“If one were to look into lyrics, as I have,” Fischer tells me during a call, “we can find references in work of artists of all genders, referencing threats to reproductive rights, along with critiques of policing, economic injustice, assault, you know?” Fischer says that it’s not always obvious-there isn’t a popular “Where is the Planned Parenthood?” song-and instead, the topic is usually woven into stories about everyday life. Fischer, who helped found the Harvard Hip-Hop Archive, says that even though hip-hop songs about reproductive health and abortion exist, the subject matter isn’t always immediately apparent. “And when we do try to address it in hip-hop,” she adds, “it gets dismissed-‘That’s corny’ or ‘That’s weak,’ or whatever.”ĭawn-Elissa Fischer, the San Francisco State University professor, author, hip-hop researcher and scholar, echoes the sentiment that women and non-binary artists often get overlooked-not just in hip-hop, but across the artistic landscape. Sexism plays a major role in the reasons why this real-life experience remains invisible to so many people, Peila theorizes. Peila, founder of The Black Gold Movement, says the goal was to use a “big bullhorn and say, ‘Yo, something is happening over here! Y’all need to stop what you’re doing and get folks to pay attention!’” If the group could mobilize folks while making something melodic and empowering, they’d consider it a success.Įven with all their research, they didn’t find many songs as a blueprint for what they were going for. “Aima did some crazy research… pulling up documents and articles and podcasts.” They then took the info, condensed it, and put it into bars that they laid over kick drums and snares. “It was a deep collaboration,” Coco Peila tells me during a call, noting that each person poured their personal expertise into the song. Produced by Shy’an G, the track features salient verses from RyanNicole and Aima The Dreamer, as well as support from renowned poet Aya De Leon. Last Friday, East Bay lyricist Coco Peila dropped “ I Am Jane Roe,” an energetic and educational song about reproductive justice and American politics. RyanNicole features on a new track about reproductive rights by East Bay lyricist Coco Peila. At least that’s what I found when I spent some time with songs addressing abortion from the past 50 years of hip-hop across America.īut first, I talked to people right here in the Bay Area. And while folk and punk songs about abortion tend to be more sloganeering, hip-hop as an art form has a particular capability for nuance, and can tell stories that address many different considerations around the issue. Given the way reproductive health, or lack thereof, impacts the Black community, hip-hop has seen all sides of the issue. Wade will disproportionately affect Black women.) (Not to mention the multiple studies that show the overturning of Roe v. But it also has a track record of speaking on abortion-no surprise, seeing as the concepts of sex, body politics, power dynamics and governmental control are steeped in this culture. Hip-hop is often criticized for demeaning lyrics about women. Over the past five decades, hip-hop has been a platform for shouting out neighborhoods, shaking asses, celebrating success, clowning wack rappers-and simultaneously addressing the major issues of the day. When Clive, known as DJ Kool Herc, dropped the needle on some funk and soul breaks, mixing the blends while getting on the mic, a new form of American music was born. In August of 1973, that same year, an entrepreneurial young woman from New York named Cindy Campbell and her brother Clive threw a back-to-school party near the corner of Sedgwick Avenue and Cedar Avenue, in the Bronx. Wade, the landmark case that had protected access to safe abortion nationwide since being decided in 1973. On Friday, June 24, the Supreme Court officially overturned Roe v.
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