Thursday, September 6, 2007
Music news Read the muh'fuckin' context clues, CNN
Posted by Rodney Carmichael @Rappin_Rodney on Thu, Sep 6, 2007 at 2:12 PM
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What does CNN know about hip-hop?
Not much, based on the segment it aired last weekend (Sept. 1) grilling Bomani "D'mite" Armah and his song/video "Read a Book."
On the surface, it's hard to argue in favor of chanted lyrics that chide listeners to "Read a book! Read a book! Read a muh'fuckin' book!" But place the satirical song and video in its proper context, and it offers a biting social commentary on rap music's explicit excess.
CNN's lopsided coverage of the broiling controversy over the video for the song almost seemed like a parody in itself. Maybe the network was trying to show what it would look like if its "fair and balanced" competitor Fox News had tackled the topic. CNN obviously went out of its way to organize a panel of local black parents -- which included several key players in the city's progressive music scene: Kembo Tom, DJ Tabone, Cara Clark and Eddie Meeks -- and get them all riled up over the video, then tape them condemning it so it would segue perfectly into news anchor Tony Harris' attempt to back Bomani "D'mite" Armah and video director, Tyree Dillihay, into a corner. It's another fine example of what happens when mainstream media incites rather than providing insight.
(check out the "Read a Book" video below the drop)
Makes you wonder why the network doesn't attack the real cultural offenders? There are plenty of real rappers, like Atlanta's own Lil Jon, who have been making explicit videos for years (minus the sociopolitical satire), and neither CNN nor Jesse Jackson had much to say. Speaking of Jackson, here's a portion of the statement he issued on behalf of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition:
"Read a Book" heaps scorn on positive values and (un)intentionally celebrates ignorance. The narrator is obviously illiterate, unkempt and disrespectful.
Funny, but you could almost substitute any rap video that airs everyday on BET in place of "Read a Book" in Jackson's statement, and it would still be true. But he's probably not going to go out of his way to criticize the network Bob Johnson built. Here's a twist of irony, though. BET actually produced the animated video in question after cutting an undisclosed deal with song creator Bomani Armah. You can read the details about how his over-the-top song/video has supporters and naysayers up in arms over its intended meaning in writer Sufiya Abdur-Rahman's article "Delay of fame" that was printed in last week's edition of the Washington City Paper (which was recently acquired by the owners of Creative Loafing). Granted, both parents and critics have a legitimate beef regarding the time of day BET chooses to play "Read a Book"; but it's sad to think they've come to accept the continuous string of hypersexual rap videos that air in the same time slot.
The truth is "Read a Book" is a satirical, hysterical mess. It crosses all the lines and makes a mockery of African-Americans — but so do these real-life hip-hop videos. Judge for yourself:
Check out Atlanta's own Lil Jon feat. Pastor Troy in "Throw It Up":
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And Atlanta's own Ying Yang Twins feat. Lil Jon in "Get Low":
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Now, view "Read a Book" in its proper context:
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Finally, check out part two of CNN's segment on "Read a Book," and ask yourself, is Bomani Armah a Judas, or a genius?
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Comments (10)
Showing 1-10 of 10
i was all ready to argue my agreement w/ CNN...until i reached the end. i digress...you are right. perhaps if CNN chose to spotlight the hundreds of other deragatory videos highlighting every mysogynistc ill in hip-hop, or better yet, just ONE of those semi-pornographic video's running on B.E.T's Uncut videos, then there would be no point for some over-the-top deragatory 'read a book' video anyhow. what's sadder to me? that a white man inked a deal implying that the only way blacks would learn was through more ignorance...and that a black man agreed...and signed that deal.
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When I first heard about it, I was angry too, but I realized that the Read A Book video is played at the same time slot as the other booty bouncin' videos. So what is the real issue? Why is your 13 year old watching black booty bouncin' BET in the first place? And why do they single out the one video where the message is positive. We DO need to read a book, take care of our kids and buy some land instead of $3000 rims. If you are going to talk about Read A Book, talk about the crap they play before and after it. I think the real issue is that a positive message slipped through and the powers that be don't like it. So they put black parents up there, who are dumb enough to sit their kids in front of Black Exploitation Television, to talk about the negative image "Read A Book" portrays, while ignoring the other garbage that they let their kids watch. And why are they watching ignorant ass BET with their kids anyway. Turn that crap off and read a book with your kids! Read a mo' f'n book!
Fortunately, I don't have kids yet. But I'd like to one day. So I empathize with parents raising kids nowadays. I don't plan to raise my kid in a vacuum, so I'm sure I'll have to deal with my share of parental grief in that regard. But I think complacency is the bigger issue here. The first time you saw Nelly swipe a credit card down a woman's bare ass in "Tip Drill," you are either really appalled or really aroused. The second time your reaction is probably the same. Ok, and maybe the third, fourth and fifth, too. But after awhile, it's just the same old shit. And while parents and critics have expressed outrage and frustration with BET over the years, after awhile those videos turn into wallpaper. They're so constant you don't even recognize them anymore. "Read a Book" has done exactly what the creators intended. It woke us up from our comatose state. But it seems many of us have been asleep so long we no longer realize who the true culprit is. I'm not saying people should let BET off the hook here. But if we're going to complain, let's make sure we take the network to task over the same things Bomani is taking rap to task over with "Read a Book" — not the other way around. Otherwise, we won't see the forest for the trees.
The truth of the matter is...well Bomani is speaking the truth. I really cant argue with the message that he is sending... how can you when he is simply telling parents and youth of the hip hop generation to read, maintain proper hygiene, invest money and be better parents? People are up in arms about the "packaging" of the song and the fact that 12 or 13 year olds do not understand satire...they do, they understand more than we give them credit for. If parents are properly rearing their children,the context and content of this song will be thorougly explained to them..if they are privvy to viewing the video. I think the creators of this song and video did a good job of stirring up enough controversy (not that hiphop needs any more)to get the platform to address the topics that are important and the exposure that they want. I for one, am a fan of positive and motivating messages being expressed via song and art to adolescents... this "read a book" video may be over the top, but the reality is, this is the kind of stuff that gets some kids' attention... I just hope that somebody will actually begin to read a book, brush their teeth and buy some land instead of some rims...
ok...."Read a book" is the best thing since sliced bread. My kids sing it and are reading books now, not magazines...and it actually sparked a conversation between us about buying land. I can't believe that those black parents are really sitting around comdemning the song and video. This is the best thing that hip hop on BET has going for it right now. Sincerely, Shut up and read a muh fu*kin book!
Do people not know what SATIRE means anymore, damn. Anyone who didn't catch on to that video really needs to read a book, but not just anybook, a got damn Dictionary!
I seriously doubt that the aforementioned parents condone any form of crunk garbage. The looks on their faces reflected the overall disgust that any discerning viewer/parent should have. Another issue that struck me concerning this video is the overall misunderstanding of satire itself. Satire is a pointed examination of a particular issue humorously to expose the underlying gravity of that phenomenon critically. For instance, Spike Lee's "Bamboozled" satirically examined the current state of black culture by juxtaposing it against the minstrel traditions of the early 20th century. Although the film begins with a comic approach, it evolves into a deadly serious critique of mainstream black culture and exposes just how little things have changed. "Read a Book' doesn't do that, instead, it serves up the same bullshit in cartoon form and is unable to transcend it's ignorant ramblings. Ask yourself this question: would "Read a Book" be as widely accepted if it were produced by white people? Would you people still champion it?
Finally a dissenting opinion. How refreshing. You raise some darn good points too, Tito75. Dictionary.com defines satire as "the use of irony, sarcasm, ridicule, or the like, in exposing, denouncing, or deriding vice, folly, etc." I think the most important (and overlooked) part of "Read a Book" is the beginning, when D'mite says in his Lil Jon-like voice: "See, I usually do songs wit hooks and concepts and shit, right. But fuck dat man, I'm tryna go platinum. So I'm 'bout ta rock this shit." "Read a Book" satirizes the plight of a "conscious" rapper who has given up hope of reaching his intended audience with intellectually stimulating messages, so he decides to dumb his shit down so the "masses" can relate — translation "Read a muh'fuckin' book." No, i definitely wouldn't champion "Read a Book" if it was produced by white people — no more than I would champion Al Jolson dressing up in black face. That's not cultural criticism; it's racism. In a sense, "Read a Book" is an inside joke, or a highly contextualized conversation. When taken out of context, it loses meaning, or means something altogether different. But I'm not defending "Read a Book," I'm critiquing CNN. Later this week, I'll post a bit of the conversation I had with one of the parents from the CNN panel. I think you'll be interested to hear what he had to say.
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