When Lupe Fiasco released Food and Liqour a few years back I was really into his work. He was a dope rapper with great production and his music provided poignent commentary on the issues that inner city youth face. He's since expanded his portfolio and become somewhat of a social activist and at times has taken positions that have sparked controversy. He also became really successful and his music took a decidedly more commercial turn and I eventually lost interest in him. I'm not mad at his venture into "pop rap", because I realize that he is in the music BUSINESS and it's his job to sell records and reach the biggest audience possible but it wasn't my thing.
My personal taste in hip hop runs the gamut from socially concious rap to gangsta. I can't event put my finger on what makes a song good to me. I just know it when I hear it. Bitch Bad is one of those songs that effects me on a number of levels. First; I think it's a great song. Second; It's a song with a positive message that hits home with a lot of people without sounding like a church sermon (Not that there's anything wrong with church sermons :)). Third; With a title like "Bitch Bad" your typical gangsta rap fan might give it a listen and hopefully learn something in the process. As a father I feel conflicted daily as I listen to music that often portrays women in a negative light and worry about the day my daughters are old enough to stumble across my play list. Bitch Bad is all about kids being exposed to these messages and how they don't have the life experience to separate fact from fiction in entertainment. In defense of hip hop I think this applies to everything, including other genres of music, television and literature. Context is king and without it we are all capable of being influenced by shiny things that look cool. In the video below Lupe breaks down his thinking behind the song.
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