Why White People Like Hip Hop

The other day I was at a party and the fact that I wrote about hip hop came up. I got totally clowned. "You listen to rap?" they asked incredulously. "But you're so white!"

Yes, it's true. I'm white. I'm not just white, I'm totally fuckin' white. I listen to NPR. I go to farmer's markets. I compost. My and my DP (domestic partner) are starting a mid-century modern furniture collection. I do yoga. I vacation in Italy. I'm fucking WHITE. There is nothing about me that is the least bit edgy, urban, or ethnic, unless you include European in your definition of ethnicity. Also, I'm not exactly the most masculine or imposing man on earth.

So my relationship with hip hop is a little confusing. Why do I spend so much time listening to music that doesn't reflect my experience or fit my demographic? Well, thanks for asking. Allow me to explain.

1. I like beats. I grew up playing the drums. Hip hop is all about drums. I like beats, and hip hop gots em.

2. Hip hop is doing a lot of interesting things musically. Especially compared to rock, which has gotten increasingly stagnant. Producers like Madlib, the Neptunes, and Timbaland are really pushing the envelope musically.

3. I've listened to punk and indie music for the past thirty years, and I'm fuckin' BORED of it. My capacity to listen to white dudes whine is very small these days, and I find a lot of alt-country and/or singer songwritery music boring and self-indulgent. Blecch.

4. Hip hop is the ultimate music snob music. It is impenetrable, multi-layered, post-modern, self-referential, and you can always discover artists that no one has ever heard of. It also embodies the punk rock DIY spirit,

4. Hip hop better reflects the world I live in. I still love white people music like Elliot Smith and Wilco, but it seems to exclude a large portion of the population. It makes me feel lonely and isolated when I listen to it. I may be white as fuck, but my community, my friends, my coworkers, my sisters-in-law aren't, and hip hop seems to be more inclusive of non-whites than indie folk. Not that listening to music made by people of color makes me more down with their experiences and struggles of course. I'm sure black people could give a fuck what I listen to, and rightfully so. Still, the best hip hop creates this feeling that we are all at the table, and gives me hope that we can all find common ground. (That said, I don't think I will ever connect to a hip hop track in the same way that I connect with a Minor Threat or Jawbreaker song.)

So that's why I love hip hop. Of course, I make a concerted effort to not confuse listening to music made by badasses with being a badass, so if you ever catch me borrowing some of hip hop's swagger, please call me on it. Now I'm gonna go listen to some good old boom-bap.