Gangsta Cleaning
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Ha ha - man, I’ve been uncomfortable during cleaning time for the last week or so. The students who get to choose the music rotate once in a while, and usually the genre just shifts from bubblegum-sweet J-pop to overproduced poppy ska / punk imitation J-rock. I should be so lucky. This time, however, the lucky soul chose some mix track by DJ Kaori (note: she pronounces it KEori, despite romanizing it as KAori). According to Wikipedia Japan: “DJ KAORI（ディージェイ・ケオリ）はニューヨーク在住のDJである。1992年に渡米。洋邦アーティストの楽曲のリミックス作品を多く発表している。” In English, “DJ KAORI （Deejay Keori) is a DJ living in New York. She went to America in 1992. She prolifically releases remixes of songs by western artists.”
Cleaning time is about 15 minutes long on your average day, and is scheduled for 1:15 - 1:30 in the afternoon. That usually means 3 or 4 songs. But with a remix, you get more. This is bad news here. The track currently being broadcast over our speakers here at school would get me fired in a minute flat in America. They’re not radio edits, either. These kids are happily cleaning to some really raunchy stuff. I’m just lucky that it’s in slang or too fast for even the other English teachers to pick up on it. I’d rather them be ignorant about the filth in the songs, really. Makes me sad.
I talked to my supervisor about it today, just to sound her out. She agreed with me that the kids just like the beat and the overall sound of the music. They have no idea what the words are. I explained the concept of radio edits, “beeping out” and censoring songs, and the fact that it’s part of American culture that makes me feel ashamed. I can’t for the life of me figure out why people get rich rapping about street justice and glitchy moral compasses, the glories of drug abuse, and their myriad disgusting, misogynistic views on women and their reasons for being. I mean, sure, other genres have their dark and shady spots too. But gangsta rap is weird. I just don’t like the juxtaposition of my kids innocently pretending to clean while bopping their heads to this stuff. I’d gladly take the sugary squeaky-voiced pop music and boy bands back. Ugh.
on May 19th, 2008 at 12:15 pm
That’s amazing Deas! I find some of the music that is popular here in Japan a little annoying but it is definitely better that gangsta rap. It’s amazing that your administrator didn’t do anything???
I’m not sure about now but many years ago they did not have ratings on the cd’s in the stores here like they have at home and I let my step-son but a CD that I ended up banishing to his personal CD player because of the language. If we were in the US I would have made him return it or, because of the warning label, never purchased it for him in the fist place!
on May 19th, 2008 at 2:18 pm
Shane - I guess they figure that since the kids have no idea what they’re listening to, it’s not corrupting them too much? (Until they repeat profanity and racial epithet laced greetings to me…) It’s really hard to convey the idea that some words are BAD in English. I dunno. Sigh.
on May 19th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
I’m unsure how old your kids are, but though the rap is perhas too fast for them now, they will pick up certain words. ALL CD albums in Japan come with full album lyrics.
I have a few kids who think the standard American greeting is “mother F*** you”. When I started a pen pal project, this particular student signed it with his “tag” name and bragged about how his “graffiti” is “tagged” all over the city I live in.
It’s not just gangsta rap either, the student who is really into hard rock, signed his letter. ” I LOVE SEX!” The American culture that is exported whether it be on TV or music is full of sex and violence.
It can EASILY be misinterpreted, but just like Americans who come to Japan expecting a nation full of anime otaku’s (I have met more than a few JET’s like this) and video game freaks, or even geisha and samurai, it probably won’t cause any problems unless they go there. And, if your offended you should tell them about it….
Knowing my students and their limited studying abilities and aspirations for their own future, I think they’ll only be heading to America on vacation if even that. I’ve at least got them to stop sticking the finger in class and greeting me with F*** yous…..
on May 19th, 2008 at 4:42 pm
Kraygk - I only teach high school, so most of my kids are around 15 or 16 years old. You’re right about the disturbing exports and whatnot - but I’d be quick to assert that it’s technically not American culture, though it sort of is considered so de facto. (I feel like it doesn’t represent me, anyway.) It’s more like Hollywood culture, I think. You’re also spot on about the folks on the JET program who come over with a very skewed and unrealistic image of Japan. They get it sorted out. I dunno. In the meantime, I just answer kids truthfully when they ask me over the top questions. (Does everyone in America kill each other with guns?) Yikes. Thanks for the comment.
on May 19th, 2008 at 4:44 pm
Hahahaha, thanks for caring for kids.
But nobody will be corrupted by gangsta raps there, absolutely no harm can be done.
To me, entire Japanese Hip-Hop phenomenon is huge misunderstandings.
They just love to immitate the Hip and cool American culture without knowing, understanding or caring about where those really came from.
Actually they had started immitating Hip-Hop fashion long before White kids did. In late ’80s, Japanese kids in Hip-Hop fashion had already invaded New York tourists hotels. I wonder what White clerks of those days thought of yellow kids, wearing clothings and even hair styles that only Black or Hispanic kids of South Bonx wore, staying at their hotels.
Anyway, nobody can deny the power of Black music.
It helped to open so many doors, which benefited other minorities in U.S, as well. And now finally they have reached to a small island of Seto. I think it is wonderful.
As I have translated some rap albums before, I know how horrible they can be. But don’t worry about them, they always enjoy the foreign cultures as the way they can do and it is their, sort of, tradition, they used to love immitate Chinese cultures in the same way.
They call it “Kankotsudattai (換骨奪胎).”
And this is one of the Key Words to understand Japanese culture.
on May 19th, 2008 at 4:50 pm
Blue - Thanks for the comment. (Aren’t you tired? It’s got to be nearly 4 AM in New York…?) I just feel dispirited when the “American” culture that gets prominently exported and adapted is something I find so profoundly detrimental. You say black music is powerful - and I agree - I’m a big fan of jazz and blues. But I feel like rap music is contributing faster to the deterioration of black values and identity than anything else. It may be powerful, but I am saddened by its negative impact. The kids who listen to it in America do understand the words, and whether or not they heed them, I think it gets in.
Also - when you refer to adaptation (a la 換骨奪胎), I find that most Japanese rap is quite clean and harmless. It’s the English (American) rap that’s the problem in my book.
on May 19th, 2008 at 6:26 pm
“But I feel like rap music is contributing faster to the deterioration of black values and identity than anything else. ”
Yeah, this debate has been going on for a long time, much much longer than Obama and Hillary thang which has already bored me to tears.
Some rap lyrics are good, some of them are okay and some of them are bad as hell, down right evil. Even Black leaders have been saying that those can have very bad influence on their own community.
But you know what, most of those bad ones come out of major labels which are owned by the people who are well-educated and not Black. Just like many violence filled films come out of major Hollywood studios which are owned by business people who are very well-educated.
Hail to mighty $!
It is just amazing to know how much this society is distorted by the people who think money is everything.
Unlike almost-homogenized Japanese society, this one has so many holes that money loving people are dying to sneak in and exploit. And they really do.
Also this one has a huge, almost obcene, gap between rich and poor and it is been widening.
Bush said he started War because he wanted to spread the democracy.
I say what democracy is he talking about?
I usally go to bed in the morning as I do not have to go anywhere to work. Actually today I plan to go to NYU to talk to kids.
on May 19th, 2008 at 7:24 pm
Blue - music company executives aren’t uniformly rich white men, you know. Your comment sounds slightly conspiratorial in the “white men created rap music to destroy black culture” vein of thought. Unless you’re suggesting that rap artists are selling out the youth of America by promoting “thug” lifestyles - and thus placing money on a higher priority than integrity, I disagree with you.
And I couldn’t disagree more with this sentence, which I think is categorically untrue: “Unlike almost-homogenized Japanese society, this one has so many holes that money loving people are dying to sneak in and exploit.” What? Seriously? I think not. And you’re also mistaken if you think that the gap between the rich and the poor in Japan is orders of magnitude better than that of the states. I’m not against people becoming wealthy. I’d like to eventually have some money myself.
And lastly…how’d you end up criticizing President Bush coming off of a post about rap music? (My opinion on the subject is almost certainly opposed to yours, but here’s the gist: all of the reasons we heard for going to war were wrong. We can all agree that the war should not have started, but the fact is that it’s going now, and it would be the most irresponsible thing to do to simply pull out. Would you rather Iraq turn out to be more like Vietnam, or more like Japan? I vote for another Japan. But anyway.)
on May 20th, 2008 at 9:21 pm
wow. and here i was complaining that we get the same ol’ classical mozart everyday.
guess i should count myself lucky. doesn’t make for as amusing a blog post though, that’s for sure.
Nics last blog post was: Tuk tuk? Tuk tuk! Tuk tuk. TUK TUK.
on May 20th, 2008 at 11:56 pm
Your wrong on one note, the rich and poor gap in Japan IS magnitudes less than in America. In fact it is HALF that of America’s.
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DE5D81E39F936A25754C0A960958260
“A nation’s total wealth is not an adequate guide to how its people live, the survey says. In nations as diverse as the Netherlands, JAPAN, Bangladesh and Nepal, the gap between average incomes and those of the poorest 20 percent of the population is half that of the United States.”
Another thing, let’s not over simplify the issue of Iraq with the very unfair comparison between it and Vietnam, and Japan. Vietnam was a nation we had absolutely no control over, we had been defeated and had to be evacuated out of that country. (I am an American as well)
Japan was a nation that waged war on America and was defeated and accepted that defeat. It is a homogeneous nation that was easily molded.
http://www.newsweek.com/id/136788
On the other hand the parallels between Iraq have been made more than a few times, and here is a interesting article that just recently came out on Newsweek high lighting this.
On the black music CEO/President/Directors there are 4. And three are under the same combined label, Island Def Jam (L.A. Reid, Jay Z, and Jermain Dupree) Sylvia Rhone, runs Motown. Which is also a sublabel of Universal.
Universal is run by a white guy.
In fact almost all music labels are sub labels of the big four, Universal, EMI, Sony, BGM. All with white guy CEO’s.
Go 10 minutes of my life and go GOOGLE!
You many think I waste my time trying to get you on the internet, but the previous two things I had read earlier and decided to just get you on it. I don’t like people spreading misconceptions on Japan, or even on America. The last thing I do admit I just wanted to get you on it, because let’s face it, even though a black man may become president on the USA, it’s very much a white man’s world. (I’m sure you’d love to argue this one too)
Your obviously not a liberal, and I won’t try to change your thinking, and I am not going to say that conservatives make general sweeping statements more than liberals do. Though as a liberal, (who is obviously going to be biased) I have found that conservatives tend to bring a lot of belief to the table in lieu of research. (I try to not stress “facts” since with politics and a whole lot of other things, you can find conflicting evidence)
on May 21st, 2008 at 8:15 am
Nicole - I would take Mozart any day. Maybe I should submit my own song choices and try to hijack the playlist once every other month or so. Ha ha.
Kraygk - thanks for the comment. I’ve got to wait until classes are over today to give all the material a read, but I’ll read it. I’m a conservative, but I dislike being ignorant. So if I’m wrong on this, I’d like to correct that. I’ll respond (hopefully today) when time permits a thoughtful reply.
Update: Ok. First, a nitpick on a terminology “gotcha.” I used the words “orders of magnitude” not “magnitudes,” and it does make a difference. Orders of magnitude are generally dealt with in powers of ten, while magnitudes can be just about anything. I’m not wrong for suggesting that the gap between rich and poor in Japan and America is not different in orders of magnitude. (But I am also not saying that you’re wrong for saying that the difference in Japan is half that of America. Though I think the number is probably dated, since it comes from an article published in 1996, 12 years ago.) Also, the article you linked to compares a few different things. The per capita income versus the bottom twenty percent and the top twenty percent versus the bottom twenty percent. It also suggests, on the second page, that these numbers need to be seen in context and have different meanings across the board. There has been more coverage of the topic, though, since 1996. Here’s an article referring to another UN report, indicating that globalization increases the gap - published in 1999. Here’s another from 2004. But when it’s suggested that “Unlike almost-homogenized Japanese society, [America] has so many holes that money loving people are dying to sneak in and exploit,” I’m tempted to point out all sorts of money loving people in Japan, some of whom are probably exploitative. Not to vilify them, though.
I suppose another problem with our conversation is that I tend to comprehend poverty in absolute, not relative terms. And I also do not think that wealth accumulation is a zero sum game, in that wealthy parties are ipso facto depriving poor parties of wealth. I believe that wealth is generated. Looking at America’s official poverty line, then comparing it with other wealthy nations in terms of purchasing power parity, I don’t think that America really stands out all that much. (Hence my assertion that the difference is not one of orders of magnitude.)
Moving on, the Iraq comparison was about the aftermath of the war, not the war itself. Obviously, the two wars are not similar. They’re quite dissimilar. We’re not at war with Iraq as a country, for one thing. We were heavy handed in creating a form of democracy in Japan, for another. Japan has since become the number two economic power in the world. I believe that the two are linked. I would like to see Iraq become a prosperous democratic nation – and I’m optimistic that it can happen despite the awfulness at present. I admit that it’s overgeneralizing, but I wasn’t trying to make a direct comparison so much as outline my hopeful outlook. I know it’s idealistic.
Um, next, I know you’re American. I believe you’re in Hawai’i? I don’t believe I ever attacked or questioned you on that… Nor would I have cause to? You’re free to have opinions about things in any event. Ha ha.
On the topic of black music executives, while the big four may have white male CEOs, you confirmed my point that music executives are not monolithically rich white men. You named four highly successful black music executives. Here’s an old article from Ebony, printed in 1997, that discusses even more. Where exactly was I wrong, or factually incorrect, and where do you disagree with me on this point?
Lastly, I guess I’ll say that I feel like you think you’ve got me pegged when you make assertions about my desire to contest whether or not “it’s a white man’s world.” That’s making a not really nice assumption and insinuation about me. I don’t mind if you try to change my way of thinking. I try to be open and reevaluate mistakes I make when I can get above my pride. Anyway, thanks for the comments again. Catch you later.