“You can find me in the club, bottle full of bub'

Look, mami, I got the X if you into takin' drugs

I'm into havin' sex, I ain't into makin' love

So come give me a hug if you're into getting' rubbed

You can find me in the club, bottle full of bub'

Look, mami, I got the X if you into takin' drugs

I'm into havin' sex, I ain't into makin' love

So come give me a hug if you're into getting' rubbed” 50 Cent. (2003). In Da Club. On Get Rich or Die Tryin'. Shady/Interscope/ Aftermath Entertainment.

Jay-Z in song 99 Problems (2003) justified the surplus of materialism in Rap songs lyrics, saying that being rich and talking about money is a normal behaviour of people, who previously were poor:

“Rap critics that say he's Money, Cash, Hoes

I'm from the hood, stupid! What type of facts are those?

If you grew up with holes in your zapatos

You'd celebrate the minute you was havin' dough” Jay-Z. (2003). 99 Problems. On The Black Album. Roc-A-Fella.

Despite the celebration of success in songs' lyrics, Hip-Hop artists started participating in political life. Rappers were making official statements and supporting presidential campaigns, attracting youth's attention to political life. In August 2005 Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans, Louisiana and the Mississippi. Issues of poverty would be mainstream topics of discussion for months to come. Journalists and activists blamed President George Bush and his bureaucracy system in failure with help to minority citizens of New Orleans. of Public intellectual Dr. Michael Eric Dyson chronicled the Black people suffering in his book Come Hell or High Water: Hurricane Katrina and the Color of Disaster (2006). He stated: “But Hurricane Katrina's violent winds and killing waters swept into the mainstream a stark realization: the poor had been abandoned by society and its institutions, and sometimes by their well-off brothers and sisters, long before the storm.” Dyson, M. E. (2006). Come hell or high water: Hurricane Katrina and the color of disaster. New York: Basic Civitas Books. p. 2. Minority faces, including African-Americans, were planning fund-raising activities to support Katrina victims. There were opinions, that evacuees should seek cover by their own, because their failure in evacuation resulted in their condition. The bad planning on local government's behalf, the lack of federal resources and information cast a long shadow on the Bush Administration.

After Katrina rapper Kanye West declared on a live broadcast on NBC, MSNBC, and CNBC that “George Bush doesn't care about black people.” West was participating in a concert produced by NBC News “A Concert for Hurricane Relief.” He said: “I hate the way they portray us in the media. If you see a black family, it says they're looting. See a white family, it says they're looking for food. And you know that it's been five days, because most of the people are black. And even for me to complain about it, I would be a hypocrite because I've tried to turn away from the TV, because it's too hard to watch. We already realize a lot of people that could help are at war right now, fighting another way, and they have given them permission to go down and shoot us ... George Bush doesn't care about black people.” Rapper David Banner organized a benefit concert in Atlanta, Georgia with his colleagues Lil' Jon, T.I., Kinfolk, Boyz N Da Hood, D4L and others. Later in their songs rappers were mentioning the Hurricane, for example, Lupe Fiasco (“Katrina, FEMA trailers, human body sandbags” Lupe Fiasco. (2012). Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free). 1st & 15th, Atlantic), Lil Wayne (“Katrina wiped the city out but couldn't fuck with Hollygrove/Lost some real niggas I knew from a long time ago” Lil Wayne. (2009). Swag Surf. Young Money Entertainment.), and of course Kanye West (“Tell FEMA even Hurricane Katrina couldn't out the flames” Kanye West. (2007). Flashing Lights. Roc-a-Fella Rec.). In 2006, Lil Wayne, born in Louisiana, released the song Georgia... Bush / Weezy'z Ambitionz, which was dedicated to George Bush and to the consequences of the Hurricane. Here he raises the topic of racism and negligence of white authorities, who “were telling lies on TV” and “smiling like everything cool” Lil Wayne. (2006). Georgia... Bush / Weezy'z Ambitionz. Dedication 2. Cash Money Records & Universal Music Group.. He changes Bush's name into feminine “Georgia”, belittling him as a man and politician (unfortunately, feminism came in Hip-Hop culture a little later). Wayne also touches the current situation with accommodation, saying that authorities are suspending from solving this problem, moreover, victims have to solve their financial condition by themselves:

“New Orleans baby, now the White House hating

Trying to wash us away like we not on the map

Wait, have you heard the latest

They saying that you gotta have paper if you tryna come back

Now it's them dead bodies, them lost houses

The mayor say don't worry bout it” Ibid.

Another big natural disaster happened in 2010 - the earthquake in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, that caused destruction of homes and deaths. In response to this heartbreaking catastrophe, Haiti native rapper Wyclef Jean organized the celebrity charity campaign called “Hope for Haiti Now”. The campaign included the broadcasted telethon with the participation of George Clooney, Alicia Keys, Coldplay, Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Madonna, Julia Roberts and many more. The telethon raised $58 million of donations that were spent on education, nutrition, and healthcare. In addition, celebrities recorded live musical album Hope for Haiti Now, which became the biggest one-day album pre-order in the history of iTunes service. The benefits from the Hope for Haiti Now sales went to relief foundations.

After many Hip-Hop artists' political performances and movements, politicians realized the power of Hip-Hop. In particular, in the 2004, 2008 and 2016 elections Rap music was used as a tool for political discourse and youth mobilization. Adam Howard in his article Hip-Hop Voting Bloc? Howard, A. (2005, August 12). Hip-hop voting bloc? The Nation. claims, that Hip-Hop culture has proved to be a very effective means of expressing political ideas to American youth.

Despite the progress in racial issues, there's still a problem with police brutality. According to a ProPublica study, from 2010 to 2012, African-American men ages 15-19 were 21 times more likely than their white peers to be killed by the police. Ryan Gabrielson and Ryann Grochowski Jones, “Answering the Critics of Our Deadly Force Story,” ProPublica, December 24, 2014. Police advocates didn't accept the research, claiming its sample size was too small to make ultimate statements about police killings. When the authors expanded the sample, they discovered, that the disproportion between Black and White men was getting worse over time. In 2006-2008, the risk ratio was 9 to 1. By 2012 it had risen to the study's original numbers of 21 to 1.92.

The theme of police brutality is wide represented in Kendrick Lamar's music, especially in his landmark album To Pimp a Butterfly (2015). Lamar, the winner of Pulitzer Prize, is known for the disclosure of Black Americans' struggles in an angry manner. In the era of “light” and non-criminalized Rap music, Lamar takes us back to poor Black neighborhoods of 1980s-1990s, reminding about race problems that are still alive. In his songs are traced Black Nationalism and Black Feminism ideas, that are developing from album to album. One of the angriest and passionate tracks on To Pimp A Butterfly is The Blacker the Berry. In this song Kendrick is rebelling against those who he feels are intent on marginalizing and oppressing African-Americans. The lyrics start with:

“Six in the morn', fire in the street

Burn, baby, burn, that's all I wanna see

And sometimes I get off watchin' you die in vain

It's such a shame they may call me crazy

They may say I suffer from schizophrenia or somethin'

But homie, you made me

Black don't crack, my nigga” Kendrick Lamar. (2015). The Blacker The Berry. On To Pimp A Butterfly. Top Dawg/Aftermath/Interscope.

Kendrick is referring to riots situation on streets, that usually cause the death of his community comrades. Throughout the song he is questioning his listeners of their feelings towards Blacks: “You hate me don't you? You hate my people, your plan is to terminate my culture.” Lamar makes evident that even his rage, he refuses to distance himself from his culture or to question the value of his race. He calls himself “a proud monkey,” embracing the stereotypes of his racial identity. In an interview on MTV rapper explains these lyrics: “when I say these lines, it's for myself. It's therapeutic for myself - because I still feel that urge and I still feel that anger... I still feel that hatred all the time”. Kendrick is also mentioning the Ronald Reagan era, specifically the crack cocaine story. He is appealing to people, who were guilty in people's deaths: “You sabotage my community, makin' a killin'/ You made me a killer, emancipation of a real nigga”. Throughout the whole song Lamar is calling himself a hypocrite, saying that “Once I finish this, witnesses will convey just what I mean”, promising to reveal at the end of the song why his outrage over violence towards African-Americans is hypocritical. These lines are:

“So why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street

When gang banging make me kill a nigga blacker than me?

Hypocrite!” celebrity political candidate power

Trayvon Martin is a black teenager, who was shot by a patrol-volunteer George Zimmerman on February 26, 2012. Zimmerman was acquitted by the jury, despite the fact, that Martin did not carry weapons or prohibited substances.

Another piece from album - Alright. The phrase “We gon' be alright,” is repeated throughout the song, sending a message of hope: despite the suffering, but “if God got us, then we gon' be alright”. This message is allied with Black Lives Matter and the fight against police brutality:

“Wouldn't you know

We been hurt, been down before

Nigga, when our pride was low

Lookin' at the world like, “Where do we go?”

Nigga, and we hate po-po

Wanna kill us dead in the street fo sho'

Nigga, I'm at the preacher's door

My knees getting' weak, and my gun might blow

But we gon' be alright” Kendrick Lamar. (2015). Alright. On To Pimp A Butterfly. Top Dawg/Aftermath/Interscope

In 2017 Lamar released album Damn. that won Pulitzer Prize for Music. The album is combining spiritual with the political, making references on Biblical stories, while To Pimp a Butterfly is more about Black community, its liberation and oppression. Besides Kendrick Lamar, there is another artist, whose music is also full on metaphorically hidden references to Black social issues. It's Donald McKinley Glover Jr. or better known as Childish Gambino - actor, director, comedian, songwriter and rapper. His song This Is America (2018) Childish Gambino. (2018). This Is America. RCA. was released alongside with symbol-rich music video this May. The connecting element between the song and video is the theme of using and carrying weapons. The song starts with lines about dancing and partying, what seems pointless, comparing to the real problems in America. The beginning of video Gambino shoots a man with covered head, making a pose of old cartoon caricature image of Black person. The gun Gambino used was treated with care and priority. He's singing:

“This is America (skrrt, skrrt, woo)

Don't catch you slippin' now (ayy)

Look how I'm livin' now

Police be trippin' now (woo)

Yeah, this is America (woo, ayy)

Guns in my area (word, my area)

I got the strap (ayy, ayy)

I gotta carry `em”

Here Gambino talks about gun violence, mostly caused by The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution that allows to keep and bear arms. Artist is also mentioning contrabands, hinting on crack cocaine cooking (“Look what I'm whippin' now”). During the music video a hooded figure is seen galloping across the location on horseback. This can be interpreted as apocalyptic symbolism. In general, in music video are represented multiple acts of violence against Black people. Artist himself denied explaining the general meaning of the song and video, letting people to see what they see.

We see, that Black Rap music still provides the idea of African-Americans' uniting through openly discussing issues relevant to the Black community. Even though nowadays more and more Rap artists share common problems that are understandable not only to Black Americans, this music genre is still a powerful element of community's mobilization. The political predestination exists and will forever exist in Black Rap as its basis. The events that have been mentioned in this research affected every US citizen, but primarily they touched the Black group of people. We can say, that race issue, the common cruel past and discrimination on the part of the authorities are still relevant in Rap lyrics, despite the fact that the Civil Rights Movement is over.



2.2 The Election Campaigns in 2004

With the beginning of the 21st century, a multitude of social, political and even natural issues have provided opportunities for Rap artists to speak up. 2004 was a year of President George W. Bush's re-election. During his first term America faced some of the most tragic events in modern history: 9/11 terrorist attacks and invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq. These events significantly affected Bush's public image: many people found him personally guilty, including celebrities and, of course, black Hip-Hop artists.

There are a lot of conspiracy theorys around 9/11. Some people believe that it was organized my Bush's administration in order to set up an antiterrorist regime, which would let Bush to expand his military opportunities. Also, there is an opinion that Bush used 9/11 as an excuse to invade Iraq. Such statement was supported by Immortal Technique - rapper and activist - in his song The Cause of Death (2003):

“Without 9/11, you couldn't have a war in Iraq

Or a defense budget of world conquest proportions” Immortal Technique. (2003). The Cause of Death. Revolutionary Vol. 2. Viper Records.

Here rapper also mentions the US military budged that was dramatically increased after 9/11. He sarcastically calls military budged as “defense budged”, when the most part of it was spent on attacking countries that pose a questionable threat to America. He also adds:

“I don't think Bush did it, 'cause he isn't that smart

He's just a stupid puppet takin' orders on his cell phone” Ibid.

Here he insults Bush, assuming that he's just a spokesman for the real but unknown political players.

Another possible reason for Iraq campaign - control over oil. Even years after the invasion in Iraq, there is still no consensus on the role of oil in this war Colgan, Jeff (Fall 2013). "Fueling the Fire: Pathways from Oil to War". International Security. 38 (2): 147-148.. However, “No blood for oil” became a popular slogan in protest demonstrations against the war. Jay-Z in his song Threat (2003) refers to war, hinting at the oil's role in this war:

“Y'all wish I was frontin', I George Bush the button

For the oil in your car, lift up your hood, nigga run it

Then lift up your whole hood like you got oil under it

Your boy got the goods, y'all don't want nothin' of it” Jay-Z. (2003). Threat. The Black Album. Def Jam Recordings & Roc-A-Fella Records.

Jay-Z compares himself with George Bush, saying that he is capable to destroy the whole “hood” for the “oil” and rule it. He also claims that he decides to whom the goods will belong, just like Bush does. Moreover, in these lines we can see the analogy with the neglect of authorities towards black neighborhoods. Even before the Hurricane Katrina, some African-American artists were sure that Bush “doesn't care about black people”. Rapper Nas repeatedly accused him of being hostile to black community. He called himself “George Bush-killer `til George Bush kills me” Nas. (2001). What Goes Around. Stillmatic. Columbia Records & Ill Will Records.. In his feat with 50 Cent and Nature he says: “Unless you hate a nigga like George Bush Jr., I bring war quick to you.” 50 Cent feat. Nature & Nas. (2002). Too Hot. Guess Who's Back. Aftermath Entertainment, Interscope Records & Shady Records.

Such sentiments could disappointingly affect the voter's turnout in upcoming elections in 2004. Thus, campaigns managers together with celebrities worked in an attempt to raise voter's turnout, especially for the youth. For example, rapper and producer Sean P. Diddy Combs launched “Citizen Change” campaign with the slogan “Vote or Die” to empower 18-30-years-olds and minorities to vote. He said about the mission: “The forgotten ones will ultimately decide who the next president is. According to the latest polls, Bush and Kerry are neck and neck. We will make the difference. We will be the deciding factor.” Combs's campaign was supported by Mary J. Blige, 50 Cent and Mariah Carey, and included a line of “Vote or Die” merch, commercials on MTV and Black Entertainment Television. According to MTV.com, the on the election day young people literally “stormed the polls”: “When the polls opened on Tuesday morning (election day), young voters turned out in greater numbers than ever, making their voices heard and playing a major part in this year's surging overall turnout.” CIRCLE Center found that the turnout in 2004 was the highest among young voters since 1992. Moreover, compared to 2000, the turnout rate was higher among all racial and ethnic groups, especially African-Americans and Latinos. Young voters predictably were more likely to identify themselves as Democrats, i.e. voted for John Kerry, while white youth favored George Bush. Ibid.

Another important event for youth was the National Hip-Hop Political Convention. Established in New Jersey, the organization registered about 250,000 voters. The convention, held in summer 2004, represented a mix of politics and music. The guests were activists, writers and Rap artists like Busta Rhymes, Floetry, Rah Digga, and Chuck D, the leader of Public Enemy. As The New York Times reported about the Convention: “No sightings of Young Republicans were reported.”

With regards to campaigns, celebrity endorsements worked predominantly on John Kerry's behalf. He had the support of on Hollywood A-listers such as Barbra Streisand, Ashton Kutcher, Tim Robbins, Ben Affleck, Whoopi Goldberg, Michael J. Fox, Bruce Springsteen, and many other. George Bush enjoyed support of celebrities such as Britney Spears, Bruce Willis, Mel Gibson and Stephen Baldwin. Experts suggested that Kerry's liberal allies provided him a large financial and media support. Bush's team argued that such obsession with liberal Hollywood elites makes Kerry distanced from the mainstream. Payne, J. G., Hanlon, J. P., & Twomey, D. P. (2007). Celebrity Spectacle Influence on Young Voters in the 2004 Presidential Campaign. American Behavioral Scientist, 50(9), 1239-1246. doi:10.1177/0002764207300051

At the height of campaign, George Bush also received the support from the star of the Boston Red Sox baseball team - the winners of the World Series in 2004 - Curt Schilling. The player publicly supported Bush, while some other members of the Boston Red Sox were rooting for Kerry.

Ultimately, the election race in 2004 witnessed an increase of young voters, especially black and Latino, who were primarily voting against terrorism, war and neglecting attitude towards minorities. The Democratic candidate John Kerry, with massive sources of support like liberal celebrities, politicians and media, lost the race. However, because of the innumerable factors, including war in Iraq and terrorism threat, one cannot confirm that the celebrities' attempts to higher the voter turnout have failed. It's remarkable that a lot of popular rappers long before the elections were, to put it mildly, in opposition to Bush. But even this fact didn't make voters to choose another president. Nevertheless, let's not forget that celebrities and public figures usually strive to support those beliefs that will work on their image. As Dennis Miller, the pro-Bush comedian, said before the elections: “I think there are more conservatives in Hollywood than you would think, but I don't think they're going to come out because you never know why you don't get your next job.”

2.3 The Election Campaigns in 2008

2008 Presidential campaign is a great example of the positive impact of Hip-Hop on political sphere. The previous elections, with the help from Hip-Hop community, attracted a huge amount of young and proactive voters from all ethnic/racial groups. Thus, many African-Americans rejoiced when Barack Obama announced his candidacy. In his campaign Obama used innovative ways to reach politically passive citizens: social media, YouTube, entertaining TV shows and duets with popstars. For the first time the political agitation moved to Internet communities. Muir, J. (2008). Closing the gap: Media, politics, and participation. Harvard International

Review, 30(1), 4. He energized voters putting the sense of hope and change into his slogan “Yes We Can”. It was the first time when the presidential candidate got so much support from minorities and “disobedient” Hip-Hop artists and it worked.

Even before the nomination, then-Senator Obama has been in the public eye.

In 2006 Obama published his book The Audacity of Hope and visited the show of Oprah Winfrey to promote it. Winfrey shared her faith in Obama, wishing him to run for president: “I know I don't just speak for myself. There are a lot of people who want to feel the audacity of hope, who want to feel that America can be a better place for everybody.” Kooijman, J. (2014). Fabricating the absolute fake: America in contemporary pop culture. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press. p. 158. Obama, in turn, promised that he would make the announcement on her show, if he decides to run. By the way, Obama broke his promise and made an announcement of his candidacy in Springfield, Illinois. However, this fact didn't stop Oprah from endorsing Obama.

Obama's main competitor in the Democratic Party - Hillary Clinton - had mobilized an army of endorsers, largely female, including politicians associated with Bill Clinton. Hillary used the same tactics as Obama, going on every popular late-night TV show, like “Saturday Night Live” and “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” to promote her candidacy. She even appeared on the cover of TIME magazine with supporting tittle “The Fighter.” However, the majority of Hip-Hop artists were not on her side.

Speaking about the endorsements from Hip-Hop artists, the professor of Black Popular Culture Mark Anthony Neal suggests, that Obama was highly supported my black rappers since the first major steps in his career. In the interview he said that mainstream rappers have influenced on public opinion also using social media: “Suddenly, recording artists don't have to go the traditional routes to get out their messages. They don't have to go through the traditional label structure. And if there's something they want to respond to in real time, they can do so via this new technology.” Indeed, the main elements of the campaign were distributed through Internet like Will.i.am's music video Yes We Can (2008). The video is based on Obama's quotes from public performances that are repeated by celebrities such as Scarlett Johansson, John Legend, Tracee Ellis Ross, Nicole Scherzinger and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Just like the song We Are the World by Michael Jackson and various artists, this video uses popular celebrities to spread the message of hope to change the world. The video even won an Emmy Award in the category “Best New Approaches in Daytime Entertainment,” what made the political campaign a part of celebrity culture.

After Will.i.am multitude Hip-Hop artists joined the race. A number of rappers, including Young Jeezy, Nas, T.I., Busta Rhymes, and T.I. announced that they were going to vote for the first time. Many others supported Obama in their songs, some of them contain calls to vote for Obama. For example, rapper Ludacris released the song Politics As Usual (Obama is Here) (2008), in which we spoke up about current pre-election situation and encourage black people to vote:

“Get off your ass black people it's time to get out and vote

Paint the White House black and I'm sure that's got 'em terrified

McCain don't belong in any chair unless he's paralyzed

Yeah I said it cause Bush is mentally handicapped” Ludacris. (2008). Politics as Usual (Obama Is Here). The Preview.

He also calls Hillary Clinton “irrelevant bitch” Ibid. that actually hates Obama, claiming that he would be a better vice president. Indeed, Hillary was Obama's main rival in the Democratic primaries, therefore she criticized Obama's candidacy in her speeches. However, after Obama's nomination she has begun endorsing him, that's why there was a talk that Hillary might be chosen as vice president.

Rapper Nas in his song Black President (2008) also directly endorsed Obama using a sample from his Iowa Democratic Presidential Caucus victory speech:

“They said this day would never come

They said our sights were set too high

This country is too divided, too disillusioned

To ever come together around a common purpose.”

Nas is not happy that the fate of the country is used to be in the hands of white people, who couldn't protect the black people rights and lives. Rapper is also known for the distrust of politicians, but in this song, he says that he is ready to trust Obama, because he is able to erase racism:

“I think Obama provides hope and challenges minds

Of all races and colors to erase the hate

And try to love one another, so many political snakes

We in need of a break, I'm thinking I can trust this brother

...but will he keep it way real?” Nas. (2008). Black President. The Nigger Tape. Electric Lady Studios.

Common, in his song The People (2007) mentioned Obama: “My raps ignite the people like Obama.” Common. (2007). The People. On Finding Forever. Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC In addition, Common took part in the endorsement video Yes We Can.

These and other Hip-Hop artists helped to generate a massive shift in the electorate that made Barack Obama the first African-American President in US. 2008 elections outrun the previous ones by the number of young voters: the turnout was the highest in the past 35 years, furthermore the number of black voters increased the number of whites for the first time in American history. Even after the elections, rappers haven't stopped celebrating Obama. The mood of the songs shifted from “Yes We Can” to “Yes We Did.” Obama's favourite rapper and family friend Jay-Z devoted a song to the President - My President (2009):

“My president is black, in fact he's half-white

So even in a racist mind he's half right

If you have racist mind you'll be alight

My President is black, but his house is all white

Rosa Parks sat so Martin Luther could walk

Martin Luther walked so Barack Obama could run

Barack Obama ran so all the children could fly” Jay-Z. (2009). My President. Roc Nation.

Jay-Z and his wife Beyoncé are good friends of The Obama family. The Carters were supporting Obama throughout the whole campaign by promoting agitation slogans and signs, for example, the couple was repeatedly spotted wearing endorsing T-shirts. In Jay-Z's another post-election song What We Talkin' About (2009) he mentions the power of his relationships with Barack:

“A small part of the reason the President is black

I told him I got him when he hit me on the jack” Jay-Z. (2009). What We Talkin' About. The Blueprint 3. Atlantic Records, Roc-A-Fella Records & Roc Nation.

Whereas Barack is a friend of Jay-Z, Michelle Obama has befriended his wife Beyoncé. In 2012 Beyoncé published a handwritten open letter to Michelle, referring to her as “the ultimate example of a truly strong African-American woman. I am proud to have my daughter grow up in a world where she has people like you, to look up to.” Obama thanked Beyoncé for the letter in her Twitter account, saying that Beyoncé is “a role model” for her kids. On January 20, 2009, at the First inauguration ceremony of Barack Obama, Beyoncé was performing the National Anthem and Etta James song At Last that accompanied the dance of The President and The First Lady. The song's title is connected to the quote of Martin Luther King, Jr. in his “I Have a Dream” speech: “Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!” The performance of At Last was not only the romantic moment, but also the celebration of the first African-American president; the moment of overcoming racial boundaries more than 45 years after King's speech.

At the moment when an African-American man was nominated as the presidential candidate, some political scientists claimed that the United States finally became a “post-racial society.” Hemphill, P. R. (2015). Rebel Without a Pause: Discovering the Relationship between Rap Music and the Political Attitudes and Participation of Black Youth. University of Michigan. For the first time in history the President was supporting Hip-Hop community, actively expressing his musical preferences. In 2016 Obama invited rapper Kendrick Lamar to the White House, reveling that his favorite song that year was Lamar's How Much a Dollar Cost (2015). About the meeting Lamar said that it's “something our grandparents always wanted to see.” Obama's presidency was a relief and pride for African-Americans and Hip-Hop community. Writer and African-American woman Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor described Obama's period: “Beyond the presidency of Barack Obama, thousands of Black elected officials, a layer of Black corporate executives, and many highly visible Black Hollywood socialites and multimillionaire professional athletes animate the “post-racial” landscape in the United States. The success of a relative few African Americans is upheld as a vindication of the United States' colorblind ethos and a testament to the transcendence of its racist past. Where there is bad treatment on the basis of race, it is viewed as the product of lapsed personal behavior and morality, but it is “no longer endemic, or sanctioned by law and custom.” Taylor, K. (2017). How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective. Haymarket Books. p. 12-13.

2.4 The Election Campaigns in 2016

The presidential campaigns of 2016 embodied the fight between celebrity businessman Donald Trump and female celebrities' idol Hillary Clinton. This election race incorporated mostly popular music and culture, as usually including concert events, musical tributes and protest songs.

Both candidates used recorded songs to accompany themselves on and off the stage, bringing the well-known songs with clear messages to climactic moments. This role of music was most evident on the final night after the candidate acceptance speeches, that were held with the voices of The Rolling Stones, Katy Perry, Elton John, Sara Bareilles and many others. Candidates tried to reinforce their image with the help of music genre: Trump exploited rock music to show the audacious side of him, while Clinton chose empowering pop songs like Katy Perry's Roar, Kelly Clarkson's Stronger and Ariana Grande's Break Free. Some scholars suggest that Clinton's musical selection made young women to become Clinton's fans, rather than political supporters. Smith, J. (2017). The Politician/Celebrity & Fan(girl) Pleasure: The Line Between Queen Hillary & Presidential Candidate Clinton. Persona Studies,3(2). p. 36. This emotional attachment of voters substituted critical distance, what drew gendered lines along Clinton's electorate. Clinton's image became deeply intertwined with feminism through cries of “girl power” and official slogan of her endorsers “I'm with Her.”

Trump's performances were accompanied by a rock house band, also because Trump's campaign staff had no success finding musicians to perform on the same stage as Trump. Many conservative-leaning stars skipped campaign events, although in 2014 the Republicans brought rock stars to its official events like 3 Doors Down, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Randy Owen, Lane Turner, and many others to support Mitt Romney. Generally, Trump wasn't popular candidate among celebrities, but that small group his endorsers was quite interesting and, in some ways, amusing. First, Trump was supported by controversial rapper Kanye West. Unfortunately, Kanye wasn't as active as after the elections, however he was dropping hints in Twitter that he agrees with Trumps policy. 10 days after Trump was elected, on one of his tour concerts in California West delivered a speech about his political preferences. He said: “If I would've voted, I would've voted for Trump,” adding “There were things that I liked about Trump's campaign… There's methods - non-political methods - to speaking that I like that I feel were very futuristic, and that style and that method of communication has proven that it can beat a politically correct way of communication. And I fuck with that. I hate the fact that, because I'm a celebrity, everybody told me not to say that I loved the debates; I loved his approach. It be like white people that's racist runnin' around sayin' `nigga' now. If people are racist and they feel more inspired to say how they feel, then they exposin' themselves, bro. This is what I'm sayin'! It's already the beginning of change. Sometimes, things that you may think are bad have to happen in order for change to fuckin' happen.” Before the show, rapper was signing his merch collection with the word “Trump.” Later, on December 13, 2016 Kanye met with Donald Trump in the White House to discuss multiple issues. This meeting had a positive impact on his already good attitude towards him: “Well, I reached out to Obama for years and I couldn't get anything done. Trump gave me a meeting.” However, we can't take these statements seriously. Firstly, that year Kanye had unstable mental health. In 4 days after that concert in California rapper was hospitalized, thus he had to cancel remaining tour shows. Moreover, later Secondly, West started deleting his supporting Trump tweets, and in 2018 even said that he had been used to “spread messages he don't believe in.” Matter fact that in 2014 West made a contribution of $15,000 toward the Democratic National Committee and in 2015 he donated $2,700 to Hillary for America, so we can only guess what candidate he truly supported.

Another ambiguous Hip-Hop artist who endorsed Trump - Azealia Banks. In the beginning of 2016 she was claiming in Twitter that “Trump is the only one who truly has the balls to bust up big business,” and that she kind of agrees with his immigration politics. In 2017 things changed and now she is calling Trump “a fucking idiot.”

The characteristic of mentioning Donald Trump in Hip-Hop songs changed after his nomination. Before 2016 rappers has been using his name as a synonym of success and wealth: “Get money like Donald Trump,” Lil Wayne. (2011). Racks. Sorry 4 the Wait. Young Money Entertainment. “Take over the world when I'm on my Donald Trump shit/Look at all this money, ain't that some shit,” Mac Miller. (2011). Donald Trump. Blue Slide Park. Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC. “Up like Donald Trump, chain swings like nunchucks,” Rae Sremmurd. (2015). Up like Donald Trump. SremmLife. Interscope Records & EarDrummers Entertainment. “Baldin' Donald Trump, takin' dollars from y'all.” Kanye West. (2011). So Appalled. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC.After his official statements Trump's name more often has been figured in a negative sense. Kendrick Lamar expressed the regret about Obama leaving the White House:

“Homicidal thoughts; Donald Trump's in office

We lost Barack and promised to never doubt him again” Kendrick Lamar. (2017). XXX. Damn. Interscope Records.

In song Hood Politics (2015) Lamar was doubting Obama's politics, reminding us that Obama is still a politician, no matter what skin color he has. Now Kendrick feel that even Obama with flaws to him is better than Trump. In another song of 2017 Lamar calls trump “a chump.” Kendrick Lamar. (2017). The Heart Part 4. Top Dawg Entertainment.

In 2016 Nicki Minaj, who was born in Trinidad and Tobago, mentioned Trump's strict immigrant policy: “Island girl, Donald Trump want me go home.” Nicki Minaj. (2016). Black Barbies. Warner/Chappell Music.

Some rappers suggested that easy to Trump to get the office because he wasn't even trying to hide his ignorance about socially important issues like racism, immigrants' living conditions and feminism. In song Ye vs. the People (2018) Kanye West suggested that “ever since Trump won, it proved that I could be president.” Kanye West. (2018). Ye vs. the People. G.O.O.D. Music. By the way, in 2015 on MTV VMA West announced that he was going to run for president in 2020. Kendrick Lamar supported Kanye's ambition in the song Black Friday (2015): “I'm yelling Mr. Kanye West for president.” Kendrick Lamar. (2015). Black Friday. Roc Nation/Columbia.

In March 2016 rapper YG released the song FDT (Fuck Donald Trump), in which he explains why people shouldn't vote for Trump. In his opinion, Trump can't be a good president because he is too rich to understand ordinary people's problem, “too white” to solve minority's issues, what doesn't make his program reasonable:

“Don't let Donald Trump win, that nigga cancer

He too rich, he ain't got the answers

He can't make decisions for this country, he gon' crash us

No, we can't be a slave for him

He got me appreciatin' Obama way more

Hey Donald, and everyone that follows

You gave us your reason to be President, but we hate yours” YG. (2016). FDT (Fuck Donald Trump). Still Brazy. Def Jam Recordings.

The endorsements of Clinton by Hip-Hop artists seemed to be more against Trump than to be the expressions of her candidacy. Nevertheless, there were examples of pure endorsements by rappers.

The Democratic National Convention headliner - rapper Snoop Dogg - took a very positive attitude towards Clinton. Rapper cheered guests by screaming: “If you're ready to make Hillary Clinton our next president, make some motherfuking noise!” He also dedicated songs to her, changing the lyrics in Clinton's favour. For example, the song Beautiful had the line “Hillary, you're my favourite girl!”

In one of his interviews rapper Waka Flocka Flame supported Clinton as a female candidate, claiming that “A woman could do it. I've seen my momma raise five boys - that's super hard, so women can do the same shit that men could do.”

Other Clinton endorsements came from Asap Rocky, Ja Rule, 50 Cent and Jay-Z. The last one, together with his wife Beyoncé, participated in the concert for Hillary in Cleveland, motivating the audience between the songs to vote for her. Jay-Z commented Trump's candidacy: “That's not an evolved soul for me, so he cannot be my president. He cannot be our president. Once you divide us, you weaken us.” Beyoncé raised the feminism issue, saying “There was a time when a woman's opinion did not matter. If you were black, white, Mexican, Asian, Muslim, educated, poor or rich - if you were a woman, it did not matter. Less than 100 years ago, women did not have the right to vote. Look how far we've come from having no voice to being on the brink of making history, again, by electing the first woman president. But we have to vote.” Again, we can rephrase these two statements into “vote for Clinton, because she is not Trump” and “vote for Clinton, if you are a feminist.” We can notice the same attitude in rappers' political statements and lyrics. Unfortunately, in pre-election period there were no significant political references to Clinton in Hip-Hop songs, mostly because it was unclear if Clinton really stands for black community values. Rappers were protesting against Trump in their songs, but at the same time they were not ready to urge their fans to vote for Clinton. Rapper Ty Dolla $ign's song $Intro (Campaign) starts with the line: “I'm Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton or is that one and the same?” Ty Dolla $ign. (2016). $Intro (Campaign). Campaign. Atlantic Records.

This uncertainty negatively affected the youth voter turnout. According to CIRCLE Center, the youth turnout in 2016 decreased and was similar to 2012: divided and diverse. Also, there was a sharp rise of young white men that were mostly voting for Trump. Trump also gain votes from young people in rural areas, whose beliefs are similar to the key ideas of his campaign: the strong immigration control, and a probable unreliability of Hillary Clinton. Hillary, in turn, took votes from unmarried young women and youth of color. We can suggest that it is the result of “vote for Clinton, because she is not Trump” rhetoric.

Wherein, Clinton was hoping that just the fact of the engagement with Hip-Hop would play a decisive role, bringing the African-American voting bloc to her side. But in comparison with Obama, Clinton wasn't positioning herself as a racism fighter or minority-friendly. Every element of her campaign, from pro-feminism slogans to soundtracks of her performances, wasn't aiming to get specifically Hip-Hop fan. Moreover, Clinton used to have uncertain relationship with the African-American community: in 1990s she used the racist term “superpredator”, speaking about the black youth; her husband Bill's 1994 crime bill, which has exacerbated the incarceration of African-Americans; Fowler, E. F., Ridout, T.N., & Franz, M. M. (2016). Political advertising in 2016: The presidential election as outlier? The Forum: A Journal of Applied Research in Contemporary Politics, 14(4), 445-469. and her negative statements against Obama in times of the competition in the Democratic Party in 2008, that later diametrically changed. Clinton's loss doesn't let us define Hip-Hop artists as bad influencers on voters' behavior; this case is an example of choosing the wrong celebrity endorsers, attempting to catch every group of voters. Unfortunately, Clinton's engagement with rappers was awkward and questioned, and, above all, mismatched with her true identity - a white, wealthy, aged woman. Thus, her heterogeneous campaign had the opposite effect.



Conclusion

In the course of the research we have analysed how African-American Hip-Hop artists speak up about politics and what issues matter to them. The objectives posed at the beginning of the study are solved. In the theoretical part of the work we have considered different approaches to definitions “celebrity”, “celebrity politics” and “celebrity politician”; we have studied the history of celebrity's endorsements and their involvement in politics. In the practical part we have given the further consideration to socio-political events that especially touched the African-American community and Hip-Hop; and have studied three presidential campaigns in US - in 2004, 2008 and 2016. The hypothesis of the study has been confirmed: Hip-Hop artists motivated young voters of color to show up at the polls. However, we need to clarify few important moments. All three election campaigns had different backgrounds, heroes and endorsers. In 2004, after violent solutions made by George W. Bush's administration, it seemed like Bush did not have even a single passionate endorser not just in Hip-Hop, but in the whole celebrity community. He was harshly criticized by the most influenceable people in America, however he was elected. The similar situation broke out in 2016: Trump's team couldn't find any popular artists to perform next to him; rappers were deeply offended by Trump's racist and xenophobic statements, and only controversial figures like Kanye West, whose mental health at that moment left much to be desired, were endorsing Trump's candidacy. And again - feminist Clinton wasn't the one who won the race. Thus, it follows from this that if the Hip-Hop artists or other politically active celebrities are strongly against the certain candidate, it doesn't mean that these protest actions bring the candidate's rival to the office. The 2008 election results showed that endorsements of desirable candidate are more powerful than the criticism towards the undesirable one. Nevertheless, any active position, even the criticism, in popular music involve youth to socio-political life, making them more politically educated and conscious.



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