In 2008 the world of Hip Hop endorsed President Obama and in turn help Obama get votes he might not have gotten other wise. 4 years later as we approach the upcoming election, where does Hip Hop stand on President Obama? Did he live up to the expectations and are artists still supporting him? Or did he fail to reach the potential Hip Hop thought he had? The 7 Hip Hop artists listed below have had a huge impact on hip hop and each take a specific stand on their support or lack of support for President Obama.
At a performance earlier this month, rapper Common endorsed the President by rapping “People out there I don’t want no drama, this year y’all better vote for Obama.” Common is the same artist Michelle Obama invited to the White House for a poetry reading. When this happened the conservative media turned Common, one of the most positive rappers out there into a violent thug. Despite the sandal, Common still supports Obama. He told the Huffington Post that Obama “understands that hip-hop is expression and about individuals.”
Pusha T’s dislike for Romney’s financial history makes him feel “like Obama is definitely the man and the man we should be putting in office again,” he told The Smoking Section. The member of the rap duo Clipse feels that Obama has handled the situation’s he has been in a “classy” manner, unlike others, therefore he should be re-elected.
R&B singer and songwriter Ne-Yo has recently joined forces with Johnny Rzeznik and Natasha Bedingfield to write and record a song in support of President Obama. The song “Forward” tells us that we “can’t give up on hope,” a central theme to Obama’s campaign. Ne-Yo and his fellow singers tell us that if we keep Obama in office we will help move the country forward.
If you read my last post, you would know that Jay Z and President Obama have a great friendship and are constantly supporting one another. Jay Z has recently appeared on an Obama ad. Jay Z may be one of the hardest working rappers campaigning for Obama. Jay Z and his wife Beyoncé hosted an event brining in an estimated 4 million dollars for the campaign. Jay Z, who strongly supported President Obama in the 2008 election, is still a strong supporter after four years.
In 2008 rapper DMX told XXL that he had never heard of President Obama… At All. When he was informed that there was a black candidate in the race named Barack Obama, DMX had this to say, “Wow, Barack! The n*gga’s name is Barack. Barack? N*gga named Barack Obama. What the f*ck, man?! Is he serious?” But this year, DMX told the Global Grind that if he COULD vote (he can’t because of his criminal record) he would vote for “Obama n*gga, Obama n*gga!” and why? “There are no scandals that came up like the other presidents. If he is smoking weed and f*cking b*tches on the side, he got his sh*t on lock.” Luckily DMX has gotten of whatever drugs he was on in 2008 and has caught up on politics.
The up and coming rapper, Kendrick Lamar, seems to be indifferent towards the Presidential Race. When asked by Truth is Scary “Does your vote count?” Kendrick bluntly said no and that his vote doesn’t count. Lamar also talked about how he believes that the President does not have power so no one’s voice or vote counts. Although it’s unfortunate that he doesn’t believe in voting, he had some pretty interesting theories that many people don’t think about in this interview.
Lupe Fiasco is one of the most outspoken rappers on his dislike for President Obama. He tells CBS “What’s Happening” that Barack Obama is the biggest terrorist against America, causing other forms of terrorism. Like Kendrick Lamar, Lupe also admits that he doesn’t vote, saying that it is meaningless. You can watch the rest of the interview here.
Overall most Hip Hop artists are still supporting President Obama. Although the endorsement is not as strong as it was in 2008, many artists still have faith in president Obama. Despite who they do or don’t support, I think it is great that the majority of these artists are speaking out about voting, resulting in more of their fans getting information about voting and making them more likely to vote as well. Although there are a few hip hop artists who speak out against voting, there are many more artist who do encourage their fans to vote.