Blacksburg State of Rhyme

Hip-Hop is a Multi-billion dollar industry. That's a huge pie ... does the Burg want a slice?

My best friend, Rona Younos, is a VT alum and Blacksburg local. When she went to Crossroads recently, she recalls she had a hard time finding the Outkast album she wanted in their small section labeled Rap. I don't mean this to reflect negatively on the store. I'm sure if hip-hop albums were a cash crop in town the selection would increase by demand. If this is the music that young people are listening to across America, then where is its presence to be found in Blacksburg?

It could be that, like my dear Grandmother, hip-hop in Blacksburg is on life support, holding on to an ill-fated existence while having to let go. Many hip-hop fans and critics feel that over the years the music has lost its freshness and originality. Mainstream rap music has become a shallow and superficial shadow of its former self. The industry is infested with greed, hubris, vanity and violence.

Rap as an art form used to embody beauty, pride and self-respect, a reflection of life's trials with echoes of hope. Hip-hop was life, power, and expression. Hip-hop transcended race, class and cultures and been a voice for the marginalized, from ghettos to the suburbs. But now, hip-hop seems to be about the money, which to me explains everything about why it has fallen in the eyes of so many. Commercial rap and hip-hop have ceased to relate to real people's lives.

The money-driven media corporations are largely to blame. On the other hand, they have the resources to promote large events and releases. Case in point: the last big Rap artists to roll through town were Kanye West, Common, Nas, and The Roots. I don't mean to perpetuate separation of School and Town, but all of these acts were brought to town by and performed at VT. All that lets me know is that Tech has the resources to pay for big acts and more importantly, the university has venues large enough to accommodate them.

The question is, what else is going on in town? Is hip-hop culture still alive?

Rest assured that there is a scene beyond the few, big-name acts that come to campus. The "underground" consists of artists who are not corporately sponsored and generally do not want to be. Most of our local artists are doing it "small time big," meaning an artist or group is doing well out there, getting paper, cheddar or that scrilla as the case may be, but is not known to mainstream media.

When even True Sound, a great local band that once rocked the blocks with a funky hip-hop soul, has slowed down these days as many of the members have dispersed to pursue different projects, we might forget the scene exists. And yet, today you might catch a hip-hop act at Champ's or Awful Arthur's, or maybe even see me during Open Mic Night at Cabo Fish Taco. Open Mic Night at Cabo is open to all artists. Rappers, poets and lyricists show up every Monday night to share their work in a supportive environment.

Blacksburg's hip-hop scene also thrives online. Because of the proliferation of the Internet, our art, political ideas, and especially music, are now easier to access. The net provides artists and activists a means to promote their work and ideas without large, established corporate interests. Via sites like myspace.com and P2P file sharing programs like LimeWire, we connect. Through late-night instrumental jam sessions and lyrical freestyle sessions, we connect.

Dorm room rappers and apartment MCs are making it up as they go in freestyle lines, writing and recording, creating and sharing their culture. It seems you have to get involved and bring something to the table as a artist or an enthused listener to find out how the Burg really feels about hip-hop. Once you do, you will find a scene that is still kicking to the break-beats of our hearts.