Rappers the Next Super Heroes?

The Guardian's excellent gamesblog has an editorial up discussing the role rappers and rap culture has taken in games. From the article: "Following Def Jam Vendetta and more pertinently Def Jam Fight for New York, this is another game that places real-life Hip Hop artists within a fictitious gangland setting. It's an interesting sub-genre, trading in on the mythologies that many rappers build around themselves in their lyrics, album art and endless feuds - fantasies of gun violence, rivalry and retribution."

Two comments

[Mike Hawk]

They have been making crappy games with rappers for a while now. [gamespot.com] Cash rules everything around me.

And I don't know what they mean about fantasies of gun violence. I bet 2-Pac wishes they only had fantasies of gun violence. And as near as I can tell, 50 Cent didn't shoot himself. Suge Knight isn't really a nice guy when you get to know him. Snoop really did get put on trial for murder. Man rap music is fun.

Re:Rappers the Next Super Heroes?

[macdaddy357]

Remember the cartoon, Hammerman? [tvtome.com] Neither do most people. MC Hammer was a superhero. It didn't last long. Neither will this.

It's counter-culture really

[Red Moose]

I mean, Snoop Dogg was actually a crack dealer, so when he is on TV talking about having the Roly on his arm and pouring Chandon and rolling the best weed, with pictures of the RR Phantom in the back, well, of course he will be looked upon as a hero (a workign class hero if you will, the John Lennon of the 2000s).

So if John Lennon is the working class hero, but he's basically a bad man with a lot of hoes, it's like he is the working class hero meets Wall Street. The modern life is that you must rebel (as usual) but instead of living "free" and so on, you basically live it up with bling and fish-egg coloured $300,000 cars.

This, ladies and gentlemen, is progress. The "system" has finally ironed out the rebels. This new version of The Matrix means that tyhose that rebel and try and fuck things up by killing people or selling drugs sell out and become pop-culture icons and never do we hear the likes of Snoop complain. Hell no, he's loving it. The modern "system" works. You can no longer rebel against anything.

I'd also like to add, that as a late 20s white male, I like Snoop Doggs new album a lot. So how's that for street cred? Huh? You badass mofo's like *my* type of Top 40 music?

Let's compare the messages

[snuf23]

Spiderman:

"With great power comes great responsibility"

Gangsta Rapper Man:

"When the bitch don't pay up ma money, the bitch get beat!"

Yah, at least ideologically the idea seems compatible.

Here's a Thought:

[superultra]

Maybe the many, many white developers finally realized that African Americans are - and have been- playing their games. Or maybe studios finally started hiring minorities, although probably the former is more true.

There is a long standing tradition of ignoring minorities in video games, save perhaps sports, so it's nice to finally see them being more inclusive of urban culture, even if they are motivated only by profit. Personally, I fail to see how "millionaire ex-drug dealers" are any worse than the ultra-violent, womanizing main characters that have almost universally plagued video games since the PSX.

Especially that Mario guy and his "princess."

Re:Here's a Thought:

[superultra]

Good for you, that you manage to completely ignore race in your life. We should all be so lucky.

I'm not suggesting that African Americans enjoy games less because their avatar is always white. In fact, when given a choice, studies have shown that they more often choose white avatars over black, even when there is nothing more than a cosmetic difference. Of course, I'd venture to say that 90% of the hot, buxom leather clad females in WoW are actually not hot, buxom leather clad females in real life. In both cases there are issues of race and gender identity that we could write dissertations on (and people are). As far as not intentionally spiting black people, you're most likely right. But even if you don't intend to misrepresent minorities doesn't make it right when you do.

I don't have the time right now to download the multiple papers on this subject from JSTOR, violate copyright and post them on my webspace for slashdot to leech. Suffice it to say that there is plenty of discussion on this topic, both "high" and "low," and I pretty much echoed the current consenus, if admittedly a little crudely. That doesn't necesarily make me right and you wrong, but I'm certainly not an "idiot." Check out the film "Game Over," the Children Now study on race in video games, and work by Darnell Cornelman of Chicago State University, There's plenty more out there on this - heck, just google african americans and video games.

You astutely noted Asian developers. Smarter people than you or I have written smarty stuff on why modern Japanese pop culture idolizes white Americans and I'd be doing it an injustice by trying to summarize it since I haven't read beyond the abstracts. If you're interested, I can point you in the right journals.

I guess what I'm saying is: research before you call someone an idiot, please. Or think. Thinking would be nice too.