We are pleased to relay the following press release…
Talking Drum Communications
P.O. Box 42634, Philadelphia, PA 19101
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Ewuare Osayande (215) 397-4780
Osayandespeaks@hotmail.com
Activist Takes on the Rap Industry’s Exploitation of Women in New Book
MISOGYNY & THE EMCEE: RACE, SEX & HIP HOP
Forthcoming Book of Essays by Ewuare X. Osayande
Publication Date: November 30, 2007
Taking on the single most controversial issue in the hip hop world, award-winning author and political activist Ewuare X. Osayande pulls no punches and takes no prisoners in this tour de force of critical essays on the exploitation of Black women in the rap industry. Written at a time when most debates on hip hop are reduced to rhetorical prattles between liberal defenders and conservative detractors that center on “free speech versus censorship,” Osayande turns the corner with Misogyny & the Emcee and offers a nuanced look that puts the interests of people before profit.
Covering the major controversies in hip hop for the past several years, he dissects the lives and lyrics of such hip hop stars as Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Kanye West, Emimen, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Ludacris, Nelly, The Ying Yang Twins, OutKast, R. Kelly, Beanie Seigel, Busta Rhymes, Ma$e, Common, Dead Prez, Kirk Franklin and many more. But he doesn’t stop there. Osayande locates these artists within a nefarious web of corporate seduction and cultural imperialism. His writing targets the exact location where racism, sexism and capitalism intersect, wreaking havoc on the lives and aspirations of Black youth and distorting how they are viewed worldwide. The net result is a systemic attack on the integrity of Black life and culture.
Misogyny and the Emcee is an unprecedented work – a Black man critically engaging the socio-political constructs of hip hop culture through the radical lens of Black feminist thought without compromise. Here is a work that heralds the scholarship of Black women who for decades have championed the cause of gender justice, namely Angela Davis, bell hooks, Pearl Cleage, Joy James, Kelly Brown Douglas and Aishah Simmons. Here is a work that heralds the future.
PRAISE FOR EWUARE OSAYANDE’S MISOGYNY & THE EMCEE
“At a time when the outcry is minimal and the voices are tragically few, Ewuare Osayande’s MISOGYNY & THE EMCEE takes no prisoners and cuts straight to the chase on challenging all forms of inter and intra-racial violence perpetuated against Black women and girls. Too fierce! Osayande’s critically needed message is a constant reminder that if Black people, most especially Black men, do not address sexism with the same vigilance that we (need to) address racism, our (non-monolithic) communities will never ever be whole or safe. In response to Abbey Lincoln’s timeless essay “Who Will Revere The Black Woman?”, Osayande’s powerful book of essays very loudly and clearly say “I will!”
Aishah Shahidah Simmons,
Producer, Writer, Director, NO! The Rape Documentary
“This is a powerful, passionate, compelling commentary on how popular culture, including so called “gangsta” rap and strip club hip hop, is complicit in the perpetuation of patriarchy and the abuse and degradation of Black women. Osayande is devastating and relentless in his logic, and unsparing in his willingness to name those who collaborate in corrupting and debasing Black culture. Ideal for general readers and especially courses in Black history, sociology and cultural studies.”
Dr. Wayne Glasker, Associate Professor of History
Director, African American Studies Program, Rutgers University-Camden
“Ewuare X. Osayande does it again! He offers readers a collection of fresh, clear and compelling essays regarding the highly problematic state of contemporary commercial hip-hop music. Osayande challenges this genre entrenched in glorifying black self-hatred, misogyny and materialism. It has been said that the current generation of hip-hop artists has made more money than any other generation of black Americans to date, and yet we must ask ourselves at what cost? Osayande prompts us to grapple with this and other questions related to hip-hop music and culture today. This book is a must read not only for hip-hop heads but for anybody who loves blackness.”
Dr. Calenthia S. Dowdy,
Associate Professor of Youth Culture, Eastern University
“Ewuare Osayande’s Misogyny & the Emcee: Sex, Race & Hip Hop gives the reader an unrestrained, a honest, an informed, a poignant, a disciplined, and a challenging analysis of the representation of the violence against Black women and the misogyny that defines the rap music. With depth and breadth, this book sharply provides a clear picture of how slavery and its replacement racism created the space/place for the violence and misogyny in rap music. Osayande shows that the same patriarchal power that institutionalized the forced breeding of Black women and the exploitation of Black male physicality controls the rap industry. A Black male who critiques the Black community with the disciplined distance necessary for individual and communal transformation, Osayande explains that Black people’s sleepwalking blocks our ability to make the connections between the actual physical violence that Black women experience and the unlawful violence that permeates too much rap music. This book emerges as transformative reading for those of us who teach young men and women in our schools from k-12 and at the university level. It makes clear that Black men need to provide alternative role models and that all of us need to examine the blindness that blocks our understanding of the institutionalized assault on Black women popularized and venerated by too many rap artists.”
Dr. Joyce A. Joyce
Professor of English, Temple University
Ewuare Osayande is a political activist, poet and award-winning author of several books including Blood Luxury (Africa World Press). His work is featured in several new anthologies including Men Speak Out: Profeminist Views on Gender, Sex and Power (Routledge 2007), The Revolution will not be Funded: Beyond the Non-Profit Industrial Complex (South End Press 2007) and What Lies Beneath: Katrina, Race and the State of the Nation (South End Press 2007). Osayande is co-founder of POWER (People Organized Working to Eradicate Racism) and creator of ONUS: Redefining Black Manhood.
BOOKING INFORMATION
In anticipation of the book’s release, Osayande is now securing speaking engagements and interviews for the book tour. All interested parties please contact Ewuare at OsayandeSpeaks@hotmail.com.
Also, if you are interested in being informed of upcoming book-related news and events, join the mailing list by emailing Osayande at the above address.
www.osayande.org
See also:
Videos on Sexist & Exploitative Media (Includes Rap/Hip Hop) (30+)
“Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats & Rhymes” Screens in Northampton on June 3; Q&A with Director Byron Hurt
Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats & Rhymes provides a riveting examination of manhood, sexism, and homophobia in hip-hop culture. Director Byron Hurt, former star college quarterback, longtime hip-hop fan, and gender violence prevention educator, conceived the documentary as a “loving critique” of a number of disturbing trends in the world of rap music. He pays tribute to hip-hop while challenging the rap music industry to take respon
sibility for glamorizing destructive, deeply conservative stereotypes of manhood. The documentary features revealing interviews about masculinity and sexism with rappers such as Mos Def, Fat Joe, Chuck D, Jadakiss, and Busta Rhymes, hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons, and cultural commentators such as Michael Eric Dyson and Beverly Guy-Shetfall. Critically acclaimed for its fearless engagement with issues of race, gender violence, and the corporate exploitation of youth culture.
Talking Drum Communications
P.O. Box 42634, Philadelphia, PA 19101
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Ewuare Osayande (215) 397-4780
Osayandespeaks@hotmail.com
Activist Takes on the Rap Industry’s Exploitation of Women in New Book
MISOGYNY & THE EMCEE: RACE, SEX & HIP HOP
Forthcoming Book of Essays by Ewuare X. Osayande
Publication Date: November 30, 2007
Taking on the single most controversial issue in the hip hop world, award-winning author and political activist Ewuare X. Osayande pulls no punches and takes no prisoners in this tour de force of critical essays on the exploitation of Black women in the rap industry. Written at a time when most debates on hip hop are reduced to rhetorical prattles between liberal defenders and conservative detractors that center on “free speech versus censorship,” Osayande turns the corner with Misogyny & the Emcee and offers a nuanced look that puts the interests of people before profit.
Covering the major controversies in hip hop for the past several years, he dissects the lives and lyrics of such hip hop stars as Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Kanye West, Emimen, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Ludacris, Nelly, The Ying Yang Twins, OutKast, R. Kelly, Beanie Seigel, Busta Rhymes, Ma$e, Common, Dead Prez, Kirk Franklin and many more. But he doesn’t stop there. Osayande locates these artists within a nefarious web of corporate seduction and cultural imperialism. His writing targets the exact location where racism, sexism and capitalism intersect, wreaking havoc on the lives and aspirations of Black youth and distorting how they are viewed worldwide. The net result is a systemic attack on the integrity of Black life and culture.
Misogyny and the Emcee is an unprecedented work – a Black man critically engaging the socio-political constructs of hip hop culture through the radical lens of Black feminist thought without compromise. Here is a work that heralds the scholarship of Black women who for decades have championed the cause of gender justice, namely Angela Davis, bell hooks, Pearl Cleage, Joy James, Kelly Brown Douglas and Aishah Simmons. Here is a work that heralds the future.
PRAISE FOR EWUARE OSAYANDE’S MISOGYNY & THE EMCEE
“At a time when the outcry is minimal and the voices are tragically few, Ewuare Osayande’s MISOGYNY & THE EMCEE takes no prisoners and cuts straight to the chase on challenging all forms of inter and intra-racial violence perpetuated against Black women and girls. Too fierce! Osayande’s critically needed message is a constant reminder that if Black people, most especially Black men, do not address sexism with the same vigilance that we (need to) address racism, our (non-monolithic) communities will never ever be whole or safe. In response to Abbey Lincoln’s timeless essay “Who Will Revere The Black Woman?”, Osayande’s powerful book of essays very loudly and clearly say “I will!”
Aishah Shahidah Simmons,
Producer, Writer, Director, NO! The Rape Documentary
“This is a powerful, passionate, compelling commentary on how popular culture, including so called “gangsta” rap and strip club hip hop, is complicit in the perpetuation of patriarchy and the abuse and degradation of Black women. Osayande is devastating and relentless in his logic, and unsparing in his willingness to name those who collaborate in corrupting and debasing Black culture. Ideal for general readers and especially courses in Black history, sociology and cultural studies.”
Dr. Wayne Glasker, Associate Professor of History
Director, African American Studies Program, Rutgers University-Camden
“Ewuare X. Osayande does it again! He offers readers a collection of fresh, clear and compelling essays regarding the highly problematic state of contemporary commercial hip-hop music. Osayande challenges this genre entrenched in glorifying black self-hatred, misogyny and materialism. It has been said that the current generation of hip-hop artists has made more money than any other generation of black Americans to date, and yet we must ask ourselves at what cost? Osayande prompts us to grapple with this and other questions related to hip-hop music and culture today. This book is a must read not only for hip-hop heads but for anybody who loves blackness.”
Dr. Calenthia S. Dowdy,
Associate Professor of Youth Culture, Eastern University
“Ewuare Osayande’s Misogyny & the Emcee: Sex, Race & Hip Hop gives the reader an unrestrained, a honest, an informed, a poignant, a disciplined, and a challenging analysis of the representation of the violence against Black women and the misogyny that defines the rap music. With depth and breadth, this book sharply provides a clear picture of how slavery and its replacement racism created the space/place for the violence and misogyny in rap music. Osayande shows that the same patriarchal power that institutionalized the forced breeding of Black women and the exploitation of Black male physicality controls the rap industry. A Black male who critiques the Black community with the disciplined distance necessary for individual and communal transformation, Osayande explains that Black people’s sleepwalking blocks our ability to make the connections between the actual physical violence that Black women experience and the unlawful violence that permeates too much rap music. This book emerges as transformative reading for those of us who teach young men and women in our schools from k-12 and at the university level. It makes clear that Black men need to provide alternative role models and that all of us need to examine the blindness that blocks our understanding of the institutionalized assault on Black women popularized and venerated by too many rap artists.”
Dr. Joyce A. Joyce
Professor of English, Temple University
Ewuare Osayande is a political activist, poet and award-winning author of several books including Blood Luxury (Africa World Press). His work is featured in several new anthologies including Men Speak Out: Profeminist Views on Gender, Sex and Power (Routledge 2007), The Revolution will not be Funded: Beyond the Non-Profit Industrial Complex (South End Press 2007) and What Lies Beneath: Katrina, Race and the State of the Nation (South End Press 2007). Osayande is co-founder of POWER (People Organized Working to Eradicate Racism) and creator of ONUS: Redefining Black Manhood.
BOOKING INFORMATION
In anticipation of the book’s release, Osayande is now securing speaking engagements and interviews for the book tour. All interested parties please contact Ewuare at OsayandeSpeaks@hotmail.com.
Also, if you are interested in being informed of upcoming book-related news and events, join the mailing list by emailing Osayande at the above address.
www.osayande.org
See also:
Videos on Sexist & Exploitative Media (Includes Rap/Hip Hop) (30+)
“Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats & Rhymes” Screens in Northampton on June 3; Q&A with Director Byron Hurt
Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats & Rhymes provides a riveting examination of manhood, sexism, and homophobia in hip-hop culture. Director Byron Hurt, former star college quarterback, longtime hip-hop fan, and gender violence prevention educator, conceived the documentary as a “loving critique” of a number of disturbing trends in the world of rap music. He pays tribute to hip-hop while challenging the rap music industry to take respon
sibility for glamorizing destructive, deeply conservative stereotypes of manhood. The documentary features revealing interviews about masculinity and sexism with rappers such as Mos Def, Fat Joe, Chuck D, Jadakiss, and Busta Rhymes, hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons, and cultural commentators such as Michael Eric Dyson and Beverly Guy-Shetfall. Critically acclaimed for its fearless engagement with issues of race, gender violence, and the corporate exploitation of youth culture.