The O Block video was so eye opening, when Ak said "it wasn't for entertainment" but then also went on and said "I added elements of satire" to rid himself of the guilt was disgusting
Yeah I've always thought that he is a callous, vindictive, cold person, and that sealed the deal for me. I haaaate it when people lie to themselves about their motivations to make themselves look and feel better.
What really rubs me the wrong way is that the people who consume this kind of content have 99% of the time never been in these situations, have little knowledge surrounding them, and only see this as entertaining. Most of these content creators and consumers have never been checked in their lives and are profiting off the deaths of black men by comidifying street violence. Lil Durk and Pusha T are right in the fact that people who only view this coverage as entertaining are ignorant in the same way conservatives view street violence without looking at the circumstances in which inner-city black men are put in American culture.
Thank you for making this comment 🙏🏾 Most non black/ suburban hip hop fans don’t see these artist as regular kids from inner cities that have had to live in these environments and actually experience these things on a daily basis. They see them as characters/ super heroes or something. Shits super disheartening and weird. A yt kid making a “hip hop” commentary channel or instagram is weird as fuck. They only see poor black ppl as entertainment or something to profit off of
@@KaylinB regarding your comment on ppl seeing rappers as characters/super heros- to be fair I’m pretty sure a lot of these rappers ARE actually playing a character.
Yeah well Lil Durk makes money off of the same exploitation these media heads do. They rap and claim they do evil shit, DJ Academics or Adam22 does commentary. Music runs deeper than media coverage.
@@iminmissouri8589 looking at the recent increase in deaths of rappers I think there is a good amount that are actually involved. But there are definitely fakers.
This is true for true crime media as well. Imagine dying or being part of a heinous act or losong loved ones to violence,then often getting eaten up by the failed justice system only to become content fodder for wine moms selling makeup products raking in the Patreon bucks.
Thats very true, and not just re: independent channels on YT, but major media outlets on TV/streaming... most "True Crime" shows absolutely exploit and sensationalize the people and crimes they depict. Some people are beginning to make more conscious, empathetic documentary series, thankfully.
Yes this is definitely true the true crime industry rehashes the same crimes over and over on different shows,specials,documentaries,media outlets,youtubers etc.They keep bringing up Jeffrey Dahmer,OJ Simpson,Scott Peterson,Drew Peterson,Jodi Arias etc.I can only imagine the stress the families have seeing these stories come on monthly and yearly on different outlets
Imagine making it out of the hood only to still promote and exploit the neighborhood and people you grew up with and the generational hatred and violence is used as a way to “get famous” and STILL have the nerve to ask, “why am I being exploited” when people actually talk about your art (which they have a right to do) when ALL YOUR MUSIC IS LITERAL EXPLOITATION
America has had a fascination w/ violence and criminality for centuries from Billy the kid and Al Capone to King Von. I simply think drill music and it’s global offshoots are just the most recent iteration. In America crime has been entertainment because it keeps people glued to their televisions, blogs, etc. And we all know that controversy sells, especially criminal controversy. You really have to address the root causes more than anything else in order to see progress. And more people really need to ask themselves why they find this kind of content engaging and entertaining. At the end of the day we ALL have agency over our own actions
It’s a bit different though. The argument that “drill music causes violence” is no different from the famously debunked “violent video games cause violence” argument. Correlation doesn’t necessarily equate to causation, even if there is a strong correlation. I, personally, am absolutely fascinated with true crime. Ive probably watched every available serial killer documentary freely available on RU-vid. I don’t know why, but that content fascinates me. Never in my mind could I ever conceptualize or rationalize ever doing something like that because it is so completely backwards to my nature and morality. You can be a third party looking in and, being fascinated by a type of culture without ever wanting to personally engage in it. Millions of kids play GTA and practically none of them have ever gone out and actually applied that to their real lives. Now, I’m in no way advocating that children should be playing violent video games, because it could be harmful in other ways, but 3 hours of GTA isn’t gonna turn your kid into the next school shooter.
@@sledgehammr6615 Totally get your argument, and I’m not of the belief that drill music causes violence. BUT, it does greatly exacerbate pre-existing gang rivalries and tensions. The same can be said about the role of social media as well (especially w/ respect to mocking deceased gang members). And I’m no saint either. I too am fascinated w/ true crime, but mostly the mafia and organized crime because of the way they were able to infiltrate and exploit just about every facet of life (from business to politics to entertainment). However, I do think we need to be honest about the cultural fascination w/ violence and crime as entertainment in this country. Drill music, and gangsta rap before it is purely poverty porn for those who enjoy the music and the stories behind the lyrics. In a way, it’s taking “keeping it real” in hip hop culture to its natural extreme, and I think that’s what makes the music so popular. There is a raw authenticity behind the lyrics, and in this context that is not a good thing at all.
@@renee7271 Correlation doesn't equate to causation. The Finish police who literally investigate this have even come out and stated that it has no connection to rap music lol. Dressing and acting like roadmen, because they're influenced by the style and aesthetic of the music, isn't the same thing as causing violence. You kind of refuted your own comment by staging that Finland doesn't have a high rate of crime. Finland’s violent crime rate is only high in comparison to certain Western European counties noted for having exceptionally low rates of violent crime. Finland’s overall violent crime rate is pretty much comparable to the US state of Minnesota, which is one of the safest states in the US lol. The tiny amount of crime that happens in finland can be attributed to factors like relative poverty (relative to Western Europe, that is), drinking culture, and gun culture. Do you have any studies suggesting that drill music specifically is the cause of violent crime? Because sociologists have studied this. Finland’s areas with slightly higher levels of crime are located in the rural north, far away from Helsinki, the nation’s economic and cultural capital. These areas tend to have relatively poorer economies than other parts of Europe, leading to some relative rural poverty. I keep using the term “relative” here, because it’s important to note that Finland is not a poor country. Not at all, but Finns on the average do have less disposable income than, say, the Dutch or Norwegians. And that’s most noticeable in the far north. Secondly, Finland has high rates of gun ownership for a European state, and of course, gun ownership is going to be much more common in rural areas, where guns are needed for hunting and defense against animals. And thirdly, you have Finnish drinking culture, which is influenced by Finland’s proximity and close historic cultural ties to Russia, the Balkans, and Poland. Finns tend to binge drink when they drink. When they drink, they drink a lot, and it’s not watered down wine or beer, but rather strong liquors. So there you have it, relative poverty in some rural areas which compared to Western Europe, relatively higher gun ownership than most other European countries, and a tendency toward binge drinking that results in ever so slightly more violent crimes. That slight increase in crime is alcohol related, done by serial offenders. Isolated incidents of groups of young people committing offenses is not a sign of gang activity. But I think most Finns would say that’s an acceptable compromise. They live a pretty good life over there, after all.
@@goatham92 I personally had no idea. Never listened to is podcast and didn't really get into who he was until that weird interview with The Migos and Joe Budden
@@cooldrop02 I’m on the same boat as you but I’ve seen enough clips to gauge the guy he is. I mean he feels like the journalists in sports media that think that because they did a blog means they know more than the average man. They hold their own biases and act like no one should hold them accountable for their takes. The worst thing I seen from him was him talking about the J Cole bronze medal thing and saying “Kendrick or Drake wouldn’t say some shit like that” and it’s sad that a man that gives props to his contemporaries is somehow a bad thing.
Joe Budden going that hard at Adam22 but not Akademiks is where I have a problem. While it's valid to question Adam, the JBP just had Akademiks on their show and didn't press him at all. Even worse, they talked about building a platform and being a boss and ownership as if Akademiks didn't build his off of exploiting Chicago, my city, shamelessly and has never once tried to help or give back to Chicago. It seems like he went hard on Adam22 to over compensate for what he's not willing to do with Akademiks because he wants to protect that relationship. But if you have a problem with what Adam's done then you can't give Ak a pass because his exploits was far more disrespectful and egregious.
I’ve said it before, but while I don’t agree with everything Vic Mensa says, he is and was 1000% correct in everything he said when he pressed ak all those years ago on complex. That War on Chiraq series is absolutely disgusting.
@@levigenesis6350 Right, I do think that's part of why he did go at adam but that's picking and choosing who he comes for based on the same principles. If we're talking about the exploitation of murdered black lives, no ones been more of an opportunist, exploitative and disrespectful as Ak. Not being from here and just sticking his nose in gang conflicts he has no context for and reporting on murders like it was a game, laughing n shit. Ak disrespecting these black communities using racial slurs and clowning these deaths was as blatantly disrespectful in exploitation as I've ever seen in hip hop as a media platform.
It really hit me how weird it is that I say, “Black Lives Matter” publicly, yet privately consume a genre of music that is about violence that directly affects Black Men in America. I do not think Drill artists are wrong; many are telling stories about their environment. The problem is how audience members like myself consume it. I need to stop perpetuating this through my own choices in media consumption.
Black lives matter is a scam but i get your point. People feel hypocrticial championing black causes while silently encouraging the destruction of the black man. To your point, I think drillrappers are 100 percent wrong. It is literaly kill music. I try to not judge people because everybody leads their own lives but evil is evil.
Same here! he ruined a whole generation of riders, created drama, constantly hated on legends and core aspects of the community and even made Ian Schwartz quit with that cringey TMZ like story about his personal life. And don't even make me start with all the fiascos in the OSS days.
Its not just them either which is sad, there’s more people who are exploitative in various spaces that you might not even think of. Look at Shaun King for example, he can’t survive without a wild news story or headline and he makes his money off that. Akademiks used that lane to get to where he is now as well. Grifting should be one of the seven deadly sins lol
If you criticize the bloggers covering the street-end of drill music you must also critique the record labels that approve the marketing budgets and sometimes go as far as encouraging their artists to lean into their gang affiliation, and making self incriminating posts on social media.
Thank you Shawn. This is the best analysis I've seen yet. I still think people haven't addressed an important thing Adam said (and what many people unfortunately believe) - that conflict is the heart of hip-hop. I think most hip-hop media, in exploiting young Black men and women, have also created this narrative that hip-hop is purely Black toxicity on display. I just hope Black people can reclaim the image of our culture...
When he said “conflict,” he explained in the pod that it was simply referring to who could be the best. He wasn’t actually talking about conflict regarding violence
@@Justin_GFM I see. That is different (and you have changed my view of Adam). I agree that competition is a significant part of hip-hop today, but I would still say it isn't the heart. I see the heart of hip-hop as Black expression & connection. But thank you for clarifying that.
Theres a big difference between how Akademics, Budden, and Adam22 talk about these things vs people like you, blackyspeaks and trap lore ross talk about it. The difference is tact, an understanding of the severity of the events, and of how things like gang violence come from systemic issues vs individual moral issues. Obviously the second group understands that, and their content is appropriate and informative as a result. The first group are basically extracting the bag out of corpses like the little sisters in bioshock.
you had me until you said Trap Lore Ross. Ross make’s exploitive videos covering gang violence while cracking jokes about it and makes money. I’d say he’s closer to Adam or Ak than Shawn or Blackyspeaks
This is not new. Hip hop media has always thrived off of all of this. Even before AK there were magazines, then blogs, Worldstar....even Shawn technically benefits from the violence.
@@wanderstar4069 exactly, only way to get rid of this violence is to kill the entire industry itself, but theyll never do that. Thus its kind of pointless, the very views and listens to this type of music incentivizes the behavior they speakin out against.
I definitely agree about relationships being based on what’s mutually beneficial for both parties. Same argument can be made about business arrangements and marriage decisions.
@@bigweebshawny4230 I'm sure he has, but being business partners with someone you disagree morally with to that degree shows either 1.) a lack character and ability to stand on your morals or 2.) Performative activism.
@@getestar437 but does AK still do that (you can probably enlighten me here)?, If he no longer does it then what the harm in being business partners today as opposed to back then
@@jamolbonaparte6908 Well not to that degree. But he did something similar during the time him and Joe was working together. When X died Ak uploaded a video and titled it. "Last interview of XXXtentacion before death." Or some clickbait title like that. And I never saw Joe call Ak out for that. (Edit. He may have changed it now But I vividly remember him doing this.)
I think it’s true that the more interesting (and frankly, more disturbing) discussion pertains to why we, the viewers, wanna see it rather than why a media person illuminates it.
Whew, ever since SHAWN reacted to the joe budden video about some of the hip hop content creators covering up pretty obscene and messed up stuff for a lil bit of monetary gain. I knew that this video would be a thing.
@@DEDSEC. idk if you would technically consider TLR for what he does tho. His isn't daily covers on the gang violence and interviewing gang members. His earlier videos were corny but most of his stuff are documentaries rather than just everyday coverage or interviews with the rappers who also happen to be affiliated with gangs.
Joe Budden is definitely not the street politics guy, their show is basically a comedy podcast about rnb artists at this point. He may not be entertaining to all, but I think he’s out of the harmful content conversation now.
Yea but you also have ice who’s an advert listener and supporter of drill music. He’s also made comments such as “if it doesn’t have shoot em up bang bang in it I don’t wanna listen” 🤣 also joe also inserted his opinion on the tax stone and Troy ave beef. That’s why him and Troy ave don’t get along. That’s street beef. Joe is a walking contradiction if you pay close attention
@@Mb1ax_ They don't watch it. Joe and them don't cover street shit and when somebody dies they say RIP and play outstanding and move on to another topic! 🤷🏿♂️
I'm actually perplexed at how people were siding with Adam and I'm not even huge fan of JBP. Thing is there's fundamental issue with Adam' argument of giving the fans what they want even if it's technically logical, which is the conditioning that fans have of constantly wanting to see and hear fucked up shit about opps, killings, shootings and fights, and that's in part due to platforms like No Jumper's. It's complete exploitation and morally bankrupt.
Fans are not conditioned to want to see fucked up shit. Its literally ingrained is us. Platforms like Adam's just provide the outlet to get that content
Strongly agreed with everything you said. Im a fan of the JBP and this was one of the nastiest, shortsighted arguments I’ve ever seen. I don’t mind taking time to point out where they don’t like how he does things. But it got to the point where they were basically blaming him for systematic issues in the community.
In trap lore rosses defense, the documentaries he's done on gang wars have been paramount to displaying the cautionary tales and vicious cycles of gang wars. It completely opened my eye's to a world and problems i originally knew nothing about and helped educate me in gang culture and how to respect/understand it. As well as given me new perspectives on systematic oppresion/racism. Because sometimes hearing about it in music isn't enough to actually understand what's going on in black culture. Some people really just need to see with their eye's to better understand.
people ripping into him here but trap lore ross does genuinely try and show the darker side of these stories. yes his videos sometimes have jokes in them but when something is serious he doesn’t joke about it
I lived near oblock and terror town but I'm older and didn't know about these gang wars. I see people going to school and work when I'm driving and shopping there.
Joe, Adam ,& AK along with every blog nowadays benefit from tragedy. It would be difficult to discourage fans from engaging with their content, but listeners should at least realize the markets were feeding
That isn't true! Joe don't cover street shit or when niggas die for content and profit. They play outstanding and say r.i.p when it happens and cover something else! 🤷🏿♂️
Honestly, let's be real, because details and context are important. You can't just group in all of hip-hop media with the likes of Adam and Ak. They cross the line. Especially AK, he injects his commentary on those matters like it's primetime entertainment, he's not a a journalist, he's a gossip commentator who took it too far.
@@kashstory Honestly let's be real, the rappers benefit from this shit too. This is super hypocritical to call out these people when you got a bunch of other guys bout to hop on a track talking about how they ran down and murdered someone and get millions of views and a record deal. If you're going to take a stance against the media guys you better be ready to take a huge stand against drill itself which is largely detrimental to our communities and profits off Black death at record rates and this is coming from someone that loves drill music but I'm starting to feel iffy about it.
RIP PNB Rock, I think they should keep talking about the degeneracy that is hip hop culture, the senseless violence that is perpetrated by this so called thugs and also shine more light on the problems within the black community
I watched a lot of adam22 as I got deeper into hip-hop through highschool. (Context I grew up as a punk/grunge/rock white kid cuz of my dad) what turned me off eventually was how little Adam seemed to care about rappers abusing those harder drugs. Just kinda sitting by or laughing it off as 19 year old little pump pours lean in his cereal and shit. Now anyone is free to do whatever with their bodies and take whatever substances they want but there's some level of glorification and or dismissal that I think is bad. Especially with all these young rappers dying of drug issues. I think Adam profited a lot off of following kids like Xan and Pump when he coulda used his age and experience to maybe help them. obviously he has his own drug problems but still shit just rubbed me the wrong way.
Yeah for sure. I actually do like some of Adam22s content, but that coldness always bothered me. I noticed it especially when he was talking to that groupie girl about Trey Songz assaulting her. He clearly didn't care- found it funny even. You can tell he rarely ever empathises with anyone and that makes his content inherently exploitative in my eyes, because if you're not viewing the person you're interviewing with any compassion, what are they to you? A bag. Clicks and clout.
U got it right. Why is adam22 mocking and talking shit on young artists facing drug addiction, violence, trauma, etc when he’s clearly HAPPY to put those topics in his thumbnail, video title, and just marketing off it in general
Bro that Lil Pump lean cereal interview in his house was extremely sad. It made me realize how effed up Lil Pump and everyone around him actually were. That house was quiet and dark and everyone was laid out sleeping on couches (probably off drugs) it made me pity Pump after seeing that interview because Adam continued his regular life after that and that interview was Lil Pump’s life.
It's not glorification. Those are adults who are going to make their own decisions and he's there to make content and interview them. You really think a grown 40-year-old man should sit there until a 22-year-old not to do the drugs he's going to do regardless?
@@squish5871 facts. Ppl are trying to switch the argument to "you are not empathetic/sincere enough". Ffs ppl are indulging in substances that are highly regarded as dangerous and illegal. At some point you have to take some accountability. I'm not trying to minimize addiction and the events that lead up to it but at some point but where's the responsibility
reminds me of the keemstar/etika situation,while saying keemstar killed etika is a stupid argument it’s not crazy to say he had a major point in etika’s final decision,keemstar uploaded the interview instead of helping or reaching out and benefited from it while etika continued to spiral and ultimately ended up missing a week later
Wasn't Etika a big fan of keemstar? I remember his mom talked to keemstar over text too but I might be mistaken. It's easy in hindsight to blame people for not knowing the full extent of the situation but I think it's unfair to blame someone for this kind of thing especially since people act crazy all the time on the interent for views and clicks.
Man.. I felt the exact same way about when he said “these kids don’t know any better” on the JRP. I was like damn dog they’re not baby’s they’re young men.. they do know better some just simply don’t give a fuck
People love to blame the platforms then the root of the problem. That’s why things don’t get done. Same thing for racism. They call out a racist word but dont want to help the black community
The reality of the situation is when hip hop became about the gangster and overall criminality, it all went to hell morally. The problem with hip hop as entertainment and the community in general is we celebrate real life negativity. Rappers can’t just portray violence as entertainment they have to be “real” actually being a detriment to the community as a whole. Even you Shawn are giving these people a pass because everybody from the hood doesn’t choose to be violent or a criminal, while you can understand circumstances what we as a culture ultimately do is excuse this behavior and forget about the other people in the community who suffer from this and the precedent these “successes” mean. Young black men will continue to die if we continue to prop up criminals/murders as are role models.
Didn’t hip hop become all about gangster life and criminality in the mid-90s though? So it’s been like that for decades… almost since its inception (not counting the very early hip hop days with stuff like Rapper’s Delight). So it’s not really a new phenomenon. It goes back to the east vs. west coast “war” with Tupac and Biggie, “Fuck the Police,” “murder was the case that they gave me” etc. There may have been a “calmer” period in the bling era of the early ‘00s, but yeah, it’s always been about criminality and conflict.
Shawn is not giving them a pass. He's not saying these things aren't wrong on an individual level, and that people don't have choices. What he's saying that is these choices are weighted. We have mountains of decades and decades of sociological research showing that poverty, economic inequality, and systemic racism specifically are the main contributers of gang violence. If you want to fix gang violence, fix those things.
Man, I like how you speak and your reasoning, also, I appreciate you not saying "RIGHT?" (Speech tick) after EVERY phrase like most youtubers nowadays.
I think another big question we gotta ask is (apologies for making this long winded), but at the end of the day WE play a big role in this too as consumers; when are people gonna learn, or at the very least turn away from feeding off negative and destructive content? I think that now as a 20 y.o man, i know a little better than i did as an impressionable 15-16 y.o kid, and that myself almost indulging in this type of content without knowing the societal context and the affect it has on real people is unhelpful, and even worse is being profited from by people that, like myself, don't have to live in the reality that those unfortunate folks out in Chicago (and all the other places) do.
This is a very intelligent take I can tell you’ve really put a lot of thought and effort into. A lot more than most commentators I see. Earned my subscription.
Outside of exploiting rappers involved in gang violence and antics, I think Adam provides a platform for a whole lot of internet “personalities” and people who don’t need to be given platforms. Just a bunch of shenanigans.
@@samuelhong4272 you sound like “well what about Black on Black crime?” It’s a given that it’s all wrong no matter who does it, and they’ve already been called out for decades. The people who show support for this channel, and similar ones because they like type of content I mentioned have been discouraged not to do so, and they get mad because they don’t understand why it’s not cool. There are platforms who try to stray away from covering rappers like that because that’s not what they want to feed to their audience, and they’re tired of discussing the impact of said artists (like violence, death, and imprisonment). They’re also not into giving a bunch of talentless nobodies a platform. So when you feel like you’re doing the right thing, it’s disappointing to see others profiting off of what you thought was wrong.
The media only gives US what we want. That’s the problem these people virtue signaling tend to not realize. Shawn is correct in asking why are people interested in these things. Sad reality is that people don’t actually care as much as they make it seem they do online, and trynna change peoples opinions on what they deem as entertainment will be impossible. Unless billionaires are willing to step in and pay to change these communities for the better, this will be an ongoing issue. If the ones at the top are selfish, don’t be mad that everyone else is playing the capitalistic game to also get to the top.
@@AnDr3w066 agree. Always weird to me how ppl try to place their own intentions on other ppls money . I also agree with your first point. Not only a fixation with a lifestyle but a fixation overall on negative media. Things like shootings, terrorist events, crime, etc.
@@AnDr3w066 I say that cause the underlying issue is poverty. The only people with the resources to make their country a better place for everyone in it are billionaires. But that’s sadly never going to happen because people are selfish and controlled by greed. If you take the kids growing up in the hood and put them in the suburbs instead, their lives almost immediately will turn out way better.
I remember Kendrick Lamar was saying one time that he felt uncomfortable with his lyrics (black empowerment) in front of white audiences cuz who was reaching to
I think AK looked at that whole Chiraq coverage like how we use to look at Wrestling. He was giving them nicknames and adding to their personas, like how ppl use to do with the wrestlers. It was purely entertainment for AK, it essentially made him rich
From my knowledge it’s weird you got people who has lived that life wanting to get away from it while the ones who didn’t have to live it choose to involve themselves in it. I have lost close friends and even family to the streets and I never understand next does suburb kids and even adults want to go through that type of trauma
This is part of my issue with this whole thing. These dudes sell their story because they get paid for the interview and they also do interview runs like press tours. You get on Adam22 then you can leverage that interview and it's views to get on other platforms or radio or just smaller platforms. The bag might night be as big as Adams but it's still a bag and they deserve to be held accountable for bag/clout chasing.
when does self accountability take place instead of pointing fingers at the system or the white guy? im fr curious because at this point it sounds more like hate and blame thats what children do, not grown men
I did watch that discussion between Joe and Adam and not once did the question come up about why that type of content gains so much traction. The game is the game and both of them are playing it, can’t take a moral high ground. If Adam doesn’t cover it then someone else will.
An argument I always agreed with was that cenorship or policing of peoples opinions isn’t the way to go about things. You should just have a better response. I think that content creators have a unique opportunity to help fans find other things in the music and entertainers interesting. But there will always be people looking to benefit where there is profit. That will never change
I don’t have a problem with anyone covering or making money off of violence. I have a problem with the people that do the violence and the people who enable it
well no there’s a big issue with people covering this violence & using it as entertainment for others, along with monetary gain. i feel like if ur gonna cover this issue, you should do it to bring awareness, & not as something to stir drama or entertain an audience
@@h33ki but people make documentaries on war and tragedy all the time. I don’t understand why we hold gang violence to a different standard where covering it is so wrong. Maybe it’s because I haven’t actually watched anything from academics or Adam 22. I have watched two videos from trap lore Ross. As long as you’re being respectful and not sensationalizing or provoking people to take sides. You should definitely have integrity and I completely understand someone having a problem with a creator who instigates further conflict by reporting rumors. Sensationalizing things. Being disrespectful.
Adam22 thinks that the violence and tragedy is the only thing interesting about these kid's lives. When Joe asked him why he doesn't ask them questions other than their beefs, Adam says because he doesn't want to have a boring interview. Adam also mentioned Vlad a couple times as an example of why he operates the way he does which is pretty telling because Vlad is the OG culture vulture.
I remember going toy guidance counselor and bring told "you need to start training to become a shooter". Stop...these cards aren't dealt they are chosen.
Gang Members: *Shoot, stab, kill and commit horrific acts of violence against Men, Women, Children, The Elderly and innocent in their own community* Also Gang Members: *Raps about doing such things in their music* Random YTer: *Covers music, incident or has artist on platform* Extremely stupid people: “OMG YALL ARE EXPLOITING!!!” Get outta here, stop killing each other first. Y’all always worried bout the wrong thing.
2:52 - what they’re not realizing, is this stuff will continue to be talked about but probably in a much more misleading manner by the big names of media. Like actual news outlets who don’t hesitate to pump out school shooter stories. They even will reupload old ass broadcasts of other shootings… just to make it seem like a new shooting happens every day. It’s annoying. And it actually contributes to copycat shooters who are needing that little motivation to act. But of course that’s different than the rap game. I remember my comment was noticed by a homie of JayDaYoungan after he passed. I basically just gave my two cents about mourning but don’t let it cause him to act out the stuff he talked about in his song. Sure enough, not long after, he was on the news for trying to get some get back for Jay. So yeah.. there’s no definitive answer to stopping these incidences when the history is rooted too deep. It’s stuff before the music. Music just brought them to the surface of media when stuff like this goes on everyday.
It's not just the violence, it's also the hypersexualization, irresponsible financial decisions, capitalism, lack of self-awareness.... Shit is absolutely exhausting
To be fair, Ish wasn't referring to them as lowly beasts he was referring to them as kids because they are technically still "fresh to life" despite being through so much. A lot of these gang bangers start at a young age so they end up being fresh out their teenage years when they head to a platform like Akademiks or Adam22. While yes this whole "youngin" phrasing is not the best way to word it I don't see anything wrong with him saying "You are inexperienced. I, as an adult who has done everything you're doing rn and can relate to your struggle, want to help you do better".
Well said👏🏽. If these guys would stop reporting about these topics violence won’t stop. It’s the way you deal with topics. For example if you interview people/your guest like a prosecutor to start drama and beef to make money of it that’s totally.
When it comes down to it, I think it’s an argument of morality and empathy vs the lack there of. Joe has empathy so he can’t in good conscience cover certain things that Adam would, Adam lacks empathy and therefore has no issue whatsoever covering certain things. Unfortunately I think Adam sleeps just fine at night despite what he does on his platform and how it affects people.
And with that being said there will always be sociopathic journalists out there who will have no problem making money off of other people’s misfortune, even if they are perpetuating that misfortune further by doing so
Watching media like this (and I'm gonna include people like a Trap Lore Ross and Trap Geek) always gave me a negative vibe kinda like how True Crime media has been feelin like. Instead of showing care it feels like you are exploiting the violence, romanticizing the tragedies or making people feel like a spectacle instead of real people.
5:10 Ion don't agree with a lot of Akademiks social opinions. But imo he was justified in calling some of the gang members savages they're literally mass m*rders. Describing them as anything else is detrimental to our community.
i’m a black man and i love tlr videos i feel like everyone hates on him because he’s white and somehow he’s exploitive off the people he’s making documentaries of i feel like it’s a very insightful video and people definitely wouldn’t hate if he was a black man
I like how u mentioned the trap lore ross videos as well. He's geeking over real life gang voilence as if it was a video game. Clearly he's smart enough to be aware and must carry some sort of guilt, but it's still too exciting for him, as is with all consumers of gang related content. The stakes are high cos people pay with their life and I guess that intruiges the audience, as if it were a gladiator fight in roman times, except RU-vid is our amphitheatre.
yo shawn i just wanna say i got mad respect for your content and your point of view. you are the hiphop channel the culture needs. fuck all that other bullshit
@Ganjaa Mann that’s one of the main reasons why I’m still subbed to Shawn Cee for years more than just the review is his raw honesty in assessing the situation at hand.
People have been interested in hearing about crime forever. Why do western outlaws have lore around them? Why do people like playing GTA? It’s human nature
To your point about people committing these crimes "not knowing better;" most of the time they don't. They are humans that are conditioned by their environment, saying this, I understand that poverty and systematic oppression has put many in this position. HOWEVER, you're making it seem like these people have no option to do these things because of poverty. In a sense, you're doing the same thing as saying"they don;t know any better." I would love to hear your thoughts on stopping violence in some of these impoverished areas. Also, I'd want to hear how you think poverty/ systematic issues intersect with inner city culture. (i.e. models of masculinity)
The core of this issue is accountability. You can't legislate this kind of change. You can't throw money at this kind of change. It has to be internal. We, as an overall culture, have to take accountability for what we do, what we promote, what we value, and the ways we operate. We have to change that. African immigrants and Asian immigrants come to the U.S., and they're doctors, lawyers, and engineers by the first generation. They own houses, they own land, and they own businesses. Of course I'm speaking in generalizations, but it holds up across a lot of the board. Why? There's a difference in culture. Surprisingly to some people, most of them are extremely conservative in their fundamental values. They're devoutly religious, they value family, they value traditional gender roles, they value education, and they promote the fundamental concept of hard, honest work. This is the opposite of what the overall black American culture promotes. That's one change that needs to be made. Promotion of positive traits, ideals, and habits instead of ass shaking thottery, drug dealing, being a junkie, and shooting each other. Perhaps the biggest issue is the rate of single-parent households in the black community. 65%. The next highest is Latinos at 41%, and they deal with their own struggles in that. A country begins with a state, a state begins with a city, a city begins with a community, and a community begins with a household. If you start with a broken household, everything built on top of that will be broken as well. We need to stop filling black girls', black young women's, and black women's heads with shit like "Fuck men", "I'm an independent woman", and "I don't need a man." That's only detrimental to the children they have, who grow up without a father and are a detriment to society when they get older. These kids shooting each other had a mother, and the streets became their father. A man needs a woman, a woman needs a man, and a child needs both of you. Our community completely fails in understanding that. This isn't DJ Akademiks fault. This isn't Joe Budden's fault. This isn't Adam22's fault. This isn't the white man's fault. It's the fault of the black community and the bullshit we promote at a large scale. Matthew 7:24-27 24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
No offence but I don't think you were listening properly. Shawn clearly did not say people from poor areas have no accountability for their lifestyles, he just pointed out that they can't help being born into a system that's not designed to help them succeed and that is absolutely true.
@@islabee94 Nobody has any choice about what they’re born into. When an African family comes to the U.S. with literally nothing, they get jobs, save money, and send their kids to college, they started off worse than most people in the U.S. You have to identify the problem, but you also have to fix the problem. Nobody else will fix it for you.
@@islabee94 I'm not from America but to me it feels like the communitys these people live in do more harm to them than the system. I feel like the system is an excuse for the self destructive behavior people behave in. Maybe I'm just ignorant bit it seems like these people have no desire to improve themselves when I look at the decisions their making.
That reference to Joe having a show with someone that many blame for the state of hip-hop/ street rappers turnt clout chasers is spot on. That was the f-n nail right there. Joe isn’t stupid and knows that he needed AK and knew what AK was responsible for yet blames Adam mostly cuz he’s white. That’s nasty behavior for Joe Buddens. Wack ass podcast too
You missing a lot of context when it comes to Joe Budden. It’s obvious you haven’t watched much of his content outside of some clips or episodes of interests. Joe has clearly said that he would never go into that material cause that ain’t what he trynna do. Joe has been very outspoken about talking to Akademiks about what he did in the past and AK has moved off that for the most part. He still covers some degree of things going on but he no longer does what he used to do. The problem with Adam 22 is that he is not inside that situation at all. His justification is that he listens to these artists so that’s why he interviews them and goes in depth with that problematic music. Adam represents the fact that these young kids who have no idea of the hostility of the streets and would never even get really into it but wanna sing these lyrics. Even radio stations have made a stance to say no we not playing none of this music at all. The problem is everyone fetishizes the street life and mentality with no real depth and understanding that this shit getting people killed as they record it. Not to mention it keeps up the slavery mentality of young black men. It’s no different than the over sexualization of women in the industry. We don’t gravitate to clean shit. The majority consumers could never have a hot girl summer but fetishize it and there’s just no moral ground whatsoever in that industry to say no we stand for better and we’re gonna move to a more positive conducive message. It just get magnified even more with all these kids outside of that specific culture and that’s what the problem is.
Very well put into word, very articulate and great video put to together. I was coming into this expecting it to be a Adam 22 bashing hate video, but you made some valid points I 100% agree with
Can you talk about why you and others are more upset about DJ Akademiks "war in Chi-Raq" than you are about the rappers who are performing the violence and making music about it? How is one exploitation and the other isn't?
He does mention at the end of this video that we need to be asked the question “ why do people find this type of content entertaining “ which could be because of all the negative drama people can look at and talk about
