But the 1990s also presented challenges for hip-hop and education. Hip-hop matured. It was no longer a passing fad, like break dancing; it actually had chart-topping and moneymaking potential. Many argued that this changed the messages communicated in the music. Regional trends developed—gangsta rap, East Coast, West Coast, and Dirty South—and the voices were not always unified. Some may remember the East Coast-vs.-West Coast rivalry and the violence it sparked, most infamously with the deaths of Notorious B.I.G. and Tupak Shakur. The music was changing, experiencing some growing pains. The challenge was for hip-hop to maintain its authenticity, stay true to its roots, and avoid commercialization while exploring new musical horizons, reaching different audiences, and expanding beyond the musical expression to a cultural expression.
As a teacher, I had to take extra time to reach and understand my students. I needed a healthy understanding of what hip-hop meant in their lives because, for most, it was what they listened to, saw on music videos, and discussed in their peer groups. By making attempts to understand their world, I was able to make education more relevant to their lives. As a history teacher, I made the effort to foster connections between Theodore Roosevelt’s Rough Riders volunteer cavalry and hip-hop’s Ruff Ryders record label. Hip-hop allowed me to build relationships with my students, to further their learning.
In the recent book Cultural Collision and Collusion: Reflections on Hip-Hop Culture, Values, and Schools, my coauthor Carlos R. McCray, an associate professor at Fordham University, and I said this about the power of music: “Music is indeed a form of entertainment and artistic expression. At the same time, it has meant so much more to African-Americans (as well as other groups). In all historical periods, the music is trying to tell us something. Encoded in the music are strife, distress, and powerful emotion. The music can also contain joy, peace, contentment, jubilation, and hope. This is the magic of music, to be able to take listeners on a journey to places they may have never imagined, or to give the listener an in-depth look into the soul of the person or persons making the music. This is the essence of the African-American experience; the highs and lows, the good and the gloom, the realization of the American dream in the midst of the American nightmare.”
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