The embracing of minority culture by America is evident in music too. ... The most drastic change has occurred with rap music. Rap has always been associated with African American culture. When rap first started showing up it was denounced by white America. ... Over the past decade rap has evolved into one of the most popular forms of music in this country. ...
I can go into a music shop and count on finding the music of my race represented, into a supermarket and find the staple foods that fit with my cultural traditions, into a hairdresser's shop and find someone who can cut my hair. In my experience, music shop shelves are buried under piles of "Hip-Hop- or "Rap- music that supposedly represents the black subculture. White music, even if it could be defined as that, is what has the minority floor space. Besides, who ever labeled music as black or white anyway? ...
The music industry today exemplifies this kind of separation. Rock and roll music was formerly made up of only whites, but gradually African-Americans moved into that genre of music. This is a good thing for racial equality, except for when you look at the other types of dominant music today, rap and rhythm and blues. There is almost no white singers in these entire styles of music. On MTV, there has been only two white rap singers in the history of the channel, and one of them, Vanilla Ice, is the subject of constant ridicule by black rap fans and performers. ...
