Should Hip Hop artists be considered Griots PDF

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Coby Schmutter

2/9/20

Should Hip-Hop Artists be considered modern day Griots? In my opinion, Hip-Hop artists should not be considered modern day Griots. In the world we live in today, these artists do not symbolize African tradition, nor do they accompany Kings or serve politicians. As we have recently discussed in class, the key role of today’s Hip-Hop artists is to entertain. However, according to google a Griot is, “a member of a class of traveling poets, musicians, and storytellers who maintain a tradition of oral history in parts of West Africa.” This has nothing to do with entertainment, and has much more to do with African traditions. After reading “Troubling the Trope of ‘Rapper as Modern Griot’”, one thing that stood out to me, was how the Griots role was to follow important people, and support them. The article discusses what the true essence of the Griot was, versus the essence of the modern-day Hip-Hop artist. It states, “In monarchial times, the role of the griot was to transmit the message of the King. And. After the king went to war, the griot would come and say oh, you’re the greatest warrior, you got this from your father” It then compares Hip-Hop artists by stating “however, with rappers it's the contrary. They bring the grievances of the people to the rulers, it's the opposite.” This therefore proves that the role of the Griot is very different from the role these artists have in society. Similarly, the article also states that the role the Griot holds in society is to “guard history” and repeat past events to the proceeding generation, whereas the modern-day artist is allowed to discuss topics of his/her choice and tell the public whatever they would like. They have no limitations to their music, and are not adhering to the rules of a King/politician. Additionally, after reading From Homer to Hip Hop: Orature and Griots, Ancient and Present, it is also prevalent that the Griot and the modern artist speak to a different culture. Daniel Banks states that Hip Hop artists utilize Aristotle’s ethos and are mainly focused on inclusivity and social injustice, while the Griots role was to discuss family names and historical events. After doing further research and utilizing some external sources, another common argument that proves Hip-Hop artists are not modern-day Griots is that not all Hip-Hop artists are from West Africa, or let alone are of African descent. The word Griot seems to refer to a strict West African culture, however it is argued that there are distinct similarities that both rappers and Griots share. In conclusion, I think that it is fair to say that although modern day Hip-Hop artists may have received large amounts of inspiration from Griots, it is not right to consider them as a modern-day version of one. It is import to respect and appreciate the role Griots have, and understand the history behind the similar beats, as well as other impacts they had on the music we listen to today. Sometimes just because one thing led to something else, does not mean they are to be considered the same....