Panel Discusses Rap Music’s ‘Bad Rap’

During a panel held to discuss the interaction between hip-hop and student achievement, the music received mixed reviews.

“People need to see that hip-hop is more than negative and destructive,” said J-Live, a hip hop artist and participant in the discussion hosted by the Kennedy School of Government. “There’s a civil war within hip-hop. The general consciousness is at stake.”

The event, entitled “Raps on the Gap: Hip Hop Music and School Success,” was part of an ongoing series of events discussing how to break down racial and socioeconomic barriers to achievement.

The panel was preceded by a discussion of a study on the prevalence of negative influences on young students in hip-hop, including excessive references to sex and violence.

According to the study, 75 percent of rap lyrics portray education as “limited and naïve as a means to financial success,” and that “teachers and schools are not to be trusted.”

The study also found a strong correlation between listening to hip-hop and high self-esteem.

Steve Perry, who is the principal of the Capital Preparatory Charter School in Connecticut, said that the music has had a negative impact on some of his students.

“Hip-hop is one of the most vile expressions of humanity ever,” he said. “Sure they have self-esteem, because they fit in with other fools.”

But other panelists said that hip-hop expresses the tension that exists between students and teachers.

“There’s a natural rivalry between student and teacher,” J-Live said. “It’s as natural as Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote.”

Although panelists expressed different viewpoints about the role of the music in school achievement, they generally agreed that hip-hop needs to transmit positive messages to African-American communities.

“We need to hold hip hop to a higher standard,” J-Live said.

Other panelists included Daren Graves, a professor of education at Simmons College. Brooklyn hip-hop artist Talib Kweli, a main draw for the event, could not attend the panel due to a personal emergency.