Music is our Culture
Music had and still has an impact on
African American culture and African American culture has made a great and
positive impact on music. Music hasn’t always been the same, from beatboxing
and freestyling to actual beats and studios. Music has united culture in every
way possible, Physically, Mentally, and Emotionally. As Macklemore stated
“Music is therapy. Music moves people. It connects people in a way no other
medium can. It pulls heartstrings. It acts as medicine.” Music is like a Time
Capsule. If you ever notice, in Today's time the music that is being produced
is what’s going on Culturally in life now. Music teaches us about language. As
a kid, I was rarely taught physically, YouTube was my teacher's go-to. This
documentary, “Young Dolph “KING” Documentary (Ft. Gucci Mane- Enigma series)
released May 19, 2017, produced by WORLDSTARHIPHOP. Dolph preaches about
his struggles growing up, unfiltered stories about what his family had to do to
get by, and how those situations and circumstances influenced his decisions later
in life.
“Ms. Tammy, Ima has gone on to the
top” Dolph stated. (2:55-2:58). Adolph Thornton Jr. was born in Chicago and
moved to Memphis, Tennessee. Dolph struggled more than a normal kid/ teenager
growing up. Between the ages of 17-19, Dolph was aimed for 2 times. At that
age, it can be tragic but more traumatizing. Dolph was getting jumped in the
streets, he never wanted his grandma to know anything, so he’d do everything
away from the house. His parents weren't in his life like he needed them to be.
Looking up to his friends and their parents because he’d never have that. “Go
over to one of my friends' houses, they folk isn’t on dope. His mommy makes
sure he is fresh before he goes to school. His daddy plays football and goes to
games with him” (7:24-7:34).
young dolph preach video - Search (bing.com)
The neighborhood
where Dolph was relocated to was known to be a ratchet and a harbor for all
manner of illegal drug dealers. Young Dolph's parents were a part of this, they
were Chronic drug addicts. They depended heavily upon cocaine, they weren’t fit
to be his guardians so soon grandma had to step in and take over. “A nigga
isn't had that, even though a nigga had mommy and daddy right there, they
weren't able to produce” (7:40-7:50). Despite his parents' predicament he never
hated them. Having no parents can leave more than a toll on you, mentally it
isn’t a good thing but sometimes you just have to deal with it. Dolph's grandma
was disappointed in him when she found out that he was slanging dope and he
never wanted her to find out, so he was more disappointed in himself. Which is
where the ambition came in. He felt like he had to go and get it, he had to be
successful, he wanted to succeed no matter what, he never wanted to depend on
anybody because he couldn't even depend on his parents. After his grandma's
passing due to lung cancer, Dolph's career took off.
Having a childhood like Dolph, influenced him to want
to be great, to have a bigger and higher bar set. It pushed him to greatness;
He became an independent artist. When Dolph raps and makes music, he speaks nothing
but facts. He talks about culture, the things happening in life, his struggles,
etc. In his song Sunshine, he speaks about the president putting us in
quarantine and what he was doing during quarantine. Young Dolph doesn't only
connect with culture musically but also physically and emotionally. He dropped
20k on Duke college students. He gifted a TX family with his Lambo. He was
putting businesses on, for instance, the cookie shop. The value for vision, he
always was motivated Mondays.
Music is more than just words and
beats, it's Culture. Music helps us in ways we probably never would have
imagined. It calms our soul; it heals us from certain situations. Dolph helped
bring that spark out of music connecting to culture. He connected to culture in
many ways. The things that influenced him to want to be the greatest, can also
be influential to us. Before the tragic murder of Dolph on Nov 17, 2021, he
motivated and influenced more than 1,000 people from his hometown and around
him because of his dedication and motivation to get to where he wanted to be.
Never gave up despite his troubles and past, he always kept going, and nowadays
we could have learned so much from Dolph.
work cited
“When Did Young Dolph Die - Search.” Www.bing.com,
www.bing.com/search?q=when+did+young+dolph+die&qs=AS&pq=when+did+young+&sc=10-15&cvid=7BD144777B1C4044BDF37DF9265B43F4&FORM=QBRE&sp=15.
Accessed 2 Oct. 2022.
Rosas, Rhiannon. “How Music and Culture Work Together: Science
behind Music.” Www.musichouseschool.com, 28 Sept. 2020,
www.musichouseschool.com/how-music-and-culture-work-together-science-behind-music.
“10 Ways Music Is Intrinsically Linked to Our Cultural Identity.” Six-Two
by Contiki, 30 Jan. 2020,
www.contiki.com/six-two/10-ways-music-helps-cultural-identity/#:~:text=10%20ways%20music%20is%20intrinsically%20linked%20to%20our.
“Young Dolph “KING” Documentary (Ft. Gucci Mane - Enigma Series).”
Www.youtube.com, www.youtube.com/watch?v=yp-7xFT-Ecg&t=79s. Accessed
2 Oct. 2022.
reflection
When I first started writing essay 2, it was easy and simple! It was easier than essay 1. My experiences during this writing process have been by far the best, I'm not a good writer nor reader so essays aren’t something that comes naturally with me. It takes more than it would take a regular person for me to stay on topic and get it completed. Now I think hard and long about reading and writing. I learned that you must detail and think out how to write your essay. Going off the top of your head trying to just put together information isn’t always the right way to write essays. I have learned to hook the reader's attention and focus on the main topic when writing to an academic audience. I also learned to keep my writing simple but also readable.
In the future, I can apply what I learn to keep the audience's attention by simply keeping the audience's attention. Another thing is I have to know the audience that I’m writing or talking to, to know what to talk about, what form and how to talk to my audience. I have learned that the writer learned as they seek to articulate what they want to say. I also learned that writing could allow us to organize our thoughts and extend our thinking process. In the future, I can use writing as inquiry by thinking and planning out more, not just start typing. This whole process was a pain but what I can say is that I learned more than I should've learned.
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