The recession forces rappers to give up the jewels

April 20, 11:20 AMNY Hip-Hop Music ExaminerSamantha Greaves

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Jewels are about to pull a disappearing act in Hip Hop.

By now, we all know that rappers have a slight obsession with shiny materialistic things. Like every genre, there are the few things that somehow define the style and perception of what that genre stands for.

Rock & Roll has it's drug overdose's, booze, and hotel room trashing; Pop has it's paparazzi, stalkers, rehab, and blatant crotch shots, Country has it's cowboy boots, hats, and secret infidelities; and Hip Hop has it's shiny jewels, cars, and troubles with the law.

Hip Hop artists for sometime now, have found a way to define the genre as being the materialistic, "I have this and you have none", in your face flaunts of riches; something very different from what defined the genre in it's earlier years also known as the golden years.

Seems like the recession has forced some of Hip Hop's top dogs to go on a little diet this writer likes to call the ice diet. More and more you are seeing rappers shed their ridiculously large chains, bracelets, watches, and rings coupled with their pricey name brand clothing; and are replacing them with attire that border the lines of simple. You notice it in their videos that were once home of flashy city and in recent photo shoots for magazines and advertisements. In Hip Hop's past, you could not get past a video without seeing the original formula: half naked women, expensive cars, large chains, x-amount of "yes men", and money falling from the sky.

Now, the videos are a little more humble. Mainly shot in public spaces such as residential neighborhoods where real people live (like it use to be before the birth of materialism times infinity) and also the option of showing the creative side of some artists that choose to get their hands dirty in the art of the green screen animation. The video's today in short, are kept simple and to the point. The funny thing is, it is far more interesting than the video's of them showing off rented cars that they claim to own but don't.

To say that all Hip Hop rappers have taken heed to appearing in their video's and out in public without the "essentials" would be a lie. There are still the handful that would like to give off the impression that they are still doing well and that they are not being affected by the recession, but do not be fooled. You see, if you the consumer are not buying the products that they are selling or advertising due to the fact that you are having trouble making ends meet, so are they; they depend on you to buy whatever it is that they are selling and if you are not buying then they are not collecting.

Be prepared to see less and less flashy jewelry worn by some of your favorite artists. Instead of large chains such as Rick Ross' chain designed with his face in mind (literally), you will see more simple diamond-encrusted pieces hanging from sterling silver chains. A trend insider explains,

We're still going to see some bling, but it's just not going to be as much," Connor says. "Instead of four diamond necklaces, it might just be a diamond bracelet - and it's a piece the celebrity wears all the time. They're not changing their jewelry out everyday. -via NY Daily News.
 

Those that are ardent followers of Hip Hop stand to benefit from the rappers shedding their jewelry. It's no secret, Hip Hop has been the driving force behind a lot of it's followers obsession with materialistic goods. Truth be told, many individuals living within the inner cities would probably not know a good portion of high-end designers if they were not worn by Hip Hop artists or mentioned in their songs.

There is a teenager right now who is thinking about going home to turn on his/her TV to catch up on all of their music videos for the day. While watching, it will be hard for them not to want what they see in the videos they watch. Believe it or not, the Hip Hop artists that flaunt today were once kids who gawked at the jewels and expensive cars adorned and driven by their favorite artists.

A good majority of the Hip Hop artists that flaunt their riches, came from very little growing up; and a lot of their ambition comes from their hunger and need to be better than what they lived through. Their access to TV influenced their choices in what they wanted and what defined success.

Once they acquired the things they always wanted, they wasted no time and gave little thought to hiding what they had, they wanted to tell the world; and honestly, who could blame them?

With the recession that exists today standing as the worst in America's history, it will allow everyone as a whole to understand life far pass the insignificant like the jewelry, the cars, and the money. What will be more important will be the things in life that are priceless and worth much more. And just maybe the ice diet will give way to more quality material in the genre of Hip Hop and it's return to it's admirable art form of poetry in motion.