Political hip hop

Public Enemy’s, It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back, is one of the defining albums of the political hip hop genre

Political hip hop is a subgenre of alternative hip hop. Though mainstream and crossover acceptance has been generally limited to crunk & pop rap, some artists with a socially aware and positive or optimistic tone or a more avantgarde approach have achieved some success. They are often referred to in mainstream musical circles as conscious hip hop due to their focus on political issues surrounding the black community, which differentiates them from gangsta rappers. Fans of such rappers tend to view this genre as more authentic hip hop, claiming that they harken back to hip hop's early days where several artists rapped about "socially conscious" issues and gangsta rap had not yet gained mainstream acceptance. Recently, Political hip hop has been brought into the mainstream with Lupe Fiasco.

Public Enemy

Public Enemy is one of the definitive voices of "conscious hip hop," verbally confronting institutional racism, police corruption, and the legacy of slavery in the United States. They attracted youth because of their ability to boldly criticize and reveal serious contradictions in American democracy. Since then, other rappers have promoted positive messages. For example, with songs like "Stop the Violence" and "Self-Destruction," KRS-One has dedicated his talent to opening the ears of a world that often seems cruel and drenched in hate. Eric B and Rakim, EPMD, Schoolly D, Slick Rick, Poor Righteous Teachers, and Ice Cube all helped to build this movement.

Lyrical content

With conscious hip hop lyrics become more poignant as the rhythm continued to capture the attention of young audiences. The following excerpt from Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five's "The Message" demonstrates how the lyrics and rhythm come together: "Got a bum education, double-digit inflation/ Can't take the train to the job, there's a strike at the station/ Don't push me cause I'm close to the edge/ I'm tryin' not to lose my head/ It's like a jungle sometime it makes me wonder/ How I keep from going under." Because of the beat and the rhythm of the music this particular song appealed to a large audience and the message against the oppression of African Americans spread with it.

Revolutionary hip hop

In recent years, political hip-hop has increasingly represented a revolutionary message, including themes such as communist class conflict and revolutionary feminism and anarchism. Such artists include:

• 2Pac
• Immortal Technique
• Bigg Jus
• louis mohamhed benza
• Dead Prez
• Blue Scholars
• The Dope Poet Society
• Looptroop
• Nimrod (with Red Army Productions)
• Sabac
• P.O.S.
• The Coup
• Zearle
• Gatas Parlament
• Paris
• Emcee Lynx
• Ill Bill
• Non Phixion
• The Perceptionists
• Enki
• Verbal Threat
• BiggBoss Semi
• Zion I
• Cilvaringz
• The Lost Children of Babylon
• Hasan Salaam
• Mr. Lif

• Spirit Child
• Kahjee
• Akir
• Movement In Motion
• Rebel Diaz
• Rod Starz
• Readnex Poetry Squad
• Welfare Poets

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