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Lily Poon
Music is a way to express our feelings and ideas. People use music as a mean to tell others what they have observed in the place where they live. Thus, music can also reflect the attitudes people have towards the society. The development of a particular music genre is closely related to what is happening around us.
Hip hop music is an obvious example of the line. It originates from the African elements in the United States. Actually these elements exist in blue, soul music as well. In the early 70s, influenced by the well developed soul music, the hip hop history started in Bronx(布隆克斯區) in New York City by the African Americans and Latino Americans.
The hip hop culture consists of rapping, DJ-ing, graffiti art(塗鴉), and breakdancing(霹靂舞). As a primary ingredient in hip hop music, rapping can be traced back to its African roots long before. It was a medium for the Negro(黑人) to express their pain and anger towards the unjust society in which they lived. And after centuries, it becomes a uniquie musical style with the performer speaking rhythmically and in rhyme, also accompanied with backing beats selected by the DJ.
How the term "hip hop" was created? It's believed that Keith Cowboy, a famous rapper in the 70s was the first person using this term. It was that he sang the words "hip/hop/hop/hop", imitating the sound made by the marching soldiers to tease a friend who has just joined the U.S. Army. And eventually "hip hop" comes to represent the new cultural movement.
The contents of hip hop music are always from daily life showing views on different issues of the author. But some critics say that the messages conveyed by it have become too violent and explicit, if music can truly reflect the society, our society could have become more violent and unjust than before.
Nonetheless hip hop is becoming more popular in Hong Kong. TV advertisements also make use of the hip hop rhythm. The Chinese American rapper Jin Au-Yeung or MC Jin(歐陽靖) who won in rap battles in "Freestyle Friday" (a segment on Black Entertainment Television's popular show 106 & Park) is a rapping spokesman in TV ads you may know. He is also the first Asian American rapper to be signed to a major record label.
In the view of reflecting daily life, he posted a freestyle rap on his MySpace page called "Open Letter to Obama", which is a pep-rally-like track honoring Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. He was invited to perform in an election campaign to support Obama then.
Excerpt from "Open Letter to Obama"
《給奧巴馬的信》節錄
Go go go Obama Obama (oh!)
奧巴馬 噢！
Go go go Obama Obama (oh!)
奧巴馬 噢！
I don't know politics, that's no joke,
我不懂得政治，不是開玩笑
But I do know that I get one vote.
但我知道我有一票
You wanna make change,
你想改變
Then you gotta take note.
就要留意
Watcha gonna do huh? (Take it to the polls)
你要做咩呢？(去投票)
Yo.Yo
Dear Obama, comma,
親愛的奧巴馬，逗號
First off, this is truly an honor I'm a supporter,
呢個係我真正的敬意，我係支持者
I wanted to say how strongly I believe in your bipartisan ways
我想講我好信任你兩個政黨的手段
Red states, Blue states, that's kinda late.
紅州(多共和黨支持者的州)，藍州(多民主黨支持者的州)，都已經out
In your eyes, it's only the United States.
効你眼中只有美國
Your campaign in 04 made an impact.
你04年的競選運動好有影響力
Alone you opposed to the war in Iraq.
你反對伊拉克戰爭
The other major candidates can't lie
其他主要參選者唔可以講大話
You still won the Senate by a landslide
你仍以壓倒性勝出參議院
Critics said we can't stand
評論員都話我D唔得
Then you stood on the podium and told em "yes we can"
你就効演講台話佢D知「我D一定得」
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