Let first apologize for not posting as often as I usually do. The week caught up to me a little bit and I wanted people to catch up and look at some blogs that maybe they weren't able to see already. Also, I know that we were supposed to have an exclusive interview with Miles Brandon, but plans got a little thrown off, so hopefully we will be able to bring that to you within the next few days, so stayed tuned for that because this is somebody who really cares about the music and takes it seriously, not just jumping in for the glitz and glamor. However, you should still be able to pick up the mixtape at http://www.zshare.net/download/559379579ddf81d0/ and continue to look out for the interview real soon.

In the meantime, let me talk about a topic that has been swirling around the internet lately, which usually gets connected to Kanye West somehow, which is being gay and hip hop's perspective on it. When I make this statement, you may think that I'm crazy, but just hear me out. I think that the level of homophobia in hip hop has played a role in the state of hip hop as we know it today and has been a cause for why so many people are concerned about the art form. Now, I'm not saying by any means that people at one time were pledging gay pride and now they're not and that's why we're in this mess. However, I am saying that trying so hard to come off as not being gay has taken away from the creativity.

From the beginning of any musical art form, there has been this level of homophobia. It may not have been so obvious, but do you think there would have been any artist successful if they were singing about gay love? I think I've made my point there. But, this homophobia has hit hip hop a little harder than any other genre of music. From the beginning, there has been this connection of associating being gay with not being a good rapper. An example of this is on KRS-ONE's "The Bridge is Over," he attacks MC Shan and Marley Marl by saying that they rhyme "gay." However, over the years, there has been a heightened sense of homophobia around hip hop, and this has caused artists to watch everything they say on a record, for fear of being criticized and potentiallly loosing fans.

The first really good example, and probably the most obvious one I can give, that shows hip hop was not plagued by homophobia so much back in the day and to show how secure artists were with their work is through B.I.G. On Ready to Die, Biggie has a song entitled "Me & My B*tch." I am sure the majority of people have heard it, and I'm sure the majority of people were thrown off when he said that his lady friend looked so good that he would "suck on your daddy's d*ck." Yes ladies and gentlemen, the great Notorious B.I.G. made that statement. I'm not making any accusations here, my only point is that you never hear anybody talk about how "gay" that line was. Was Biggies sexual orientation every questioned? He was comfortable enough with himself to rhyme something like that. But I must say, even though he was comfortable saying that, you could show me the finest model to walk the face of the planet and I would contemplate what Biggie talking about. I'm sure most would agree, yet he was able to say that without any backlash. With that said, would we ever, ever, EVER hear somebody make that statement today? We all know the answer to that, so on to my next example.

Biz Markie, one of the funniest and likeable MCs in hip hop, had a classic song by the name of "Vapors." In this song, Biz raps the line "I was never into girls, I was just into my music." In this day of pimps and players, would this line ever come out of any rappers mouth? Once again, the answer is no. Everybody talks about keeping it real, but who kept it more real than Biz with that line. Once again, this is not saying that Biz himself is gay, but it is saying that nowadays people would be turned off by that line. Back in the day though, you took the line for what it was worth and the artists knew what they meant and that's all that they needed.

My last example comes by way of the great Slick Rick. On his classic album The Great Adventures of Slick Rick, there is a song by the name "The Moment I Feared" (one of my favorite, if not favorite, songs on the album). I'm not going to go through the whole story because those people who may not have heard it need to hear the whole thing for themselves, however at the end Slick Rick ends up getting taken to jail. When this happens Rick rhymes "But now I'm in jail/doin' life and I'm scared/Some kid stuffed me cold and greased me where no one dared/This was the moment I feared". With so many stories in today's rap ending with somebody behind a gun pulling the trigger, Slick Rick ended not just on a bad note, but on a "gay" note. This is the one and probably only time that we will hear somebody admitting to anything like this on wax, whether it be real or not.

In today's rap music, any little thing that is said is taken literally. I know people haven't forgotten about the "No Homo" campaign already. That literally leaked into the lives of millions of people and what I thought would only last for a couple weeks, has turned into something that could last a lifetime. While it has not been mentioned on records as often, I still run into people who have said no homo. It trips me out because sometimes I have to repeat what was said 3 or 4 times before I even realize what was "homo" about it.

Now, we have somebody like Kanye West stepping out and doing something that we're not accustom to doing, and the only label we can put on it is gay. Yes, I was defitiely a critic of his last album and some of the fashion choices he has made, but that hasn't lead me to the conclusion that he is gay. I think that Kanye is a very creative person and since he gives himself no limits, he is able to create great music. I actually wish that there were more people like that in hip hop. I don't want more auto-tune (to borrow lyrics from Common, "If I don't like I don't like it/That don't mean that I'm hatin;"), but I would like to see people come out and dress how they want and, more than anything else, say what they want on a record without fear of back lash. This would definitely bring more creativity into the music.

Now it's time for your thoughts. Have we gone to far with the homophobia? Are there any other examples of "gay" lyrics you can think of that can be used as examples? Will MCs ever be able to shake this homophobic state? Let me hear what you have to say. As always, you can just leave a comment at the bottom of this post or e-mail me at straightouttahiphop@gmail.com.


Peace.