2008-10-23T18:09:00.000-07:00

Hip-hop culture is generally perceived to be violent and uncouth. This perception seems to have become status quo among our society. The ads on this blog break the mold, using hip- hop culture as a means to restore our communities, our young people and even our lives to a more wholesome way of living.

This ad is a BET commercial. It encourages the young hip hop generation to speak their minds on their website by presenting young poeple discussing interesting topics and engaged in conversation.

Here is an anti-drug ad that uses hip hop slang to get its message across "ey lil man..." "Nah man I dont smoke weed, I smoke clowns like you on da b-ball court".
Here are some definitions :P

Nah= Da Gangsta way to say "No"

Nah, thay ain't right!

Lil' man= a little boy or a young man

Come on lil man, we need to go to the store.

Smoke=

To kill.

Smoke that fool!

Someone got smoked last night.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=smoke

Hip-hop ad in politics. This ad uses hip hop language/slang to communicate with its culture-resulting in a connection between its culture and politiacal awareness-

"Homeboy" may refer to:

-a slang term meaning "friend"

-Guy to chill with. long-time friend.

-The epitome of a friend. Somebody you kick it with. A person who always has your back. You can't go through life without a homeboy. It's hard to have more than one, because they're one in a million.

-Contrary to popular belief, homeboy along with homie were both created by Chicano aka Mexican American Pachucos from the word "Hombre" which is spanish for "man". It all derived from the slang they used known as "Calo".

-a term used commonly in hoods and ghettos closely related to Dawg. the elongated version of homeboy. for those who have more time for greetings, "Homeboy" can be replaced by something like "Home skillet biscuit on a sesame seed bun with creame cheese mustard jello and ketchup on a sunday morning" Homeboy is often associated with "sup" and "yo."

Yo, sup my homeboy baked fresh on a homeskillet homebiscuit homemade by my momma?

http:///www.urbandictionary.com

(LOL)

Here's a logo used to advertise a group that seeks to stop illegal Grafitti. Realizing that Grafitti can provide "positive artistic oportunities", this group
uses grafitti to draw young people into a positive enviornment that will help build their communities. A perfect example of hip-hop culture changing our streets...

The ad uses

-Bright colors

-Grafitti font (bubble letters)

and black letters on the word "anti- grafitti" which is a serious color as opposed to the bright colors on "art and culture". This portrays the seriouse issue of grafitti yet appeals to young peoples fun nature in a positive way.

"It is through a combination of community support, engagement, inclusion and skill development that opportunities for our young people can be realized. SCYAP continues to be successful in using art & culture based ventures in community building, crime prevention/intervention, youth personal development and as an anti-graffiti initiative. The process is not an overnight solution but a long-term developmental initiative that uses peer influence and education as its prime ingredients. By building within the community a comprehensive collaborative plan that incorporates numerous artistic ventures geared to the engagement of young people, we can develop the basis for positive peer influence, education and positive group contagion. These endeavours also embed extensive practice of skills and habits that school and effective family life increasingly demand: teamwork, persistent effort, self-monitoring, creative problem posing and problem solving, and negotiation of argument and critique." http://www.scyapinc.org/Services/Graffiti/graffiti.htm

This website is an ad on myspace advocating change throughout the streets of Baltimore. More specifically, check out the ring tones they posted as a means to get the word out: "Stop the Violence". The ring tones are created by this hip hop movements and feature (non-mainstream) hip hop artists who are concerned about the well- being of their city streets.

http://www.myspace.com/bettermyworld

Here's another clip promoting anti-violence acts. It features personal testimonies of youth and young adults who have either been hurt or have witnessed someone get hurt by the bullet. The images of cemeteries (images both found at the very beginning and end of the video), ambulances, police and dead bodies give us a visual idea of the importance of this message: "Stop the Violence". Not to mention the spoken word performed by two young males encouraging the audience to make a difference. The 1st speaker is the "voice" of a dead man who was murdered due to acts of violence his community and himself engaged in. He poses the very important question "the life I pursued, was it all really worth it?" appealing to the thug, hustler, drug-dealer, etc. who take part in violent activities. The second speaker is the "voice" of change. As he speaks to the rhythms of the hip hop beats in the background, he utters this line motivating the audience to think about the value of life: "Price tags on toes come cheap, you'd think life would be a bit more expensive". In the end the two men stand side by side almost to suggest a cause and effect- because we hurt each other, lets make a difference. It is also important to note that at this moment the "voice of change" is wearing a t-shirt that says "I am Hip-Hop" advocating change directly to the hip-hop culture.

This is a video advertising anti-violence in the streets of Baltimore City using Rap (one of the major elements of Hip-hop culture). The commercial drew my attention because it uses the youth of Baltimore City to give there own experiences and input on violence. Note, also, that the commercial takes place on their actual school grounds.

This ad uses Graffiti, another element essential to hip-hop culture, in order to encourage the people from our communities to take a proactive step in changing our communities and ultimately our futures.

Hip Hop Culture: Changing our Streetz