Critical Analysis of an article

Title: A Woman’s View of Hip Hop by Tiffany Anderson

In the article “A Woman’s View of Hip Hop” by Tiffany Anderson she stated that her

first encounter with Hip Hop was negative. She was fed with the ideas that Hip Hop music only

deals with issues of drugs and gangs. She, at one point in her life despised rap music as do any

typical middle aged white subordinates. She found male rappers to be aggressive and ego driven

as the lyrics of Tupac Shakur, Biggie Smalls and Bone Thugs-n- Harmony conveyed. These

songs according to the writer are totally devoid of values especially in their beat and the strong

language. However, her views of Hip Hop changed when she started listening to the music of

female rapper such as Lauryn Hill and Foxy Brown who she believes conveys positive messages

through their songs. The attitude that the article display of Tiffany Anderson is that male Hip

Hop artistes degrade women and use them as sex objects while female artiste try to uplift women

by singing about more positives.

Male Hip Hop artistes degrade women and use them as sex objects in their songs. The

writer focuses on the beats and language used by the singers. She claimed that the themes

explored by male song writers are derogatory to black women equate women with power and

money. She came to this conclusion when she found herself in a group of young men who

actually like rap music but who were also her to her first encounter with drugs. One can argue

that music has some amount of influence on the listener but it is the listener who made the

choice. The writer points to three specific rappers who have negative themes in their music but

does not make mention of the male rappers who conveys positive and uplifting songs, eeven the

same ones that she had mentioned. Take for example Tupac Shakur song titled “ Dear Mama”
which gives strength and encouragement to mothers who may feel that all hope is gone. He

writer made a choice to listen to female artistes who sing positive songs.

Tiffany believes that women rappers have something different to offer. She asked

questions such as what do these women have to offer that is so compelling? What makes a good

female rapper? She answered this by admitting and comparing that some women artiste do sing

like the males. She said that one set follow in male artist while the other set offers a woman

perspective on many topics.