mike brown

PART 5 - Rap, Race & Riots (How the Rodney King Verdict Changed Hip Hop)

PART 5 - Rap, Race & Riots (How the Rodney King Verdict Changed Hip Hop)

 

The anger and frustrations of the community were put on display for the world to see, stores were burned and looted. While it was nowhere near the magnitude of LA, it was a reminder to America that you can only push a community so hard for so long until eventually they push back. All news media directed their efforts towards the happenings of Baltimore, and as fate would have it, all of these events occurred within days of the 23 year anniversary of the Los Angeles uprising. Maybe it’s a sign of things to come, or maybe its just a coincidence.

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PART 4 - Rap, Race & Riots (How the Rodney King Verdict Changed Hip Hop)

PART 4 - Rap, Race & Riots (How the Rodney King Verdict Changed Hip Hop)

 

If there’s anyone that ever wants to understand the state of mind of those during a revolt such as the one witnessed in LA some 23 years ago, ’The Predator’ may be the best depiction. The anger is evident, as is the cry for help. Neglect of entire city neighborhoods creates the attitude in which Cube posses throughout the album. 

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PART 3 - Rap, Race & Riots (How the Rodney King Verdict Changed Hip Hop)

PART 3 - Rap, Race & Riots (How the Rodney King Verdict Changed Hip Hop)

For years before the Rodney King beating, hip hop had been talking about the way young black males were being mistreated by the police departments in their neighborhoods. With the exception of the fans of the art, and those living in those communities, their cries were widely ignored. The most well known track about the relationship, N.W.A.’s “Fuck The Police”, got the attention of the federal government who would send a cease and desist letter to the groups' record label. The news of this only made the group more popular, and to make matters worse, their music was becoming more and more popular in the suburbs.

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PART 2 - Rap, Race & Riots (How the Rodney King Verdict Changed Hip Hop)

PART 2 - Rap, Race & Riots (How the Rodney King Verdict Changed Hip Hop)

At the same time another group of citizens headed to the LAPD head quarters downtown. What ensued is something out of movies, officers rallied inside, but were clearly outnumbred. As rocks, and garbage cans begin to fly in the direction of the plated glass windows that extended throughout the exterior of the buildings structure. Residents wanted answers, and if they would not be given, it could gladly be taken in blood. 

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Rap, Race, & Riots (The Story Of How the Rodney King Verdict Changed Hip Hop)

Rap, Race, & Riots (The Story Of How the Rodney King Verdict Changed Hip Hop)

The story of how the Rodney King verdict changed hip hop (5 Part Series)

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