This probably isn't the correct way to state what point I'm trying to prove, but I think hip-hop is becoming more white. As a preface, I really don't know much in terms of hip-hop culture or history. But from a limited modern standpoint, I would argue that only a very specific type of this kind of music is successful in today's markets. Gone are the hard, controversial rappers that made the front pages in the 80's and 90's. All we have to do is look at the iTunes singles charts to see that they've been replaced by hoards of no-name artists that sell millions of one track and then disappear for the rest of their careers. They all sound the same. The songs all have the same nonsense premise. And if they don't, then they specifically cater to the middle-class white audience. Did Jason DeRulo seriously sample Imogen Heap in "Whatcha Say"? Are we seriously using "Hide and Seek", whose popularity skyrocketed with its inclusion in the series finale of The OC, to appeal to white teenagers? Are lyrics like those featured in "Kiss Me Thru the Phone" appealing to anyone else but 15-19 year old Jersey Shore girls drunk dancing to it in their parents' basement? Does Timbaland really have a new song out that features Disney prodigy Miley Cyrus? And let's not even get started on the seemingly now-mandatory inclusion of autotune by every single person, which Britney Spears (queen of all things white trash) has used in her music for years. Kill me, kill me, kill me.
This is what sells now. I'm unsure if this popularity is due in part to access to funds and / or the computer, but I don't know enough about previous record sales to make that assumption. All I know is that I have to hear "Replay" by whoever the hell Iyaz is every ten minutes on the radio and I am not happy about it.
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