Every world culture, from rural America to urban Taiwan, has its own definition of manhood. Some are domineering, while others are moving into a more modern idiom of equality and respect.
The American urban male is in a curious battle for his manhood, as shown in the documentary “Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes.” The movie talks about the sexism, violence and homophobia perpetuated by hip-hop music and culture – a slightly stale topic, even for PBS, which broadcasts the doc on Tuesday.
But what’s most interesting here is that filmmaker Byron Hurt brings all of this back to a guy’s struggle for manhood. How does a man define himself, and how does that affect his treatment of those around him? Given the current slate of rappers and those who emulate them, it’s no wonder certain plagues still haunt urban culture as they do.
This film is Hurt’s search for a “broader definition of manhood within hip-hop,” and it’s a journey that’s worth taking.
For many urban males, their most prominent role models are the superstar MCs dominating the charts and magazine covers – Eminem, Kanye West, 50 Cent and others ranging from Jay-Z to T.I., Akon to Snoop Dogg. And what’s a guy to do when his heroes spit hate and misogyny while wielding giant guns and even more menacing egos?
He mimics their behavior, to an extent – their dress, demeanor and dealings. The hip-hop-loving man isn’t dumb. He sees the disconnect between the fat MC and his bloated persona. The MC lives in elite and wealthy New Jersey suburbs as his persona still dwells in the urban ghetto. The MC has bodyguards while his persona still packs heat daily.
But which is sexier: Eminem in his mansion with his kid and housecleaners or his alter ego, Slim Shady, our modern-day Jesse James?
A brief cross-section of these artists shaping the modern male helps identify patterns in defining manhood in the hip-hop age.
Artist: Eminem
Message: Manhood is domination and brutality.
Marshall Mathers, 34, was born in Missouri but made his name on the streets of Detroit. Known for rapping about his poor, white-trash upbringing, he was public enemy No.1 from 1999-2002 because of his women- and gay-hating lyrics that set him up as an undiagnosed sociopath.
Eminem passed the controversy off as his alter ego’s mischievous behavior, and later the MC dueted with Elton John at the Grammys and released “The Eminem Show,” which remains one of the biggest-selling rap albums in the genre’s history. He still raps freely about beating women, only now he has infiltrated the public conscious via constant media exposure and the blockbuster film “8 Mile.” In fact, now such topics are commonplace and barely noticed.
Artist: Kanye West
Message: Manhood is 100 percent ego.
West, 29, likes the controversial spotlight as much as Eminem, only the two couldn’t be more different. Born in Atlanta, West made his name in Chicago as a producer for Jay-Z and others. Eventually his work earned him a record contract, and with that mic came a larger platform/soapbox for his outlandish personality.
As soon as he was given the opportunity to speak out, West quickly came out vehemently against the homophobia in rap music. West later posed as Jesus Christ on the cover of Rolling Stone, and while appearing live on national television during a benefit for Hurricane Katrina, went on an emotional rant that concluded with the judgement, “George Bush doesn’t care about black people!” West very publicly flipped out during the televised MTV Europe Music Awards last year when he lost the best video category.
Artist: 50 Cent
Message: Manhood is being a thug – and surviving it.
Curtis Jackson, 30, was born on the hard streets of Southside Jamaica, Queens – a neighborhood that shaped his life and still informs his music. Jackson hustled drugs and was a regular at local jails and prisons. He’s been stabbed, but more famously he’s been shot – nine times. So 50’s lived that thug life many consider a myth.
50 invites controversy as much as any rapper. His lyrics are violent and crude toward women, but 50 is one of the few rappers selling at this consistently multiplatinum level actually to have lived the life he writes about. While the MC still encounters gunplay on occasion, most of that appears to be behind him. A few years ago he bought Mike Tyson’s old house in Farmington, Conn., for $4.1 million. The 50,000 square feet is home to 18 bedrooms, 25 bathrooms, five Jacuzzis, two billiard rooms, a movie theater and a locker room.
Pop music critic Ricardo Baca can be reached at 303-954-1394 or rbaca@denverpost.com.
