Hip-hop pioneer Chuck D says rap ‘still speaks loudly, culturally’

Chuck D gathered a number of rap greats – including Ice-T, Run DMC and MC Lyte – who offered their firsthand accounts ahead of hip-hop’s 50th anniversary this year. Their reflections are explored in a four-part docuseries “Power Struggle: How Hip Hop Changed the World,” which is broadcast by PBS and available for streaming on its platforms and the YouTube with a premium subscription.

The series examines the history of hip-hop including the genre’s radical rise from the streets of New York City, creating a platform for political expression and becoming a leading voice for social justice.

“Fight the Power” talks about how hip-hop has an impactful role in speaking out against injustice after the racial and political reckoning in America in the 2020s. The killing of George Floyd by the Minneapolis police. The series, executive produced by Chuck D, features archival footage and insightful interviews from rap’s most integral figures including Fat Joe, Lupe Fiasco, Grandmaster Caz, B-Real of Cypress Hill, Melle Mel, will.i .am, John Forte, Roxanne Shanté and Abiodun Oyewole of The Last Poets.

In a recent interview with The Associated Press, Chuck D talked about the growth of hip-hop culture in 50 years, the genre is the backbone for the voices of Black men and how rap would last another half century.

Comments have been edited for clarity and boldness.

AP: You mentioned in your docuseries that hip-hop was a factor in the Black Lives Matter movement. How?

CHUCK D: It is a collective where people feel the same. It talks about the politics of injustice about George Floyd and is a spark that connected the whole world. Hip-hop has done the same thing. Hip-hop binds people together for their similarities and pushes the differences aside. It’s a movement, when you talk about collective people who feel the same, do something and yet remain within the constraints of the law. The youth will say, “OK, listen, let’s speak truth to power now. We will protest in the march. We’re going to show you numbers you haven’t seen in a while about something you probably didn’t care about. ” That’s hip-hop, right?

AP: During the birth of hip-hop, how did it help inspire Black voices?

CHUCK D: Black men have no voice. You may have sung records for people who were lucky enough to become recording artists. Our music is always code. Hip-hop is the term for our creativity, maybe for the last 50 years. But before that, we were always creative and musicians, vocalization, arts and craft, and also dance movement. That the elements became refined in another time in the ’70s from another Big Bang Theory in the socio political environment. That’s where that voice came out and it came out culturally. It still speaks loudly, culturally.

AP: How does your documentary expand on that idea?

CHUCK D: Some people like to deal with hip-hop where they first started. I think what this documentary series is saying is “Nah, this is where it starts.” You may have gotten it after you were born in the 1990s and maybe 2000, but it started before you.

AP: What do you want people to take away from your documentary?

CHUCK D: I don’t want people to do what they don’t want to do. If you say you love hip-hop, you should know what you love. You don’t have to love hip-hop. I always ask people, “Do you like hip-hop?” They will answer “Yes. I love it.” Then I was asked, “Do you love black people?” They say “What does that have to do with that?” I’m here to tell you that culture and music come from people. Sometimes your love for it needs to pour out and give something back to people. That’s the cycle.

AP: How do you feel about hip-hop being misinterpreted sometimes?

CHUCK D: I’m 12 years older than hip-hop, so I’m not surprised by this. I see the trajectory and my participation in it is to see if I can make it first, stand shoulder to shoulder next to everyone who is boasted and talked about. I am a big sports fan. You know, a lot of people in New York went broke because the Giants lost. That’s how they pledge their loyalty for something they say they love. Well, people love music too. They seem to know less about it than they do about sports, because sports sure don’t make you stupid. Stephen A. Smith is now a superstar reporter who makes sure that when you walk into the room, you’re not stupid about sports. You can’t lose your head and freestyle what you think if it’s true. This four-part series at least deals with the facts, especially in this misinformation age. Facts matter. Truth is not opinion, bro.

AP: How do you see hip-hop excelling?

CHUCK D: Africa is the future of hip-hop. These are 54 African countries. Not only do they drool like crazy, but they also weave in tongues. Hip-hop likes 3.0 when you talk about Africa. Hip-hop was there. That’s the sustaining power if you want to pay attention.

AP: Do you feel that rappers can still be commercially successful while being socially conscious?

CHUCK D: It depends on where they are and who they are talking to. If you are in France, this may apply to you. Every level you get into it, you have to go deeper because you’re building a fan base that’s three times harder than you. If you’re an activist, you bring in activists who are actually doing it. You as an artist can join them and group them.

Now, whether to make the artists keep the lights on or go out and get the Lamborghini, that’s a personal thing. Money is relative. There is pressure placed on the arts. That is an illusion. It’s a bit unfair in any art – that doesn’t necessarily bring you an industry. It is supposed to bring a canvas to the world.

AP: What will it take for hip-hop to survive another 50 years?

CHUCK D: Commitment collective, the people who recognize that this is a part of us and recognize the many parts of us that have become part of our cultural history around the world. We also need to know the world.