I remember on my blog once you said: "You see, as a black woman, ...I got a love/hate affair with hip-hop. I live this duality when it comes to hip-hop music. The lyrics are often not women friendly. The videos are often not women friendly. And these things do a lot toward the degradation of the black female identity in a popular cultural context, as well as in a transglobal commodified world."

Since then I've wanted to ask you...how do you reconcile your love for the music and your feminist values? Are you allowing too much as a Black woman?

Forget what outsiders think of us...where's the voice INSIDE the culture/industry that's keeping us in check? There are too many woman involved in the business side of the music- publicists, journalists, stylists, choreographers, A&R's, managers, promoters, and most importantly the ACTUAL FEMALE BUYERS THEMSELVES for there not to be some sort of awakening concerning the misogyny in hip-hop. Recently, Lizelle of Paper Thin Philosophies challenged all hip-hop bloggers to consider this issue (see http://www.hiphopmusic.com/archives/000468.html ) Was this post in response to that? I may post mine tonight...

But bottom line is you ladies can demand a change if you want to. But you don't. Instead it seems that while we destroy you in our music, you destroy us in your literature. Yup. Black female authors have a bad habit of dissing men in written word. Read The Color Purple, Waiting to Exhale, and all of the wanna-be novels that came after.

Ain't we negroes a big happy family?

Yo Madison, what up slice? You know you got a sistah' ova' here really ready to do some serious dialogue, but unfortunately I'm about to get on a plane.

I'll get back into this conversation as soon as I can. You asked some questions that I would further like to speak with you about.

Now THIS is what I'm talking about. I hit your site every week, but this entry is on point. I wish THIS appeared in XXL or the Source. I believe that hip hop is going through its own growing pains like Common said back during my younger years. I also think that the moment corporations are no longer interested in it, it will return to its essence of the spoken word on tight beats (I know that that comment isn't really germaine to the conversation, but that money does fuel some of the foolishness). I hope it survives to be enjoyed by others the way jazz has.

I'm sorry to go on and on, but you hit it with this one...you hit it. Thanks and have a safe trip.

I wish I knew enough about hip hop to comment intelligently on this topic, but I don't. I'm afraid that the rampant sexism of hip hop is the main reason I closed my ears to it many, many years ago. Oh sure, I've been seduced by beats by the odd track here and there just like other people, but by and large, hip hop never entered -- or more correctly -- I never let hip hop enter my space because I could not, in good faith, allow something that devalued my sisters and myself so strongly into my space. It's self-defeating and insidious, and because I truly believe you are the company you keep, I don't keep company with the majority of the stuff that's out there.

The one comment that's spun its way through all of these threads is that if women stood up and said someting/stopped dancing to/stopped their tacit approval of hip-hop that all of the foolishness would stop. Well, that's a nice (and naive, and not terribly nuanced) thought, but I'm reminded of what Malcolm X said about teaching white people about racism. I'm paraphrasing here, but essentially he said that black people shouldn't bear the responsibility of teaching white folks about racism, because as long as the teaching came from those who were most victimized by it, white folks would continue to tune it out. Feminism is similar. As long as complaints only come from women, men -- and sadly, many women -- will continue to tune it out. So yes, while it is sad and notable that women's voices have been largely silent on this issue, it's time for some brothers to step forward and say that this has to end, to talk openly and honestly about the role (myth) of macho and hyper-sexuality in hip hop, and their active (and passive) participation in the continued degradation of (mostly) black women.

thank you cecily.

Yeah hip hop may not have the females going on in the spotlight like it used to (i think the rise of gangsta rap has so much to do with that), but what about the politics of being popular - of just getting your voice out there? I respect Missy, because although she did lose all that weight she still isn't Beyonce and doesn't get skimpy in her videos. Her popular songs may be about pushing various parts of the body, but there's examples on the same album about respecting yourself sexually and getting over the gangsta-image fever. It's not Ntozake Shange, but it does move in a certain direction - like Eve singing about domestic abuse. We need to think about what the musicians that we see (out of allllll there are trying to make it) have to maintain just to stay in the spotlight, and is there a sacrifice of putting on MTV, BET, etc a hot song so that some more interesting, social, and political material on the album will get to those willing to buy it. Should we allow/expect/make excuses for artists who are putting out mixed signals (about being and representing 'female'), or weak signals, because they are working within popular standards? I wonder if anyone has an answer to how to change the media's standards - and the popular tastes, even for many women, they propigate thereby - so that the Sarah Jones' of hip hop get out to the young listeners out there who may mistake the game for reality (as many rap stars seem to do too).

personally i love hip hop and im a devoted fan. but i do find a problem in the degrading lyrics toward women. Rappers always talkn about how much they love "their" black women- but then you hear them calling us "bitches" and "hos." No doubt that rappers run into a lot of hoes and groupies on the road- but when you express it in your music, make sure you specify whose the hoe- groupie and the normal female who supports your rap career. when i hear them shout out " suck my dick" "drop it like its hot" " fuck me, suck me" i tend to feel like rappers have a one track mimd and feel that way about all females. i cant personally say this is true about rappers because i dont see what they see and i dont experience what they do , but if you dont want people to assume something about you, say what you mean and mean what you say. put a more positive image in front of you.

IMHO, hip-hop is now in the same place that rock & roll was in the 1970's----apolitical, uber-macho, materialistic, selling out to the very (white male) Establishment it once despised (or claimed to).

Well there are women out here who are the typical "hoe" that these rappers rap about...they live that life...they are HOES....so I say " A hoe is a hoe", just as "a Bitch is a bitch" If the shoe fits, where that bitch

i understand where u coming from

I am doing a project about stereotypes of black women in film , and there are good ideas, i am 17 years old and i myself have been noticing the degration of black women in society I have been seeing the way men show women in such a image that no man wont respect her unless she shaking something off oh excuse me not respect but notice her unless she take something off, alot of girls ive talked to for interviews so i can write my paper said some of the same things as ,"he aint talking about me" , but he are talking about us we are women and are all the same in a sense , thats what i dont understand women let these men show them in the type of image we are seen today ,by showing some skin . yaes i agree with yu lynned becaus maybe you should try to show more concern and try to influence more women out there to speak up , i know im trying.

Lynne D johnson
If say I wanna produce an album for a female rock singer from Asia. She'll do one english number, its about women against domestic violence, and I need a female rapper from the US to do a few lines for the song. Who do you think would be a good choice? Any names & contact? It's a rock song with a bit of rap, like Evanescence's "bring me to life". Please advice. Million thanks.

regard & peace.

mark_piet@excite.com