says this is a problem for the future of hip-hop music.\n"The media doesn't have the full idea of hip hop," Fruchter says. "Top 40 hits don't represent the full scale of hip hop." \nHe says he finds it frustrating that in other college towns there are radio stations and public-access shows dedicated to hip hop. \n"I do not agree with the general labeling of hip hop. 'The Thong Song' should not be considered a hip-hop song," Fruchter says. "There needs to be a working definition of hip hop and what makes up the hip-hop culture." \nFruchter says he recognizes that it is hard to get a market for the music when all the radio stations will play is "Bling, Bling" by the Cash Money Millionaires or Jennifer Lopez, then label it hip hop. These artists only represent a small portion of hip-hop music. \n"Most kids don't know what underground hip hop is," Fruchter says. He adds that it isn't isn't fair to the hip-hop community to only play commercial rap on the radio. "I don't consider myself a hip-hop snob, but I do not agree with people labeling any kind of club music 'hip hop.'" \nHorton says not only is hip hop unfairly classified in terms of its "musicality," but he says that too often people also generalize the artists themselves. \n"It is hard for kids nowadays for kids to know the true hip-hop genre, because most of them are too young to remember cats like DJ Marley Mar, KRS-One and albums like (Tupac Shakur's) 2pacalpyse," Horton says. \nHorton agrees that radio plays a big part in the demand for hip hop, specifically noting the lack of airplay for Common, Goodie Mob, Clipse, Mos Def and Talib Kwali. Horton adds that if people can't hear all of hip hop, how do they know if they like it or not?\nMAKING A NAME\nThe Mudkids as well are trying to make a name for themselves in Indiana.\n"We have originality -- our music is different from mainstream music," says Russell Johnson, a member of the Mudkids. "We are trying to do something totally different; we put at least two live tracks on every album."\nBrian Phillips of the Mudkids praises Bloomington's support. \n"I think we all agree that the love that has blossomed out of the Bluebird was big for us," he says.\nJohnson says the hip-hop scene has improved since the Mudkids first stepped out.\n"There was no hip-hop scene when we first got started, then we did a show with a good turn out, and it made us realize a hip-hop scene did exist in Indianapolis," Johnson says.\nThe Mudkids all say that hip hop still has a future. Says Phillips: "Underground hip hop is hibernating, but there are a lot of young kids ready to do their thing."\nHorton and Fruchter both say the biggest hindrance to the progression of hip hop is a lack of funding to promote the music. Horton wants everyone to know hip-hop acts need more sponsorship. \n"It is hard to build a market when you can't get the acts to come," Horton says. \nMost acts don't have scheduled stops through Indiana, so it takes a lot of effort and money to get them to go out of their way and come here. Fruchter also admits that the Hip Hop Congress doesn't have the funds to advertise to the full extent. Horton recalls a De La Soul concert at the Vogue in Indy, where the turnout was disheartening.\n"The Vogue seats 1,000 people and only 550 showed up," he says. \nThe experience made Horton realize the need for better promotion, more sponsors and more communication between Indianapolis and Bloomington. \n"Bloomington and Indy are only 40 minutes away from each other," Horton says. "Most hip-hoppers are in Bloomington, and if the two towns communicated more, there would be a bigger and better hip-hop community."\nJohnson feels communication is important.\n"It is hard because we can't be everywhere. We need someone to be our eyes and ears somewhere else, telling us what is going on," Johnson says. "We don't really know what the actual hip-hop scene is like here in Bloomington, because most of the time we are booked with an alternative group, which brings in a different crowd."\nJeffroy says he feels people should remember that hip hop is not thug and that it started out as breakdancing music. \n"A lot of people think you have to be ghetto or talk about sex and jewelry to be an MC," he says. "People here want to see the cliché, they want someone that is on the mic talking about how many hoes and cars he has." \nHe labels his own music as radio-friendly party music and admits that the hip-hop scene here has improved since his arrival in Bloomington eight years ago. Yet, he says it could be a lot better.\n"Indiana needs to be more open-minded about music and open up the airwaves," Jeffroy says. "They need to show more love to the hip-hop community"