| Chapter 1: | Introduction |
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sharply boosted by sexual allure. Wanksta feminism is rooted in materialism and individualism. It has very little room for social movements and social transformation.
Chapter 5 explores some of the work by artists that attempt to resist co-option, those bards that seek to make alternative sense of the status quo. These are some of the hip hop artists who have not been swallowed by the commercialism of hip hop. They are inspired to do more with their message than praise thug life or arm-candy whores. These are the artists that challenge the very structures that have been used to perpetuate the negative images of the underprivileged. These are the bards that steadfastly hold on to the change and revolutionary tradition of early hip hop. Since these artists challenge the system of oppression and domination, the corporate media (controlled by dominant groups in society) rarely bring such artists and their work into the mainstream. The chapter also shows how some artists who have entered the mainstream at some critical points can also provide insightful critique of the system.
Chapter 6 attempts to bring all these pieces together in what we call “The Real Slim Shady: Capitalist Remix.” It is absolutely essential that we understand hip hop culture because it is not a passing fad; it is here to stay. Hip hop has had undeniably tremendous commercial success. Hip hop culture is more than the music alone; it is also the clothing, the attitude, and the overall lifestyle that goes with the territory. It is important to understand this phenomenon because there is a growing argument that race is no longer an important dimension of social stratification in contemporary society and that we are now a “color-blind society.” The commercial success of many hip hop artists, who are predominantly black, and the media representations of the “ghettofabulous” lifestyles of these artists—with their ostentatious display of uncompromised, high-end and custom-made Jacob the Jeweler bling and imported