A match made in hip-hop

It's no secret that about 99 percent of all popular music in America is influenced by African-Americans. It's also no secret that white people are damn good at exploiting it and calling it their own, while making truckloads of money off it. \nWhich was the case with the blues, jazz, R&B, etc.\nAnd now some fear the latest culprit could be hip-hop. \nThe new Murs and 9th Wonder album, 3:16 (which is a hot record, pick it up), contains the song, "And This Is For..." to address the current state of hip-hop, including singling out Eminem: "Any white boy who thinks he knows my struggle/cuz he listens to Pac and his adrenaline doubles/now I ain't got problems with you being yourself/but when you front and use the 'N' word it just don't help." \nA quick sidebar on the recent Eminem controversy surrounding some freestyles Slim recorded as an angry, love-sick teenager in 1993: it appears this is more of an attempt by Benzino, the editor in chief of The Source, to sell magazines than it is a valid attack at Eminem. \nFirst off, how can you take something recorded a decade ago in a basement that seriously? He was dumped by a black girl, which caused him to spit an irate verse, likely intoxicated taking low blows at her and black people in general, while dubbing, "all black girls are bitches." This was an angry kid who felt helpless at the time, not a closet racist who somehow was and still is surrounded by black people who all mutually respect each other. \nBut this isn't to say what Eminem has been making money off of is the real Slim Shady either. Infinite, Eminem's first record released on Web Entertainment in 1996 is barely recognizable to what made him the biggest ticket in rap today. One of the songs, "Searchin'" is an ode to the same lady he graphically kills on numerous occasions. If on this mix tape, he killed this black girl but didn't call them all bitches, would that have not drawn such an uproar? Is that less shocking somehow? Infinite will be released by Web in the next year and is a must have for any Em fan, because the pre- and post-fame personalities will blow your mind. \nBack to Murs and his issues on the future of hip-hop. In the last verse on "And This is For..." he fears hip-hop will be just another casualty to black's musical ingenuity: "yes it is jazz and yes it is blues and it's the same way they did rock too/but I won't let the same thing happen to hip-hop/I refuse to watch that bullshit." \nIs hip-hop going the road of R&B and its continual "whitification" into rock 'n' roll? How many black rock stars are out there? Hootie? A couple guys in Dave Matthews Band? N.E.R.D? In 30 years will hip-hop be dominantly white? It doesn't seem far-fetched as middle-class suburbanites continue to spin and freestyle in their neighborhoods trying to develop street credit. These days they can even make it big (a la Kid Rock). \nIt's a scary image, seeing nothing but white guys in throwbacks rocking the mic on BET. One reason this will thankfully never happen is our culture has made significant strides since the '50s and '60s when one of the main reasons R&B was ripped off and turned into white rock 'n' roll was because it wasn't acceptable to listen to black musicians. The fact that you would actually pay a black artist was unthinkable to the white public, which is why covers were created to take hits by Fats Domino, Chuck Berry, etc. and turn them into more acceptable records (often without royalties) for whites, even though the difference between records were at many times insignificant. \nToday, America is far less racist, meaning few parents of white kids will flip out if they find a Biggie or Snoop record under their bed, which wasn't the case even 10 years ago. Hip-hop has gained a lifetime of credibility with the masses over the past decade. \nBut how about a reason why hip-hop just could turn white? This may seem farfetched, but black music has always been on the leading edge -- always changing, never satisfied with the status quo. Perhaps hip-hop is just a bridge to something far greater no one can even imagine yet, therefore leaving us an army of beat-boxing Justin Timberlake's once again after they've taken hip-hop to the next level. \nSo why are whites fascinated with black music? The simple answer: white people are, for the most part LAME, and too busy seeking out financial gain and intent on retaining their white-knuckled grip as the most technological and powerful race on this happy planet to come up with a new way of using the guitar or a simple turntable. \nThe more complicated answer is of course, complicated. Why does a middle class suburbanite like me have a CD collection made up of about 80 percent rap and hip-hop? Shouldn't I be listening to Good Charlotte or Simple Plan, aimed at the teen angst demographic who hate their math teachers and can't get a girl to play spin the bottle with them? \nMaybe it's because hip-hop brings me something new, something raw I never experienced in my 'hood. Maybe it's because hip-hop has an uncanny ability of expressing things people have always wanted to express but didn't know how. Or just maybe it's because I can't stop car dancing after I open a new Jigga CD for the first time on my way back from Best Buy. Or maybe Murs explains it best: "I asked myself for awhile but now I finally get it/good music transcends all physical limits"