Juicy Notorious B. I. D City Analysis

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Kristin Libby October 13, 2014 Hip Hop Theory & Culture Humanities 125 – Hackman The music video for “Juicy” by Notorious B.I.G. and the performance of “m.a.a.d. City” by Kendrick Lamar at the 2014 Grammys stood out to me and showed many similarities. One major similarity between these two artists is the position that they are in now compared to how they grew up and the feats that they overcame. Where they are in these videos in a much different position from the where they were when their career began. Growing up in Compton to family members involved in gangs and violence being somewhat of the norm, Kendrick Lamar is now in a position to take a private jet over that same city (March, 2013). That is not to say that Lamar doesn’t…show more content…
Forman states that the artists that do stay in their hometown due so to stay closer to friends and family. Lamar’s continued connection to friends and family is evident in the fact that on day he is scheduled for an interview with one of the largest magazines he has vanished in order to mourn the loss of a friend. Notorious B.I.G. has a similar story in that he came from a harsh and often violent upbringing in Brooklyn, NY. While the video portrays the lavish lifestyle that Notorious B.I.G. has afforded from his hip hop success the context of his music narratives the difficult life in which he grew up. While to some this may sound like an embellishment of a gangster lifestyle in order to make his music more appealing to the masses Biggie is simply giving a description of his everyday realities in Brooklyn (Neal,…show more content…
In reaching more of a mainstream audience they were able to show how possible it is to overcome difficulties and shed light on the harsh reality of living in the ghetto. While most people did not grow up in that environment many are able to feel that they can truly see the harshness of their reality strictly on the way the artists are able to describe their story. This is a huge portion of the importance of hip hop, having a place to voice your thoughts and share with others what they may not

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