Rap’s true profiteers stay in the shadows of lyrical debate

By Roland S. Martin
Creators Syndicate

Everyone seems to be getting in on the act of dissecting the sexism that permeates some forms of hip hop music.

From radio talk shows to cable shows to online forums, the debate has intensified. The voices vigorously defending the art form have mainly consisted of Russell Simmons, co-founder of Def Jam, Snoop Dogg, and Common.

Normally boisterous rappers like 50 Cent, Jermaine Dupri, T.I. and others have been amazingly quiet, choosing to kick it in Vice President Dick Cheney’s anti-terrorism bunker until the dust settles.

They must be chillin; drinking a few 40-ounce beers with the likes of Eric Nicoli, Doug Morris, Andrew Lack and Lyor Cohen.

Oh, you’ve never heard of them? Surely you’ve caught their videos and sexism rap songs on BET or MTV. Better yet, your kids might be able to identify their songs.

Well, maybe not their lyrics. None of these men are artists. They are simply the individuals who sign off on the music.

Nicoli is the CEO of EMI; Morris heads up Universal Music Group; Lack is CEO of Sony BMG Music Entertainment; and Cohen, who reportedly made $100 million when he worked as a top producer at Def Jam, now runs Warner.

These men represent the Big 4 – the top record labels in the world. What you listen to is controlled by these gentlemen and the underlings who report to them. All are publicly traded companies, which means that institutional investors sink a ton of money to snap up their shares. Have you considered that your pension fund may be benefiting from gangsta rap?

What does all of this have to do with rap lyrics? Simple. These are the power brokers and the folks who, with a single snap of the finger, can stop the rampant sexism in music.

Forget 50 Cent, Snoop Dogg and the other rappers. None of them have the final say over the music that is released. Not a single one can approve the massive budgets to produce the albums or shoot the rump shakin’ videos. If Nicoli, Lack, Morris and Cohen say, “Enough is enough,” this debate ends today.

When Don Imus and his cohorts slammed the Rutgers women’s basketball team, they were rightfully blasted. But at the same time, those protesting called on his bosses – Steve Capus at NBC News (who reports to Jeff Zucker at NBC Universal, who reports to Jeffrey Immelt at General Electric) and Les Moonves, president and CEO of CBS Corp. (who reports to Sumner Redstone) – to can him.

So why are we wasting our time criticizing just the rappers? If we call them on the carpet, why not call on those who really make money off the hateful music? These gentleman are bringing home huge paychecks and stock bonuses, and hate rap contributes to their retirement fund.

I tried my best to find a better analogy, but this one applies perfectly: Only focusing on the rappers is like arresting the street drug dealers and saying nothing about the cartel leaders. The guy on the corner might have $1,000 in his pocket, but that cartel leader is pocketing $100 million.

Every time I hear folks go on and on about a rapper like P. Diddy getting a $50 million bonus from Arista, I ask, “Fine. But how much did Arista make, $500 million?”

The light must be shone on the true power players. Put them on television. Bring them in front of a congressional committee. Demand that they justify their actions. Just like we ask the rapper how he can sing such lyrics when he has a young son or daughter, ask the same of the record exec. Grill him on how he can oversee the music that degrades their wives, daughters, sisters and nieces.

Remember the criminal behavior of our troops in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal in Iraq? The lowly soldiers pay the price while the generals that approved the torture got off easy. Any rapper who demeans and denigrates women should be taken to task. But don’t just stop there. Keep going. Keep pressing. Hold those truly responsible accountable. You know, the guys with “the buck stop here” sign on their desk.

Otherwise, this is nothing but a feel good exercise that makes us happy in the short-term and will not lead to any lasting change.

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