On Rap, Crap and Machismo

You may have noticed that I have broken my promise to write about music. Today's rant will be about music culture, which is a completely different subject altogether. But yeah, I like to digress.

In my 'Sex and Gender in Society' class, as part of a discussion about gendered expressions of aggression, the topic of violence and masculinity portrayed in rap music came up.

The documentary Tough Guise (1999) offers an interesting analysis of the body language and aggressive behavior characteristic of rap and hip-hop sub-culture. The hand gestures, movements, language and other behavior are explained as means of gaining respect and portraying a sense of authority that is denied to the urban African American youth from low income households. It is believed that these images may have been influenced by popular media portrayal of Italian gangsters, specifically in movies like the Godfather. With the lack of opportunity for education and career advancement, the urban Black youth created an alternative image of the respected, feared and powerful man.  Referred to as the "cool pose", these actions created a solid image of the real black man from the hood.

However, when this culture seeped into the music and was transmitted the world over through MTV over the last few decades, young men from all over the world began imitating them. The documentary humorously presents images of 'rich white boys' trying out the "cool pose". 

This made me think about all the silly rappers we have in Sri Lanka. My question is, what are these brown boys acting black trying to do? Is it their lack of a sense of identity that leads them to embrace a culture not only completely foreign to them, but also ironically socially stratified as inferior? What's with the accent? What's with the hoodies? (No one wears hoodies in Sri Lanka- It's too damn hot!!)  Are these just frustrated young men trying out things that they feel will gain them respect and attention among peers? What do you think?