>> SINCE THE 1970’S, HIP-HOP HAS BEEN THE CORNERSTONE OF BLACK EXPRESSION AND IDENTITY.

HERE TO HELP US TACKLE THE QUESTIONS ARE A BOSTON GLOBE COLUMN IS AN DEPUTY MANAGING EDITOR, AND THE FOUNDER OF BLACK DOLLAR.

I’M GOING TO START WITH YOU.

YOU ARE A HIP-HOP MUSIC HISTORIAN.

TELL US WHEN HIP HOP FIRST CAME ON THE SCENE IN THE 70’S, WHERE WAS THAT POLITICAL MESSAGING COMING FROM?

>> A LOT OF PEOPLE ASK THIS QUESTION.

JUST TOO EXISTENCE ALONE WAS POLITICAL IN NATURE BECAUSE YOU ARE PARTYING IN A SPACE THAT HAS BEREFT OF ANY POSSIBLE KIND OF HELP, A, ANYTHING FROM THE STATE OR THE GOVERNMENT.

SO IN THE MIDST OF HAVING NOTHING, THEY CREATED SOMETHING.

THEY ARE COMPLETELY LEAVING US HERE TO OUR OWN DEVICES SO WE ARE GOING TO CREATE A CULTURE AND BRING EACH OTHER TOGETHER.

THERE WAS A FIGHT, A MAN DIED, AND THE GHETTO BROTHERS HAD TROOPS, A MEETING AT THE BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB IN DECEMBER 1971.

FROM THERE, IT SPREAD WHERE THEY WENT TO ALL THE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT, ALL THE PROJECTS AND SAID YOU CAN PASS FREELY, YOU CAN HAVE PARTIES, YOU CAN HAVE PARTIES AT THE PARKS AND EVERYTHING ELSE, AND THIS IS WHERE TOO BECOMES HIP HOP, WITH PEOPLE ONE FROM FUNCTION TO FUNCTION, TRAVELING WITH ENTOURAGES THAT ARE GIVING THEM PROTECTION.

EVEN WHEN HIP HOP WAS ABOUT PARTYING, IT WAS POLITICAL IN NATURE.

IN 1990 -- 1981, OF THAT CHANGED.

SMOKEY ROBINSON COMMANDS THE GUYS TO DO A SONG THAT CHANGES THE MESSAGE.

THEY ALWAYS SAID, NOBODY WANTS TO COME TO THE PARTY TO HEAR THE PROBLEMS.

NOBODY WANTS TO DANCE TO SOMEONE ELSE’S TROUBLES, AND THE MESSAGE CHANGED ALL THAT.

IT LED TO HIP-HOP ARTIST -- PARTY, THE QUESTION MARK, TALKING ABOUT THE ISSUES IN THE SOUTH BRONX.

PARIS: SORT OF TUCKING THOSE MESSAGES IN.

>> THAT WAS WHERE IT STARTED.

IT WASN’T SOMETHING THAT WAS THERE FROM THE BEGINNING.

EVEN THOUGH GRANDMASTER FLASH’S MESSAGE, AT THE END OF THE MESSAGE, HE DID SOME RAPID 1979 THAT NO ONE CAUGHT ON TO WHAT HE WAS SAYING.

HIP HOP HAS ALWAYS BEEN POLITICAL, EVEN WHEN IT WASN’T.

PARIS: HOW DID WE SEE THAT INVOLVE IN THE 1980’S AND 1990’S?

>> THAT’S WHEN YOU START TO SEE MORE WOMEN IN THAT GAME, SALT-AND-PEPPER, I WON’T GET INTO IT, BUT THAT’S WHEN THERE STARTS TO BE MORE OF FEMALE EXPRESSION AND FAMINE AND EXPRESSION.

I THINK YOU ARE SEEING MORE EMPOWERMENT, AND YOU START TO SEE THE BRANDING WITH RUN DMC AND ADIDAS, THEY LAID THE GROUNDWORK FOR SORT OF WHAT WE SEE SETTING UP THE GLOBAL STAGE.

I DON’T WANT TO SAY THE COMMERCIALIZATION.

COMMODIFICATION AND COMMERCIALIZATION OF HIP HOP.

PARIS: WE DID START OF SORT TO SEE THE SHIFT IN THE EARLY TO THOUSANDS OF THE GLAMOUR, THE HIP HOP GLAMOUR, SO MUCH OF THAT WAS LED BY SEAN PUFFY COMES AT THE TIME, PEOPLE LIKE JAY-Z, ETC.

DID THAT REALLY HELP OR HURT US?

>> I THINK IT’S BOTH.

JENAE SAID A GIFT AND A CURSE, RIGHT?

WHAT I’VE REALIZED IS, EVERYONE HAS A DIFFERENT FOUNDATION AND THEY START DIFFERENTLY.

AND I THINK IT’S NOT A ONE-SIZE-FITS-ALL.

FOR ME, I GREW UP AND MY PARENTS WERE HEAVILY INVOLVED IN STREET ACTIVITIES.

HOWEVER, AND I DON’T KNOW HOW -- I KNOW HOW THIS SOUNDS, WASN’T PROMOTED TO ME, AND THE VERY OPPOSITE WAS EXPECTED OF ME.

HOWEVER, I’VE SEEN IT, I’VE SEEN THINGS ON THE TABLE, I’VE SEEN ALL THAT.

I LOVED NWA.

I KNOW ALL THEIR LYRICS FRONT TO BACK.

HOWEVER, THAT DIDN’T DRIVE ME INTO PARTICIPATE IN CERTAIN ACTIVITIES.

I COULD ALWAYS APPRECIATE ONE OF THE RECORDS THAT JAY-Z DOES THAT EVERYONE HATES, SUNSHINE.

LIKE BABY FACE, WHATEVER.

I LIKE THAT RECORD.

IT IS WHAT IT IS.

IT’S NOT GOING TO CHANGE THE WORLD, BUT I LIKE IT.

I THINK THAT THOSE PEOPLE THAT YOU MENTIONED, JAY AND PUFF AND FOR ME THEY INSPIRED SO MUCH OF WHAT I DO.

AND SO IT’S HARD FOR ME TO DISCREDIT THOSE THINGS BECAUSE IT TOOK IT TO A DIFFERENT LEVEL.

HOWEVER, I THINK IT ALSO APPEALED TO PEOPLE WHO DIDN’T HAVE A LOVE FOR THE CULTURE, AND THEN THEY CAME IN AND WHETHER IT WAS BOTTOM FEEDERS, AND WE SEE IT IN ALL DIFFERENT PARTS.

PARIS: AND WHEN YOU SAY DIDN’T HAVE A LOVE FOR THE CULTURE, WHAT DO YOU MEAN?

>> IN MY OPINION, THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO DO NOT HAVE -- YOU KNOW, IT’S A MONEY GRAB, RIGHT?

AND THAT’S IN EVERY INDUSTRY.

JUST LIKE THEIR PEOPLE THAT HAVE A LOVE FOR COMEDY, AND THEY WORKED IN CLUBS WITH FIVE PEOPLE, AND THEY’VE TRAVELED AND MADE $10 AND A DRINK TICKET.

THEY LOVE IT, BUT THEN YOU SEE PEOPLE ON TIKTOK AND YOU CAN MAYBE GET SOME ADDITIONAL FOLLOWERS, IT’S A MONEY GRAM.

I FEEL LIKE MIKE JONES AND SOLDIER BOY, FOR ME, CHANGED A LOT, AND NOT IN A GOOD WAY.

PARIS: YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT MY GENERATION.

[LAUGHTER] >> I GREW UP IN A TIME WHERE HEARING PEOPLE, I HEARD LL, I HARD ICE CUBE, AND ON YOU I COULDN’T DO THAT.

I COULD MAKE MY OWN VERSION OF IT, I CAN DO WHAT I COULD DO, BUT WHEN YOU HEAR ALL THESE DIFFERENT PEOPLE WITH A LOWER TALENT LEVEL -- >> THAT’S NOT FAIR.

>> HERE’S THE DIFFERENCE, TOO.

I TAUGHT A CLASS.

WHAT SOULLJA BOY, YOU GO STRAIGHT TO MY SPACE, YOU GO BACK TO 1984, 1985, PLAYING THE BEAT AND WRAPPING STRAIGHT INTO THE TAPE, AND THEN CUTTING IT AND THEN RELEASING IT ON VINYL.

IT WAS A SIMILAR THING.

THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS, THE LANDSCAPE WAS VASTLY DIFFERENT AND THE AUDIENCE WAS VASTLY DIFFERENT.

YOU COULDN’T JUST GO ONLINE, DOWNLOAD SOMETHING AND MAKE A BEAT.

>> BUT I’M TALKING HIS SKILL SET.

PARIS: IT’S SUBJECTIVE, BUT ALSO, EVEN IN 84 AND ANY OTHER DATE YOU PULL OUT, THERE WILL ALSO BE A RAPPER OF THAT ERA THAT DID NOT HAVE THE SKILL SET.

>> LITERALLY, I WAS LISTENING TO EASY DOES IT.

FOR WHATEVER REASON, I WANT TO HEAR THIS RECORD, AND I SANG IT WORD FOR WORD.

IT CAN’T BE MORE SIMPLE THAN THAT.

THE SIMPLICITY OF, LIKE SEXY RED, WHENEVER I TALK TO PEOPLE, MY DAUGHTER LOVES HER.

FOR ME, I’M ALWAYS, LIKE MMA CAN WRAP, TO ME.

>> I THINK WHAT YOU’RE SAYING IS -- >> I ALWAYS LOVE THE EFFORT WHEN SOMEONE IS TRYING AND BEING CREATIVE.

>> I DON’T THINK IT’S EITHER/OR, IT’S BOTH/AND.

WE’VE ALWAYS HAD LYRICAL DEXTERITY AS WELL AS SIMPLICITY.

WE’VE ALWAYS HAD PROBLEMATIC RAPS THAT REFLECT THE REALITY OF BEING PROBLEMATIC HUMANS.

>> ARE THE MAINSTREAM.

PARIS: I WONDER IF THE MUSIC ITSELF HAS TO BE THE POLITICAL MESSAGE, IN THE VEIN OF WOMEN BEING ABLE TO EXPRESS THEMSELVES FREELY, WHATEVER WAY THEY WANT TO.

THEY ARE ALWAYS GOING TO BE JUDGED.

I WONDER IF THAT IS THE MESSAGE IN ITSELF.

I HEARD AN AUDIBLE RESPONSE.

>> THERE WAS ALWAYS COME YOU COULD HAVE A BW P, HWA, YOU COULD HAVE ALL THIS.

YOU COULD HAVE SALT-AND-PEPPER, BUT YOU ALWAYS HAD A WINGLET TO A, AND MC LIGHT.

YOU ALWAYS HAD THE QUEEN OF THE RAGE.

YOU HAD A VARIETY.

THAT STOPPED AFTER 1986 AND 1987 WITH THE SIGNING OF THE TELECOM ACT.

IF YOU ARE ON THIS SIDE DOING THESE TYPE OF THINGS LYRICALLY, YOU WERE PRETTY MUCH NOT GOING TO BE SIGNED TO A LABEL.

THE LAST MAJOR LABEL DEAL GIVEN TO A POLITICAL RAPPER WAS DEAD PRESS.

AFTER THEY DID THAT ONE ALBUM AND THAT DEAL, THEY WERE NO MORE ON THE MATRIX ANYMORE.

SO THAT’S WHERE EVERYTHING CUTS OUT.

YOU HAVE TO THINK ABOUT, THERE WAS A TIME WE WERE LISTENING TO RAPPERS WHO GREW UP IN THE COUNTERCULTURE ERA WHO WERE -- WHOSE PARENTS WERE IN THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT.

SO THERE WERE PUTTING SPEECHES BY MALCOLM X, THEY WERE PUTTING SPEECHES BY ANGELA DAVIS, ALL THESE DIFFERENT THINGS, IN THEIR RHYMES.

AND THEY WOULD INCORPORATE THEM.

THAT’S WHY IN THE 80’S AND 90’S WE HAD ALL THESE GROUPS.

PARIS: LET’S SWITCH GEARS FOR A MOMENT.

WE WILL BE RIGHT BACK AFTER A BRIEF WORD FROM OUR SPONSORS.

PARIS: I’M HONORED TO PRESENT THE SHORTLIST FOR THIS YEAR’S MUSEUM OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY STONE BOOK AWARD.

BECAUSE READING IS FUNDAMENTAL.

THIS ANNUAL PRIZE GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED BY THE JAMES M AND KATHLEEN D STONE FOUNDATION RECOGNIZES THE BEST IN NEW LITERARY ADULT NONFICTION WORK IN THE FIELD OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY AND CULTURE.

THESE 12 BOOKS WERE CHOSEN FROM 141 SUBMISSIONS, AND THE NOMINEES ARE -- THE CONTAINMENT, DETROIT, THE SUPREME COURT, AND THE BATTLE FOR RACIAL JUSTICE IN THE NORTH, AUTHORED BY MICHELLE ADAMS, PUBLISHED BY FOUR R-STROSS.

HUMANS AND JACKALS, AND ATLANTIC HISTORY OF SLAVERY, PUBLISHED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO PRESS.

GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY, AUTHORED BY BENJAMIN PARSON, PUBLISHED BY WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY PRESS.

RED STATE, THE LIFE OF HILDA SIMS, PUBLISHED BY THE MINNESOTA HISTORICAL SOCIETY PRESS.

LOVE, RITA, AUTHORED BY BRIDGET M DAVIS, PUBLISHED BY HARPERCOLLINS.

AN EFFICIENT WOMANHOOD.

WOMEN AND THE MAKING OF THE UNIVERSAL IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION, AUTHORED BY TONYA DUNCAN, PUBLISHED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA PRESS.

JOHN LEWIS, ALIVE.

ARTHUR BY DAVID GREENBERG, PUBLISHED BY SIMON & SCHUSTER.

DISMANTLING THE MASTERS CLOCK, ON RACE, SPACE, AND TIME, AUTHORED BY RASHIDA PHILLIPS, PUBLISHED BY AK PRESS.

KING OF THE NORTH, MLK’S LIFE OF STRUGGLE OUTSIDE OF THE SOUTH, PUBLISHED BY THE NEW PRESS.

BUILDING THE BLACK CITY, A TRANSFORMATION OF AMERICAN LIFE, AUTHORED BY JOE WILLIAM TROTTER, JUNIOR, PUBLISHED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS.

ANOTHER WORD FOR LOVE, A MEMOIR, AUTHORED BY CARVELL WALLACE, PUBLISHED BY MCD.

AND FINALLY, BELONGING, AND INTIMATE HISTORY OF SLAVERY AND FAMILY IN EARLY NEW ENGLAND, AUTHORED BY GLORIA MCKAY AND WHITING, PUBLISHED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA PRESS.

JOINING US FOR THIS YEAR’S CEREMONY ON OCTOBER 9 IN BOSTON, HOSTED BY OUR VERY OWN CALLIE CROSSLEY.

THAT BRINGS UP A GREAT POINT.

IT ALSO SOUNDS LIKE THAT WAS STRIKING THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN JUST RAPPING SOMETHING AND ACTUALLY LIVING IT.

>> I THINK WE STILL SEE THAT.

I DON’T LIKE IT THE IDEA THAT JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE DOESN’T MOVE THE WAY I MOVE, LIKE I’M NEVER GOING TO HAVE SEXY RED MOTION.

THAT’S NOT HOW I MOVE IN LIFE.

HOWEVER, THE IDEA THAT SEXY RED MIGHT NOT HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY, LIKE CARDI B, THAT’S ONE.

SHE HAS BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL IN BEING ALL THINGS AT ONCE.

SHE’S SEXY, SHE HAS AGENCY, SHE’S A MOTHER, SHE INTERVIEWED A HOST OF POLITICAL CANDIDATES DURING PRESIDENCIES.

SHE ACTUALLY DOES HER RESEARCH.

SHE KNOWS AMERICAN STREET, AND SHE ALSO ALL THOSE OTHER THINGS, TOO.

IT’S LIKE SOME OF THAT SEXY RED INFUSION IS IN THERE.

PARIS: AND IT REPRESENTS SOMEONE’S EXPERIENCE.

>> LIVED EXPERIENCE.

LIKE SUWEETIE.

LIKE PEOPLE SEE HER -- >> SHE DOESN’T PUT THAT IN HER MUSIC.

>> BUT WHY SHOULD SHE HAVE TO?

PARIS: BUT SHE WILL WEAR A T-SHIRT.

[LAUGHTER] >> HERE’S THE DIFFERENCE.

THE INDUSTRY NOW, WHICH IS ON FIRE AT ALL TIMES, DOES NOT ALLOW ON THE MAINSTREAM LEVEL FOR ARTISTS TO BE POLITICAL, AND ALSO THESE LAST TWO GENERATIONS OF ARTISTS DON’T HAVE THE CAPACITY ON THE MAINSTREAM LEVEL TO DO IT.

BUT ONCE YOU HAVE BEEN DOING IT FOR THE LAST 15, 10, 20 YEARS, AND THEY WON’T STOP DOING IT, THEY ARE ACTIVE IN THE COMMUNITY.

THEY DON’T GET THE PRAISE, WHEN I GO TO DIFFERENT INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER LEARNING AND THINGS LIKE THAT, OR I’M WORKING WITH GRASSROOTS ORGANIZATIONS, THAT’S WHERE IT SHOWS UP.

THEY GET ON THE PLANE OR THE BUS AND THEY COME FROM WHEREVER THEY ARE.

THEY ARE HIP HOP AS HELL, BUT THEY ARE NOT CONSIDERED EVEN ON THE RADAR UP FOR RAP MUSIC.

>> I THINK ONE OF THE PROBLEMS WE HAVE, BOTH INTER-GENERAL ELATION HE AND JUST WITHIN THE HIP HOP CONFIRMATION, WE DON’T MAKE ROOM FOR BOTH/AND.

KENDRICK CAN DO A WHOLE HALFTIME SHOW THAT IS RADICAL AND POLITICAL AS HELL AND I CAN TALK TO PEOPLE WHO SAY IT’S NOT RADICAL ENOUGH.

PARIS: IT’S ALWAYS HARD FOR US TO GET ON THE SAME PAGE.

WE MENTIONED EARLIER PUFFY COMBS, WHO OFFICE HE JUST HAD THIS ENTIRE TRIAL, INVOLVING, YOU KNOW, THINGS THAT HE WAS ALLEGEDLY ABLE TO DO BECAUSE OF HIS POWER AND INFLUENCE.

AND YET -- >> HE LEARNED IT FROM PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY AREN’T FROM HIP HOP.

PARIS: YES, AND AT THE SAME TIME, IN OUR COMMUNITY, THERE WERE DEBATES AND ALL THIS QUESTION ABOUT HOW OUR MEN -- WHAT IS THE STATE OF BLACK MEN RIGHT NOW, WHERE WE CAN ALL SEE THIS VERY CLEARLY.

I GUESS I WONDER -- >> IT IS LAYERED.

PARIS: IT IS LAYERED, AND WHY HASN’T HIP HOP BEEN ABLE TO TACKLE THAT?

>> HIP-HOP CULTURE WILL ATTACK SOCIAL ISSUES AT ITS BASE.

THE RAP INDUSTRY NEVER WILL, BECAUSE IT’S ABOUT MONEY, AND EVERYBODY IS INTRINSICALLY TIED TO EVERYBODY WHO MADE THE MONEY AND KEPT THE MAKING MONEY UNTIL THE MONEY STARTED DRYING UP.

SO THEY FEEL LIKE THEY CAN’T SPEAK ON THIS PERSON BECAUSE I HAVE DIRT ON YOU, MY HANDS ARE BLOODIED, I MADE SURE YOUR HANDS ARE BLOODIED.

SO YOU TALK, YOU ARE COMING DOWN WITH ME.

THAT’S NOT JUST THE ISSUE WITH HIP HOP, IT’S THE ISSUE WITH THE RAP ARE THE MUSIC INDUSTRY.

>> I WOULD SAY LIKE AMERICA.

THIS IS A NATION THAT DOES NOT LOVE WOMEN.

IT DOESN’T EVEN RAISE PEOPLE TO LIKE WOMEN.

THIS COUNTRY RAISES MEN AND PEOPLE IN GENERAL TO ATTAIN WOMEN, TO ATTAIN GIRLHOOD, TO DOMINATE EARL HOOD.

EVEN WHEN YOU ARE TAUGHT TO RESPECT A WOMAN, IT’S UNDER THE GUISE OF ATTAINING HER.

IT’S VERY TRANSACTIONAL.

PARIS: WE ARE SEEING THAT REFLECTED AT THE VERY TOP, WITH OUR PRESIDENT AND SO MANY PEOPLE IN HIP HOP HAVE ALIGNED THEMSELVES WITH, FACE MANY QUESTIONS AND DOUBLE DOWN ON THIS ALIGNMENT.

>> AGAIN, IT HAS TO DO WITH THE MONEY.

A WEIRD CASE, WHETHER WERE TALKING ABOUT CRYPTO, SEXUAL ASSAULT, OR SOME SCANDAL.

THEY KNOW THAT THERE IS SOMEBODY WHO WILL CALL THEM AND SAY, HEY, I CAN CLEAR THIS UP FOR YOU IF YOU ALIGN YOURSELF WITH ONE PERSON.

>> IS THAT WHY YOU THINK NELLY WAS UP THERE?

>> I THINK THAT WAS A FINANCIAL -- >> THERE’S A WEIRD CASE, AN ODD CASE, AND WHO NEEDS THE MONEY, AND SOMEBODY WHO DID SOMETHING AND THEY STILL NEED IT NOW -- THE MONEY AND THE RAP MUSIC INDUSTRY HAS DRIED UP SIGNIFICANTLY.

THAT’S WHY WE DON’T HAVE THE MESSAGES AND MUSIC LIKE WE USED TO.

EVERYBODY REALIZED IN ORDER TO MAKE ANY MONEY I NEED TO HAVE A CORPORATE SPONSORSHIP, OR I NEED TO HAVE SYNERGY WITH SOME CORPORATE ENTITY OR SOME BRAND.

BECAUSE THE MUSIC ISN’T GOING TO GET IT.

PARIS: HOW DO YOU FEEL LIKE THE MEDIA HAS PLAYED A ROLE IN THE POLITICIZATION OF HIP HOP?

>> LISTEN, I LOVE WHAT I DO.

I’M A JOURNALIST, I LOVE WHAT I DO, AND I PATTERN MYSELF AFTER -- DREAM DON’T EVEN LOVE HIP HOP NO MORE AND WAS SICK CLEARLY AND POIGNANTLY.

-- I GET IT, BUT I WILL ALWAYS LOVE THIS.

TO ME ONE ALBUM’S EXISTENCE IN ITSELF IS A RADICAL THING, AND I DON’T UNDERSTAND WHY WE DON’T WRITE ABOUT IT LIKE WE WROTE ABOUT JANELLE MONET.

TYLER JUST CREATED AN ENTIRELY NEW CHARACTER THAT IS PULLING OUT DISCO FUNK, BIG DADDY KANE’S SEXY DANCE STUFF, AND WERE NOT TALKING ABOUT IT IN THE BLACK JOY LYNN’S THE WAY WE SHOULD -- LENS THE WAY WE SHOULD.

MASCULINITY AND HOMOPHOBIA, AND ALSO THE MEDIA -- ONE OF THE REASONS I CREATED BEAUTIFUL RESISTANCE IS SO WE CAN CELEBRATE THE JOY AND THE LIGHT IN THE BEAUTY AND THE FULLNESS OF BLACK PEOPLE AND CULTURE.

BUT THE MEDIA AS A WHOLE, AS A SYSTEM, LOVES TO FESTER IN THE MUCK AND THE MEYER, AND LOVES TO PAINT THINGS AS NEGATIVE.

LOOK AT MOVIES.

EVEN WHITE MOVIES, WHEN A WHITE CHARACTER IS DOING SOME WILD STUFF, WHAT IS THE MUSIC THEY PLAY?

WHAT IS THAT NEFARIOUS CHARACTER, WHAT IS THE PLACE WHERE IT ALL HAPPENS?

PARIS: I’M SO GLAD YOU BROUGHT THIS UP.

I SAW HIGHEST TO LOWEST THIS WEEKEND.

ASAP ROCKY IS IN THERE, AND IN SO MANY OF THE SCENES, THEY’RE PLAYING THIS UPBEAT, CLASSICAL MUSIC, WHICH IS CONFUSING TO ME.

BUT IT WAS REALLY INTERESTING.

>> IT’S IMPORTANT, HE DID THAT ON PURPOSE, BECAUSE THAT IS VERY SPIKE, TO TAKE THAT TYPE OF SYMBOLISM AND BRAINWASH IT, BECAUSE IT’S BEEN USED TO THE VERY GETTING, AS SOON AS HIP HOP BECAME A THING.

YOU CAN LOOK AT ANY MOVIE FROM THE LATE 1980’S, 19 90’S ON, AND IT’S SPECIFICALLY BEEN USED TO SORT OF DEMONIZE.

PEOPLE LIKE TO WRITE ABOUT IT.

I REMEMBER SEEING A HEADLINE, LIKE -- THEY LIKE TO ASSIGN NEGATIVITY.

I’M NOT SAYING I WILL NEVER BE LIKE, HIP HOP HAS NO NEGATIVITY.

OF COURSE WE HAVE NEGATIVITY BUT THERE’S A DISPROPORTIONATE TENDENCY TO COLOR IT THROUGH THAT LENS.

PARIS: WHERE DO WE LOOK FOR IT -- I DON’T WANT TO SAY POSITIVE, BUT THE TYPE OF HIP HOP THAT YOU ALL FEEL IS GETTING BACK TO THOSE POLITICAL ROOTS?

>> THE FACT THAT HIP HOP IS POLITICAL IN NATURE LIKE THAT HAS ALWAYS SAID THIS DID UNDER OUR NOSES FOR THE LONGEST TIME.

THE PROBLEM IS IT IS NEVER PROMOTED.

IS NOT PUSHED IN THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA.

BUT I THINK THAT’S LIKE ONE OF THE DISCONNECTS FOR ME, BECAUSE GROWING UP, I COULDN’T MOVE TO THE MUSIC THAT I HEARD ON THE RADIO, THAT I WENT TO THE RECORD STORE TO BUY, THAT I SAW ON MTV RAPS.

THAT GAVE ME MY VOICE AND SPOKE TO ME.

LIKE RUN DMC COULD COME UP AND THEY COULD BRING OUT PUBLIC ENEMY.

PUBLIC ENEMY WOULD BRING THEM ON TOUR WITH THEM AND TALK TO THEM BACKSTAGE AND THEY WOULD BE ON THE SAME TOUR TOGETHER AND THEY WOULD BE SPEAKING DIFFERENT THINGS.

SOME OF THE MESSAGING, AND YOU HAD ALL THIS STUFF.

THAT DOESN’T EXIST ON THE LEVEL THAT WE HAD IT.

SO I DON’T THINK YOUNG PEOPLE CAN EXPECT TO GET POLITICAL MESSAGING OR ADVICE FROM ARTISTS.

I THINK THEY LOOK DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE THAT DO THAT EVERY DAY.

WHEREAS WE EXPECTED IT.

PARIS: WHAT ABOUT LOCALLY HERE IN BOSTON?

THIS IS SUCH A GRASSROOTS POLITICAL SCENE.

>> I WOULD LOOK AT NAE SPEAKS, THERE’S A REASON, WHAT I HAS DONE, HELPING A WHOLE GENERATION OF KIDS IN BOSTON HAVE ACCESS TO DJ, TO RAPPING, TO WRITING TO POETRY, TO MUSIC.

AMANDA SHEA IS NOT A RAPPER, BUT SPOKEN WORD, WE HAVE A FULL SCENE HERE.

>> THERE WAS A TIME WHEN, SHOUT OUT TO THAT GRIND IN THAT EFFORT, A KIND OF REMEMBER THAT LIKE, I THINK HIS STORY, HE IS SOBER NOW, SO THAT’S WHAT HE IS DRIVING, THAT IS HIS PASSION, AND HE’S BEING VERY INTENTIONAL ABOUT CONNECTING WITH PEOPLE THAT NEED THEIR UP HE AND REHAB AND MAKING SURE THEY FEEL A PART OF IT.

SO THEY ARE HIS CHAMPION.

THAT TYPE OF STORY IS WHAT I APPRECIATE.

EVEN THE MUSIC AND THE THINGS WITH BLACK DOLLAR, IT’S ALL INTENTIONAL MESSAGING.

EVERYTHING I’M SAYING, WHAT ALSO AM SAYING IS OF -- IF NO BLOOD WAS SHED AND SOMEONE DIDN’T SLEEP WITH YOUR SPOUSE, IT’S ALL ABOUT NOTHING.

THERE’S A LOT OF INFIGHTING THAT’S HAPPENING, EVEN IN A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SPACE, THAT SADDENS ME, BUT ME DOING SOMETHING, I’M HAVING BOTH OF THEM WORK WITH ME, SO INHERENTLY THEY ARE WORKING TOGETHER.

IT BROKE MY HEART WITH THE BLACK WEEKEND, IT’S ALL THESE DIFFERENT THINGS, AND I DIDN’T SEE ANYTHING ON THE NEWS.

>> THAT’S NOT TRUE, IT WAS ALL OVER THE BOSTON GLOBE.

>> I’M SAYING WHEN I LOOKED AT THE NEWS THAT NIGHT ON THE TV AND I DIDN’T SEE ONE BLURB OF IT, I’M LIKE, MAN, BUT I’M NOT SURPRISED.

BUT THEN FOR ME, ALL THESE DIFFERENT THINGS, HOW COME WE WERE NOT OUT THERE DOING -- SO I PUT UP A THING.

PARIS: ALL THE MORE REASON TO HAVE FOLKS LIKE MYSELF AND THE TWO OF YOU, SPEAKING TRUTH TO THE POWER.

THANK YOU EACH FOR BEING WITH US, WE ARE AT A TIME, BUT POLITICS A REALLY HARD TO AVOID.

WE WILL SEE WHETHER HIP HOP CONTINUES TO DO THAT JOB.

THANKS TO EACH OF YOU FOR