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Dog 3000
Dog 3000
4611 posts

Macho music
Sep 16, 2003, 01:48
In case you hadn't noticed, "gangsta rap", the milieau Ice Cube was one of the creators of, is very MACHO. If I may get a little "controversial" for a moment I believe this "uber-macho pose" is largely a defense mechanism that comes from growing up in dangerous neighborhoods (so you want to seem as "hard" as possible), with a lot of single parent families (usually just moms), a lot of people you know having done prison time (you know what kind of "sex" goes on in prison), and a whole host of other issues. In other words, I don't think so-called "gay bash rap" really is aimed at gays at all so much as it as aimed at the rapper's perceived peers. It's showing off for the guys, coming from a fear of being seen as "less than a man."

Besides, as commented in another response just saying "faggot" isn't necessarily anti-gay and I don't think Ice Cube has ever made that many what you might call "inflamatory" comments about gays. Usually the topic comes up in reference to his prison stories, and again that's a whole 'nuther issue. (At least thinking about the half dozen of his albums I own, I can't recall much at all specifically about "gays" -- which again is an agenda of mine in defending Cube: I think to focus on one line he may have said and ignore the depth and breadth of ALL of his lyrics is unfair.

The interview Cancerboy posted is also illustrative -- apparently Cube is a big square and the whole "bad boy" thing is just a pose. He went Hollywood a long time and I'm sure he works with and gets along with plenty of gay folks in the theatre/entertainment biz. But he doesn't want to rescind any thing he may have said because he still tries to keep up "the pose." Representin' you know?

Interestingly, Ice-T actually lived the life he sang about and he was very willing to apologize for offensive lyrics (and actually Ice-T's lyrics are a lot more offensive than Cube's.)

So basically it probably comes down to a lack of confidence and self-esteem on Cube's part.

Anyway: I don't hate gays, don't support "bashing" anyone, have had a few gay roommates, blah blah blah and all that lame stuff you're supposed to say to prove your liberal cred (and at this point I'm mostly kidding so I'll stop there.) ;-)
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