- We've got a great show ahead for you on American Black Journal.

Hip Hop turns 50 years old this year.

We're going to talk about a new PBS documentary on the growth of hip hop and its roots in racial, and social justice.

Plus, we'll delve into the history of Detroit hip hop radio station, WGPR FM, and its influence on the African American community today.

Stay where you are.

American Black Journal starts right now.

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(upbeat music playing) (upbeat music playing) - Welcome to American Black Journal.

I'm your host Stephen Henderson.

It is really hard to believe, but this year marks the 50th anniversary of hip-hop.

The message in the music chronicles the experiences of black and brown communities, and it's the fastest growing genre in the world even today.

PBS is commemorating this milestone with a four-part documentary series executive produced by Chuck D, of Public Enemy, Fight The Power: How Hip Hop Changed the World.

Premiers right here on Detroit Public Television on Tuesday, January 31st at 9:00 PM.

Here's a preview followed by my conversation with one of the featured guests in the documentary, Dr. Hasan Jeffries, who's associate professor of history at the Ohio State University.

- In the 1960s, the air of resistance and turbulence helped create hip-hop.

Hip-hop became our voice that was for so long silenced.

- ♪ We got to fight the power.

♪ - When we look at a global context, people across cultures can listen and say, that's my story too.

(hip-hop music playing) - Dr. Hasan Kwame Jeffries, welcome to American Black Journal.

- Well, thank you very, very much.

Great to be with you.

- Yeah, it's great to have you here.

So, 50 years.

Boy, that makes me feel a little old.

I won't say how much older I am than that, but let's start with where that places hip-hop.

I think there's always a debate about when hip-hop starts when it kind of diverges from other forms of music.

How do we pinpoint that 50 year year anniversary?

- Yeah, I mean, so hiphop's chronological roots, certainly need to be connected to the 1970s.

So that puts us into that half century mark.

But of course, as you well know, I mean, music is informed and influenced by that, which comes before it.

And with hip-hop, we certainly see that made manifest in the use of sampling, for example.

I mean, the throwback, the inheritance.

But it is a unique form of black cultural expression that is born in the post civil rights, post black power, really almost post disco age.

And it is now much to the chagrin of of many doubters early on half a century old.

- Yeah.

Yeah.

I mean, I can remember arguments, and debates about whether this was music.

I can remember arguments and debates about whether it was appropriate because of the lyrics.

There were stations that said, we're not doing that.

We're not doing this.

Black stations that said they wouldn't play it, but white stations, I can remember these advertisements that would talk about what kind of music they did play.

And then they would say, and no rap.

It was instantly this kind of lightning rod for a cultural moment really I think in our country that this was something so different than what people, black people, white people, what anybody was used to.

- It was.

And on one hand it was something that was unique, and different.

It offered a critical biting commentary on the times.

And especially when we move out of that sort of initial dance party, celebratory art as escape music as escape in sort of the 1970s.

So by the time we hit the early 1980s, and the Reagan era and this cultural critique, political critique, economic critique.

So it wasn't just sort of the language and the use of words.

It wasn't that it was just black folk, although that had always been a problem.

There had always been race music put off in the corner.

But it was especially so because of the powerful and direct critique that rap music offered almost from the very beginning that only gets more strident as we move through the 1980s, and we're introduced to rap groups like NWA, and the critique of police power and the war on drugs.

- Yeah.

And of course all of this fits into the context of, the importance of music in the movement, right.

Civil rights and the advancement of black people in this country has always had a soundtrack.

And for the last 50 years that soundtrack has been hip-hop.

But before that, there was always music sort of aligned with it, and emanating from it, and helping to shape that movement in important ways.

- Steven, you're spot on.

Black folk have always produced music.

They've always produced music with meaning and feeling and emotion.

And it's always been tied, as you said, to the revolution the soundtrack of the revolution whether that was old negro spirituals or deep stirring gospel music, even into rock and roll and R&B when we think of dancing in the streets and some of those Motown songs that we think were just party music really had political messages buried with inside them to hip-hop.

So hip-hop becomes a sort of a logical extension of the African American tradition of drawing on music to express opposition to the status quo in addition to providing relief and escape from the woes of the day.

- Yeah.

So let's talk about this documentary that looks at this 50 year evolution.

What's fascinating to me is, again, I can remember the kind of early days of hip-hop and rap in particular, and how different the things that my children are listening to today are from that, it has come a really long way just in terms of an art form.

- Absolutely.

Part of what is captured, I think in the film is the evolution of the art form, not only in terms of the messaging, but then also the production, also the commercialization.

And so one of the things that's pretty cool about the documentary is that you're able to see these various influences over time, so that by the time we get to the present, you're kind of able to see, oh, I see where a turn had occurred.

I see where this moves from basement parties to corporate headquarters.

I see where some of the political messaging was lost, but yet it's still always, always there.

50 years is a long time.

And the music isn't static just as the world that produces the music isn't static - 2020 and the Black Lives Matter protest wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for hip-hop.

- ♪ What am I.

♪ - The culture informed and brought together generations of people from different backgrounds for this moment.

- ♪ My baby.

♪ - Rappers have tried to highlight injustice in their art since day one.

(people protesting) - 2020 it's very much a reflection of hip hop.

Because hiphop had been that CNN, these are the issues, these are the problems.

(hip-hop music playing) - Hip-hop is a part of a movement of black music that started in slavery.

There's always been some kind of protest in music.

(hip-hop music playing) - This music, this culture.

It would not look sound, taste, smell like it does today if it were not for history.

- When we think about the groups that exist now that are most carrying that message I mean, it's a much broader spectrum of art now than it was when it started.

And I mean, I think there's some argument about whether some of it is too commercial or not black enough or all these other things, but when you think of who's carrying that message now, and kind of at the core of that, who comes to mind?

- Well, in the protest tradition, I think you have to look to Kendrick Lamar, for example, in terms of an artist who is more than just sort of underground, more than just, you know somebody that black folk listen to, actually has popular appeal, but yet his music, you can turn it up in the car, you can play it in the club, but you can also just listen to it to hear the sounds of that protest tradition.

And so he immediately, I think, jumps to mind, thinking back to the Ferguson uprising.

And of course, you know, everything's going to be all right.

I mean, it becomes a chant, becomes a anthem much in the tradition of fight the power back in 1989.

- Yeah.

Yeah.

So, are we at a point where we have to worry about hip-hop, and worry about its future and the role that it's played?

I mean, as I said, in one way it's a good thing that it's as ubiquitous as it is.

I mean, I think, much of American culture right now is shaped by hip-hop.

Things that don't have anything to do with music, things don't have anything to do with black people.

But like with other things that come from our community that become mainstream, do we have to worry about the ways in which we preserve it's bare essence, the things that mean so much to us, and carry us forward, are we losing those?

- I think looking at the history of the music over the last 50 years tells us that organically hip-hop is here to stay.

Certainly there is commercial crossover appeal.

I remember, and I'm sure you do too, joking as a youngster, like, oh, wouldn't it be funny if you saw Big Daddy Kane or some of these early artists, right?

Like rapping 50 years later, right, like 40 years later and now, you know, their headliners at the Super Bowl.

So, generationally it has had staying power, but despite the commercialization, despite the crossover appeal, we still see generation after generation of young artists reflecting and carrying on that message of critique of society.

And I think that's because whether or not we're here in the United States or even globally because hip hop really has proven to be sort of the language of the oppressed, the language of the marginalized, an artistic expression of those who are dissatisfied with the status quo.

That was its roots.

And it continues to be, I think the source of new blood, and new energy, despite the commercialization, sometimes the crafts commercialization of the art form today.

- Yeah.

So I've been waiting for a long time to talk to somebody about this.

What do we do with Kanye?

What do we do with someone like Kanye who look when he was younger, and newer on the scene, I think everybody was really moved by the way he could put words together, the rhythm and all that sort of thing.

And of course, he's produced so much of other people's great contributions to hip-hop, but boy, it's really hard to know what to make of him now, and what to make of him in the context of the movement.

The movement that hip-hop is escorting through history.

What do we do?

- You know, it's one of those questions that gets to the heart of any revolutionary movement.

And I think we need to put hip-hop in that particular context.

You create space for not just those who are going to further the revolution but you create space for everyone.

Now that being said, I think it is important to recognize the artistic contributions and in many ways the artistic creativity, and genius of somebody like Kanye West.

But that should not blind us from the problematic commentary the problematic politics that he has embraced over the last five or six years or so, that needs to be critiqued by those outside of the hip hop community, but also by those inside the hip-hop community.

You don't get a pass because you can drop a good beat.

You need to be critiqued if you really begin to move away I think from what hip hop really offered this nation as a gift, and he's doing that not just in a way that is, I mean, it is one thing if you just go commercial, it's another thing, if your politics then reflect this anti-black, anti-democratic bias, that to me is especially problematic.

And we shouldn't shy away from critiquing that.

- Here in Detroit, Hot 107.5 WGPR is the voice of hip-hop in our community.

The station is also a part of Black history because it was Michigan's first black owned FM radio station.

I learned more about its history and its evolution into the hip-hop format from WGPR president Kenneth Hollowell, and Marketing and Promotions director, Koffey Brown.

Mr. Hollowell, I'll start with you, talk about the significance of that history, that anniversary and how we look back on it.

- Well, we're celebrating our 59th anniversary in broadcast radio.

Began back in 1964 when International Free and Accepted Modern Masons led by Dr. William V. Banks who then our Supreme Grand Master purchased WGPR 107.5 FM, which was then known as Gross Point Radio and immediately changed that acronym to mean where God's presence radiates.

For many years, the station operated out of the headquarters of International Masons, located at the corner of (indistinct) in the city of Detroit.

And it stayed at that location until 1985 when it moved to its current location at 3146 East Jefferson to share space with its sister media station, WGPR TV 62, which as you said, Stephen was the first African American owned and operated TV station in the United States.

WGPR being the first FM station owned by blacks in the city of Detroit.

And we stayed there since that time.

In the early days, broadcasting on WGPR was primarily centered around religious broadcasting which churches having their worship services aired on the radio on Sunday morning, along with news and R&B.

And later it also added some other ethnic programming from the Arabic community, and Hispanic and some others.

That went on for a number of years.

And then we went into full-blown R&B.

And in 1970, we had our first significant major change.

And in 1970, with the approval of AFCC, we enhanced our sound to include 50,000 watts of radiated power, giving us a range of 90 miles in the metropolitan Detroit area covering 15 counties in the state of Michigan, parks of Ohio and Canada, our sister country across the river.

This was good for us, we think, and good for the Detroit community.

It gave African Americans a voice here in our city, and we are very proud to continue that legacy on until today.

In 2011, we entered a time brokerage agreement sometimes referred to as a local marketing agreement with Radio One, wherein we permitted them to program the station and its format.

They made a determination to change it from R&B to hip-hop.

And that continued under their programming until December 31st of 2019.

And then beginning January of 2020, we assumed, again whole operation of the station and we continued with the hip-hop format.

And Coffee Brown is going to talk to you about that 50th anniversary of hip-hop a little later.

And we are very proud of the contributions that we brought to this community.

We consider ourselves to be the local, and loyal Detroit station.

We started here in the city of Detroit.

We stayed here in the city of Detroit.

We are still independently owned and operated by Black Americans.

Again, still owned by International Free and Accepted Modern Masons, and Detroit is our base.

And we think that we have a contribution to make to the community, not only in the city of Detroit, but within the 90 miles of its environments that have the opportunity to enjoy the programming that we provide.

And we salute you for giving us this opportunity.

- Yes.

- So, I grew up here in the city, in the early 1970s is when I would've started listening to the radio, and the station I started with other than WJZZ which was the station that my parents listened to.

They were huge jazz fans.

But the station that I listened to was WGPR, and what I remember from back then is that on the FM dial and maybe my memory's not right, but there were only two R&B stations back then.

There was GPR and WJLB.

- WJLB.

- Yeah.

And so GPR was the one I listened to.

'Cause I lived over on the east side not far from the station.

I figured I should be loyal to the station down the street.

So it was my first.

- That was a part of the community.

- That's right.

It was my first introduction to radio.

Let's talk now about this turn to hip hop.

The hip-hop format, and the 50th anniversary of hip-hop.

Koffey, talk about what that has meant to the station, and to the community.

There aren't a lot of stations, of course anywhere in the country that are just hip-hop stations.

- Right.

And the 50th anniversary is a big thing this year.

People all over the world will be celebrating the 50th anniversary.

The official date is August 11th, but all of the celebrating has already begun.

So in New York, they built like a whole museum that's going to be dedicated to nothing but hip-hop.

And to know that I work for a station like WGPR that is one of the first stations where Billy T was one of the first official DJs to dive in, and go full force and play hip hop and techno music.

And now I'm able to be a part of such an historical thing.

It's exciting.

So now we're getting ready to be a part of this celebration next month with the museum that we have which is the William V. Bank Museum.

We're going to do something to pay homage to hip-hop.

Something that started what?

1973, when a DJ had no idea when he had these two turntables, and start mixing these two songs together.

And made them play in a direction where the singing now turned into what nobody had a name for at that time, was rap, and then hip-hop was created.

And it's so many parts to it.

You got the DJs, you got the MCs, you got the graffiti, you got the break dancing.

And like Biggie said, who thought hip-hop would make it far.

Right?

50 years.

That's something to celebrate and be thankful to be a part of because when other people or older people or certain people heard hip-hop, they're like that stuff isn't going to last.

What is that?

And now, GPR has black owned by the Free International Masons.

And to have this here, right in Detroit where we can help up and coming artists that are coming out.

We broke a lot of artists.

We have a lot of new artists that come in here.

We also have a hip-hop legend T3 Slum Village that does an old school hip-hop show here.

So GPR is a staple in the community, and we have a lot to do with the hip-hop here in Detroit.

- Yeah, I mean, the idea of it being in Detroit, Detroit is such a kind of critical place for the creation of hip hop and the perpetuation of it.

Talk about how that interaction unfolds between the station and this really vibrant hip-hop community.

- Well, in the 90s they had something called the hip-hop shop.

Do you remember the hip hop shop?

- I do.

- So, yeah.

So that was where a lot of the hip hop artists in Detroit would go and battle rap.

And they got to test their skills out on each other.

A lot of people went there from Eminem, Rest in Peace to Proof who was the host at the hip-hop shop.

A lot of these people went on to become famous.

And so fast forward, there's been things done here like rap battles at Hot 107.5.

And then now we have a segment on Friday where they're playing new artists and releasing that to the public so they can hear these new artists and say how they feel like they sound, and maybe they'll end up being like a Eminem or something.

So.

- Go ahead Mr. Hollowell.

We've only got about a minute left though.

Go ahead.

- Okay.

Very good.

I was just going to say, you know, a lot of folks when they think of hip-hop, they think of just young people but hip hoppers are in their 50s and 60s these days.

So, it's a phenomenon that has lasted along.

It stood the test of time, and we are very proud to be able to bring it to the Detroit listening community.

- Yeah.

Yeah.

Well, congratulations on all of this and of course on being the only all hip-hop station here in Detroit.

I mean that really does matter in a community like this.

But thanks to both of you for being with us on American Black Journal.

- Thank you for having us.

- Thank you for inviting us again, Steve.

- That's it for us this week.

Thanks for watching.

You can find out more about our guests at americanblackjournal.org.

And as always, you can connect with us on Facebook and on Twitter.

Take care.

And we'll see you next time.

(gentle music playing) - From Delta Faucets to Behr Paint, Masco Corporation is proud to deliver products that enhance the way consumers all over the world experience and enjoy their living spaces.

Masco, serving Michigan communities since 1929.

Support also provided by the Cynthia and Edsel Ford Fund for Journalism at Detroit Public TV.

- The DET Foundation proudly supports 50 years of American Black Journal in covering African-American history, culture, and politics.

The DTE Foundation and American Black Journal partners in presenting African American perspectives about our communities and in our world.

- Also brought to you by Nissan Foundation.

And viewers like you.

Thank you.

(gentle piano playing)