RE: Jewisn rap?

[music <music...>]

> You might want to listen to the Israeli Rapper 'Subliminal'for an
> example. Some of his songs (text wise) are disgusting; however, some
> are very interesting both in message and music. I gave a whole series
> of classes about Jewish and Israeli Rap music and yes some are good and
> some are bad. The old question is naturally what makes it 'Jewish'? Is
> the fact that the artist is Jewish enough to'Kasher' it? Is the fact
> that the language used is Hebrew enough to 'Kasher' it? Without getting
> into these questions since there are many opinions regarding this
> matter, the fact is that Jewish Rap exists, alive and kicking. It is a
> form of art and expression. 


Cantor Arik aptly raises the Is It Jewish? question (and, also perfectly
legitimately, declines to answer it), and he observes, absolutely inargu-
ably, that rap is a (contemporary) form of expression; it obviously is.
Arik begs the question, however, whether rap is, in fact, art -- under
which, I guess, I would subsume my disgruntled-baby-boomer question
of whether it counts as music.  Arik just states that it *is* --this is, appar-
ently, the "fact" that Arik thinks we should accept -- but is *all* expression, 
or self-expression, ipso facto a form of art?  All honking of a car horn?  
All screaming?  All graffiti?

Those examples don't prove that rap *isn't* art; but they suffice to estab-
lish that, just as obviously as that rap is, for better or (I think) for worse, 
a form of expression, so, equally obviously, that doesn't in and of itself 
make it art, or music.  And I, for one, am still not persuaded that it is.

-- Robert Cohen, unapologetic baby boomer, who, *if* I didn't assume, as I
most emphatically do, that Cantor Arik is of the highest character and
reputation, would assume that teaching "a whole series of classes" 
about rap was the community-service component of a (criminal) sentence

P.S.  Hey, think of this:  If rap *isn't* music but just verbal self-expression,
then, even by the frummiest standards, kol isha wouldn't apply to it!!  See
how much rests on this whiny question?

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