Wednesday, November 29, 2006
2 is coincidence, 3 is a trend
The Baltimore Sun says that "Does Your Chain Hang Low" is actually just the latest iteration of a subgenre of hip hop called "minstrel rap" (I might argue against the conflation of hip hop and rap, but that's not really the point here). The story references a few other songs, and points to a New York Times article discussing the "Zip Coon" connection.
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Ugh, I found this quote really aggravating, for perhaps obvious reasons:
"Hasn't there always been dance songs like 'Chicken Noodle Soup'?" asks Jon Caramanica, music editor at VIBE magazine. "Haven't black and white kids always danced around, flapping their arms? It becomes easy to write off substance-free records. I'm trying to understand why they have relevance. It's worth noting the song in its natural locus instead of putting any sociopolitical weight on it that it never intended to have."
Who ever "intends" to have sociopolitical weight? Did the people who put or attended the 19th-c minstrelsy shows "intend" to have sociopolitical weight? Nay, Mr. Vibe!
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