GC over at Radioventriloquist posted the following comment to my last post:
“how do you like his lyrics?
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/lilwayne/kisha.html“
Now the song she links is called Kisha and is pretty foul. I think in my new found respect for Wayne Carter as a man I neglected to address what I thought of his music as Li’l Wayne. This was too big of an answer to address in the comment section of my blog, but I thought God’s Child had a valid question. I also think that it is not only valid in the context of how I see Li’l Wayne, but how I see music, censorship, the 1st amendment and parenthood.
First, let me be clear in saying that while I know my daughter has seen and heard things I wouldn’t approve simply by way of my allowing her to leave the house. What she listens to and watches when she is at home is limited to what I purchase. She does not have access to download her own music because my personal laptop is the only one authorized for those accounts and she doesn’t buy cd’s or movies because she feels her money s better spent on making her lips shiny, her nails colorful, and being a little Lisa Bonet-ish fashionista. That is not to say that when she comes of age to buy or have access to such things I will ban it, but for now I wield my control of what is in our media library and limit those things I deem inappropriate. Has she ever heard a Li’l Wayne song? Yep, she has. Does she like Li’l Wayne music? Yep, she does. Neither of us had ever heard the Kisha song — mainly because if I buy or download a song by him it is usually the radio-clean edit.
Hip-Hop is a minefield for parents. Many rappers express concepts and discuss topics we cringe to think about and struggle to grasp even with our adult knowledge, but the music is oftentimes marketed to our children rather than the adults it is meant to entertain. I like Hip-Hop. It is not my favorite music genre, but sometimes it fits my mood or moves my workout routine in ways that (Neo-)Soul, R&B, Jazz or Gospel just don’t. The course language, the witty play on words, and the driving baselines just get good to me. I tend to shy away from songs that discuss women in a bad light, but I am not necessarily offended by it. I know as a woman that is hard for some to understand, but the truth of the matter is I have never been a whore, skank, slut, cougar, hood rat, or any other of the names many of the songs discuss. Since I know these songs couldn’t possible be referring to me I not offended by them, I don’t dignify them with a moment thought.
To me this is not just about Li’l Wayne. Music, Spoken Word, Written Word, and any other form of art you can think of all are protected under the first amendment. I may not like what your say or create but I will defend your right to say it. I don’t believe in censorship so I will defend your right watch, listen to and purchase whatever you want. The flip side of that is I retain the right to say whatever I want about any and all subjects including your obvious lack of talent and the disturbing way your mind works that would allow you to create the so-called art.
After the behind the music episode I downloaded a lot of his music to see how I felt about it. Some of it I really liked and some of it I disliked because of content, but all of it had the redeeming quality of having talent. I have to give him credit for having the ability to take the English language and use the words in a creative way and if I am very honest the songs I hated were only because of the lyrics. The music was actually pretty good.
So, in response to GC’s comment, what about his lyrics — some of them I like. Some of them I hate, but I defend his right to say them all. The ones I hate I don’t listen to. The one’s I like I loaded onto my iPod, and in the end I still respect the man behind the music. His life is typical of that of so many of our black men. Born in poverty, raised by a mother who didn’t understand that it is not good to expect your son to fill in your husband’s space, dropped out early, and yet he is still here and a productive citizen. No, he is not the most politically correct person. He is not a good role model with his drug use, drinking, and lyrics, but in spite of it all he is a man who knows his own mind and the space he occupies in this world. I can still respect that.
