Article Review 1

Tayler Thornton

WGST 202

T/Th 9:30-10:45

Professor Currans

Blog Topic: Masculinity and Hip Hop

Article Review #1

Jeffries, Michael P. "Can A Thug (Get Some) Love? Sex, Romance, And The Definition Of A Hip Hop 'Thug'." Women & Language 32.2 (2009): 35-41. OmniFile Full Text Select (H.W. Wilson). Web. 14 Oct. 2013.

In the article, “Can a Thug (get some) Love? Sex, Romance, and the Definition of a Hip Hop ‘Thug’”, Michael J. Jeffries examines and explains through performances of a rappers the need love, masculinity, and keeping the image of a ‘thug’. The author first explains love through rapper Tupac Shakur and Jay-Z through the break down of their lyrics. He then moves to a rappers’ sexuality and masculinity through rapper Lil Wayne, with interviews from magazines. Lastly the author sums up his article by explaining the term ‘thug’ which is the essentially the image that a rapper wants to portray. Overall the author displays a rappers’ need for romance, public image, and sexuality in hip hop music.

In order to back up his research, he first examines romance by looking at song lyrics from rapper Tupac and Jay-Z and breaking them down into what they really stand for. Tupac Shakur was the most probably the most influential ‘thug’ rapper in the game. He rapped about struggling, his life a child, death, and the harsh society he lived in. But people loved him because they thought he was being honest in his music and true to himself. Tupac made it clear that he was ‘thug’ but he also made it clear that cared for women and was in need of love. Tupac’s song “Me and my Girlfriend” was a hit song, using a gun as metaphor for a woman, a trustworthy companion who he adores above everything else. In rapper Jay-Z version of “Me and my Girlfriend”, called “Bonnie and Clyde”, featuring Beyoncé, he talks about his love for girlfriend Beyoncé and that no one can break them apart. The songs of course  have a comparison but in Tupac’s version he is filling the void of not having a woman in his life with his gun and in Jay-Z version his love is fulfilled. Even though rapper put off a hard shell and image of being a ‘thug’, everybody needs love and these two rappers prove it.

Jeffries then looks at a rappers need for their manly image by examining the songs of and interviews with Lil Wayne. Lil Wayne, a known rapper, has always made his sexuality very well know. The author quoted from Anderson that “These strategies include bravado, highlighting male distinctiveness in feminized space, and degrading both women and gay men”, and Lil Wayne did exactly that. In his song “Lollipop”, Lil Wayne looks at women as a sex object and getting sexual activity from the or him giving them sexual activity know as oral sex, hence the word ‘lollipop’. Lil Wayne made it clear that he masculine and that he did not partake in homo activity. In an interview Lil Wayne praises R&B singer Trey Songz for having women and said, “I’m like Trey Songz, no homo”. No homo-sexual means that he does participate in homosexual activity. Lil Wayne’s meaning for saying that is so that people will know that he does not have feelings for Trey Songz. Lil Wayne always displays his heterosexuality in his music and people respect him for that. Lil Wayne takes pride in his masculinity and portrays it often. In the rap industry being masculine is a must and if it is not portrayed fans and the media will always know and start talking.

Lastly, he brings all of his main points together in the final section of his article by referencing R&B singer and rapper R. Kelly. He explains that R. Kelly sings about love and still being masculine in his songs over his career and that no one “has impacted the meaning od ‘thug’ more than Kelly”. The word ‘thug’ explained earlier in the article, “Serves as a replacement for the condemned and explicitly racial insults of eras past like ‘nigger’ and is used to highlight immoral and/or criminal dispositions and practices embodied by young black men”. R. Kelly gave the world three types of thugs and three different songs. The first song by rapper Fat Joe featuring R. Kelly called “We Thuggin”, represented thugs as a symbol of money, meaning they live a high lifestyle with lots of parties and the ability to ‘ball’. The second song by Jay-Z featuring R. Kelly called “Fiesta”, indicates that being a thug also means talking to and having a lot of women and doing things to make them scream. The last song “Ignition” by R. Kelly, displays his sexuality by implying that he’s having sex with women, meaning that he is heterosexual. R. Kelly successful hit all three sections on the nail, saying that rappers in the industry need women (love), masculinity (no homo), and the manly image of being a thug.

This article displays good information about my blog topic, which is masculinity and hip-hop. Jeffries provides good insight on rappers’ careers and their need to be masculine whether if they are talking about money, women, or their sexuality. Although degrading women and homosexuals might not be a healthy way of flaunting their masculinity they do it. “Thugs need love too, but do not always walk a righteous path to get it”. This article ties into the article written by Michael Messner called, “Becoming 100% straight. Jeffries looks at a rappers need to be a man and be straight and in comparison so does Messner. Jeffries is focusing on rappers hiding behind their music to display a masculine look but Messner focuses on athletes hiding behind sports to look masculine. In my opinion they both do a great and thorough job of talking about sexuality in different ways and two different aspects of it. Jeffries article included a lot of break down of lyrics and what words actual mean in the rap industry and talks about a rapper masculinity in every section, I highly suggest people read this article if they want a better understanding.