Thursday 6 October 2016

Critical Investigation: Project proposal

Working title
·         To what extent does the rap music genre reinforce negative stereotypes of black African-Americans, with particular reference to ‘Straight Outta Compton’?

Angle

Rap music is the voice for black African Americans to get their point across which the media doesn't show about them and the harsh reality that they have living in the ghetto.

Hypothesis

Rap reinforces the stereotype to some extent but the lyrics and meanings behind the songs produced are only the reality that people who are black in America have to deal with.

Linked production piece

The violent nature that black people in America have to deal with and find a way to express their feelings through rap (music video/ production).

MIGRAIN

GENRE - The genre that this film belongs to would be music and history, we can easily identify this from the props that are there such as the cars, vinyl records being produced as they aren't produced as often now, the dates that are shown to show it's the past.

INSTITUTION - The institution that is promoted through the film is Ruthless Records with Eazy E and N.W.A were signed to, it also promotes record label Death Row records which is founded by Dr Dre and Suge Knight. Both of these record companies were associated with rap and hip-hop. The institution that produced the film is Universal pictures. 

AUDIENCE - The film Straight Outta Compton would promote a younger audience who are into hip-hop and rap but also those who were growing up listening to N.W.A. The age group would be predominately between 16-45 and a slyly more male audience (60:40 split male to female). This would appeal to those who are reformers as they are the ones who don't want to conform to what society thinks you have to do to be considered normal, they want to challenge the view and do something about it.

 IDEOLOGY - The group itself within the film N.W.A stands for n*****s with attitude, due to this promotes fighting back and not conforming to the norm of society which silences their opinions. It also promotes rap record label Ruthless Records which N.W.A was signed to also rapper Eazy E himself.

 REPRESENTATION - The representation of black males in the films are negative and are seen to be violent. The way they dress are seen to be as thugs which is seen to be a reason why they should be stopped randomly and searched in the street

 LANGUAGES AND FORMS - The film was designed to have the specific songs to show the police brutality and the reason behind what was happening in the lives of the rappers.

 NARRATIVE - The film is about the lives of rappers who are apart of the group N.W.A, it is about how they started off in the ghetto and worked their way up to becoming one of the best rap groups of all time.

SHEP

Social:
  • Police brutality which has caused the black lives matter campaign to take flight.
  • Ferguson shooting in America - Mike Brown shot down by the police
  •  Public Enemy - Fight the power was a political campaign song for the black people which are living in America who are seen to be inferior to everyone in society. 
Historical:
  • Rodney King getting beaten up by police in America.
  • The LA riots that took place during 1992.
  • The civil rights movement between the 1950s and 60s
Economic: 
  • Rap was underground music until institutions got involved.
  • N.W.A was signed to Ruthless Records.
  • Not seen as the political campaign it was but now a way to get money.

 Political: 
  • Public Enemy started a political campaign through the use of their music. 
  • Only ever been one black president in America 
  • Black lives matter campaign. 

Issues/Debates
  • Representation and stereotyping - Black males in America are seen to be violent and in a gang which is why people have negative representations of them.
  • Media effects - Negative representations of young people and if they're in a gang then black males are usually used or other ethnic minorities to reinforce the negative stereotype.
  • News Values - Always has a negative ideology on ethnic minorities and daily stories reinforce this.
  • Moral Panics - Young people are joining gangs and crime rates are starting to increase due to gun violence.
  • The effect of globalisation on the media - Stories such as black lives matter campaign have started to take off globally rather than just in America with the help of social media.

Theories

  • Semiotics - A scene during the LA riots where there is a blue and red cloth tied together is due to the bloods and crips which symonlises everyone coming together to unify against the racism in society in America.
  • Gender and ethnicity - Black males are represented negatively in the media and black females are also represented poorly.
  • Marxism and hegemony - The classes in society are split up which highlights that white people in society are superior to those who are of ethnic minority. 
  • Audience theories - opinion leaders can influence what the audience think; for example, Blake lives matter has a lot of celebrities speaking out which would influence the audience. 
  • Genre theories - rap films would appeal to those who are interested in it and would appeal to mainly those who are black and with the use of racism it is also more likely to as this is a historical film as well as rap. 

Research plan (media texts, academic texts and websites)

Media texts
Straight Outta Compton 

Other media texts
2pac changes 
Boyz n da Hood
N.W.A f the police 
Kendrick lamar alright 
American History X

TV documentaries
Racial Profiling: "Crisis of Distrust: Police and Community in Toronto" 
Police Brutality: "No justice, no peace" 
Racism in the media: "The Modern Racist Paradigm" 

Academic texts/books
  • Between god and gangster rap - Michael Eric Dyson 
  • Black noise - Tricia Rose
  • Rap and the Eroticizing of Black Youth - Michael Porter 
  • Fight the Power: Rap, Race, and Reality - Chuck D
  • Media culture and modern African American freedom struggle -  university press of florida

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