Another Harlem Renaissance?

All too often I hear murmurs of hip hop as a passing phase, and “music” that will in the greater scheme of things have very little significance in our history. Of course, these murmurs often come from the very same individuals who claim that the Harlem Renaissance will forever be the greatest era in black American art culture. Admittedly, the Harlem Renaissance produced some of the greatest individuals in our history (if you don’t know about the Harlem Renaissance be ashamed and then check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlem_Renaissance ). Imagine poetry without the words of Langston Hughes (listen to his classic poem “The Negro Speaks of the River”) or Countee Cullen (check out his poem “Saturday’s Child at http://www.afropoets.net/counteecullen6.html ). Imagine music without the sounds of household names like Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holliday, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and almost every power jazz musician of the early nineties (this list could go on for ages but for a taste go to http://www.jcu.edu/harlem/Performers/Page_1.htm ). To put it plain, America wouldn’t be America without the Harlem Renaissance.

In about 70 years some scholar will say, “America wouldn’t be America without the Hip-Hop Renaissance” as well. Many might say that Hip-Hop doesn’t have the poetry that the Harlem Renaissance did. To those I say, “ Shut up and listen to Black Ice for 2 minutes and then talk to me” (check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SY7pM8k8moY) . To those who say hip hop doesn’t have musical integrity and genius then take one second and go to a record store and pick up anything from Gangstarr to Common , or from Devin the Dude to Andre 3000 ( check out http://www.zshare.net/audio/guru-state_of_clarity_feat-_common_and_bob_james-mp3.html or http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2T1jdreS6ko ).

Hip Hop is great music, a great culture, and a part of history just like the Harlem Renaissance.