Proto-grunge rockers Dinosaur Jr. surprised some folks when they reunited 2 years ago. Now they have their own Nike shoe. This from a band who probably couldn't be bothered to wear Doc Martins. I loved Dinosaur Jr as a youth, and still rate Green Mind and You're Living All Over Me somewhere in my top 100 ever. But J Mascis is the only interview i ever hung up on (he was being a real tool) and I've been kinda sour on 'em since. I'll wait for the Rage Against the Machine limited flip-flop, a'ight?
This time it's a “loving critique” called HIP HOP: Beyond Beats and Rhymes, which premiered at Sundance this week and will be airing on PBS Feb 20 at 10PM. The high-minded film features interviews with Mos Def, Chuck D, Michael Eric Dyson, the Clipse, and countless others, and will discuss gender identification, homoeroticism (not “phobia”-we said “eroticism”) in hip-hop, and the impact of hip-hop on black violence, etc. Nothing we haven't heard bumbled through in a million poorly-organized forums and conventions, but this is PBS and if there's one thing they can do better than “furthering a liberal agenda,” it's presenting cultural fare in a thoughtful and touching environment. Also look here for details on a West Hollywood preview screening.
Last week at a North Carolina commemoration of MLK's birthday, his daughter Bernice King struck out at hip-hop, stating it glorifies violence and degredates women. She joins an ever-growing chorus of high profile black figures pointing their fingers at rap's “sex, drugs & money” culture. Of course we know that not all hip-hop is the same, and spare us the comments of “what's real or not.” Are hip-hop and rap different? Is one good and one bad? That's a topic for another time (or essay – check out the excellent book Hip-Hop and Philsophy). What I would like to know is this: who holds the Authority?
There is an ongoing struggle right now in the world of hip-hop, and it is this: what is Moral Authority, what is its place in rap, and who validly …
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