Are you tired of seeing ladies greased up and wearing only diamonds—I’m sorry, bling—shaking their booties and licking their lips while laying split-legged on a Hummer, as some man sings about “hitting it hard” and “backing it up”? Are you tired of turning on MTV and witnessing women wearing G-strings, sitting spread-legged on a chair while being drenched by a fake rainstorm? Are you sick of wondering, “Didn’t we leave objectification of women behind in the 70s?” Then, ladies, get a taste of Seattle hip-hop.
Seattle was once the grunge capital and is now an indie music playground. But somewhere, between the constant rain and massive guitar riffs, two incredibly fresh hip-hop groups are emerging to make their mark on music history. They don’t drop brand names. They drop history, poetry, politics. They don’t think of women in terms of sex, they worship their minds. You wouldn’t think lyrics so truthful and progressive would sell CDs, but for Blue Scholars and Common Market, it’s proved just the opposite.
Both groups channel early 90s consciousness rapping, the likes we haven’t seen since Run-DMC, Public Enemy, and KRS One. Their songs touch on subjects like education, social welfare, poverty, racial injustice, and the beauty of women. Yes, you heard that correctly. They discuss a woman’s mind, her movements, and her strengths (and by strengths, I don’t mean how hard she’s “hittin’ it”). This is why we Seattle ladies love them and breathe their lyrics like fresh air. Instead of writing lyrics about a certain body part only found on a woman that’s also a name for cat, Common Market and Blue Scholars talk about the world we live in, preserving history, the people we love, justice, and a better way. They rhyme about women as goddesses, not gold-diggers.
Don’t for one second think that because the lyrics are socially motivated, the beats are boring. On the contrary, they’re infectious. They have been known to spark impromptu dance parties in the living room. They’ll make you do a chair dance while listening in your office. You’ll find yourself tapping the steering wheel, swaying from side to side, when listening in your car. Why? Because both groups keep it real, hearken back to days of old, and sample great funk, old soul, and classics—from Ella Fitzgerald, The Supremes, and Bill Withers. Their music sounds like an old record you unearthed from your grandparents music cabinet, updated with today’s vocabulary.
Remember how Al Green sang, “Girl, I’m so in love with you. Whatever you want to do is alright with me”? Blue Scholars channels the same love in their song “Sagaba.” Here’s a sample:
I couldn’t stand to see the queen breathe her dreams away
And tell me her tomorrow will never become today
I say I used to know a woman just like you,
Beautiful but jaded by the multitude of men who’d often try to
Justify their lies with twisted notions of survival
And hide behind their armor when karma completes a cycle
She replied
That just because I knew a woman well it doesn’t mean I know them all
She begins to bade farewell
Eyes up to the sky, she sighs, I need nobody
True indeed, sister, but you still need everybody because
We hardly know ourselves if we know nobody else
And only in our loneliness can home become a hell
Isn’t it refreshing to read lyrics from the hip-hop genre about men and women having conversations, instead of a man telling a woman to take it all off and back it up? Instead of running after money, fame, and celebrity, Common Market and Blue Scholars preach the truth, through smart rhymes attached to nostalgic beats. And people flock to hear it.
Now, don’t get me wrong here. I’m no Bible-beating conservative, trying to lay my anti-sex, put-some-clothes-on-Woman agenda on you. Heck no. I believe in a woman’s right to whatever. What I don’t believe in is a music industry that spotlights, and even demands, rap music that only seems to need women for one thing. I’ll let you guess what that one thing is. I’m merely a progressive female that loves music, especially hip-hop, and who is ready to spread the good news about positive music coming from the least obvious city—Seattle. We all know hip-hop’s most recent forefathers of positivity—Common, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, Latyrx, Tupac (sometimes). But groups like Common Market and Blue Scholars go unnoticed and their music is less widely purchased—I hope this article changes that.
If it does, and now you’re interested in these groups and wondering where you can get your hands on some of their music and have your own one-woman dance party, your local, non-chain music store will most likely have their CDs. And if they don’t, ask them to order it for you. Independent music stores love it when you do this. They are also available on iTunes.
Here’s some more info on Seattle hip-hop:
