Hip-Hop Quebec: Self and Synthesis
2011; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 34; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1080/03007761003726407
ISSN1740-1712
Autores Tópico(s)Music History and Culture
ResumoAbstract This article draws on premises (cf. Tony Mitchell, Adam Krims) that hip hop and rap are now global phenomena and that the "localizing" of original forms has led to distinctive synthetic versions worthy of separate analysis. In Quebec, a francophone province of Canada, the lines of influence are complex, given that first impulses may come from African-American sources by way of France, and include immigrant cultural dynamics along with the unique urban characteristics of Montreal and other cities in Quebec. The best rappers filter external sources and synthesize them with culturally specific references, resulting in artifacts representative of both individual creative and oppositional expression and the dynamic inherent in contemporary multicultural society. This article makes extensive use of primary sources (interviews with artists, concert attendance, lyric analysis) as well as scholarly references to support the notion that hip-hop culture in Quebec serves both to introduce innovative trends from abroad and as a canvas on which to paint the stories of individuals and subcultures unique to Quebec. Acknowledgments I am grateful to the artists who took time to speak with me: SP of Sans Pression and Treizième étage through Jean-François Robert, J. Kyll and Imposs of Muzion through their manager Oko Shio, Biz and Chafiik of Loco Locass, and Egypto and Toast Dawg of Atach Tatuq. Thanks also to Simon Dor of hiphopfranco.com, who gave me an early introduction to Quebec hip hop. And thanks to Geneviève Chantal-Hébert, who transcribed the portions of Atach Tatuq's "Plastiq Doré" quoted in this article. On several occasions I have had funding from the Quebec Studies Program of the Ministry of External Relations of the government of Quebec, as well as a research fellowship from the National Library and Archives of Quebec. This help has been vital to raising the quality of what I have been able to achieve. Notes [1] The tendency to ascribe exclusively African-American origins to the hip-hop movement is challenged by the founders themselves. Afrika Bambaata made sure to include Hispanic rappers in his history, using "black" as a designation more of class or local origin than of ethnicity: "Now one thing people must know, that when we say Black we mean all our Puerto Rican or Dominican brothers. Wherever the hip-hop was and the Blacks was, the Latinos and the Puerto Ricans was, too" (qtd in George, "Hip-Hop's Founding Fathers Speak the Truth" 45–56). [2] The Algonquin reference evokes, on the one hand, the tribe which, along with the Huron and Iroquois, were among the original inhabitants of what would become New France. In this context, however, the specific reference is to the work of rapper Samian, who evokes his Algonquin origins on multiple tracks of his 2008 record Face à soi-même (Looking at Yourself). [3] The word "scene," while it may appear to be of a popular tone inappropriate to academic discourse, is now commonly used in musicological and ethno-musicological research to refer to "the context in which clusters of producers, musicians, and fans collectively share their common musical tastes and collectively distinguish themselves from others" (Bennett and Peterson 1 Bennett, Andy and Peterson, Richard A., eds. 2004. Music Scenes: Local, Translocal and Virtual, Nashville, TN: Vanderbilt UP. Print[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). This "context" might include everything from labels to venues to festivals to web sites or, more recently, listservs. [4] Atach Tatuq's Egypto strongly makes this point in situating that group's satirical, sometimes humorous raps within a tradition going back to Grandmaster Flash, i.e. the very origins of the form (Interview). [5] See George or Rose for a more complete historical overview of the evolution of rap performance configurations in the United States. [6] All translations are by the present author unless otherwise indicated. [7] It should be noted that rap sales have recently led the general industry decline. Coates Coates, Ta-Nehisi. "Hip-hop's Down Beat." Time.com 17 Aug. 2007. Web. 9 Mar. 2008 < www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,1653639m00.html (http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,1653639m00.html) > [Google Scholar] ("Hip-hop's Down Beat") mentions a market fatigue with what has become a relatively monochromatic commercial rap production in America, based primarily on "gun worship and underdressed women." [8] The straight translation of the expression "banlieue" into English is "suburb," but this ignores the fact that American and Canadian connotations of suburb and urban center are reversed in France, with the near suburbs now being primarily composed of disadvantaged immigrant communities and the city centers tending to favor the middle and upper classes. The recent riots in France, for example, emanated from the banlieue populations. For a more extensive treatment of the French banlieue evolution, see Prévos Prévos, André J.M. 2003. 'In it for the Money': Rap and Business Cultures in France. Popular Music and Society, 26.2: 445–61. Print[Taylor & Francis Online] , [Google Scholar] ("'In It for the Money'"). [9] Verlan is a slang technique in France that reverses the sound order of words. Femme (woman) becomes meuf, for example, and flic (cop) becomes keuf. [10] Roger Chamberland's 2000 article "The Cultural Paradox of Rap Made in Quebec" provides an introduction to early Canadian as well as Quebec rap. [11] The 101 law was a radical piece of legislation requiring the use of French in the workplace and in advertising in Quebec, as well as putting strict limits on access to English-language schools. [12] "Je m'en souviens" ("I remember") alludes to "Je me souviens," the official slogan of the province of Quebec, which is often criticized for its backward-looking emphasis. [13] Joual is a French dialect spoken primarily in Montreal, and thus symbolizing a certain cultural specificity for many Québécois. [14] Joe B.G., a rapper due to release an album on Treize deep records in August of 2007, was found dead after a fire swept his home on 29 July. SP, Cobna and Kast, among others, wore black arm-bands and observed a moment of silence in a concert at Les Francofolies that I attended. [15] Les Francofolies is the annual francophone/multi-cultural music festival that occurs in Montreal in late summer. For a full treatment of the festival's organization and impact on Quebec popular music, see Jones ("Francophone Popular Music"). [16] The Félix awards, named after the songwriter Félix LeClerc, are attributed annually in most of the imaginable categories of popular music in a process managed by ADISQ (Association québécoise du disque, du spectacle et de la vidéo). [17] Spoken word is a genre situated half-way between rap and traditional poetry, associated with " slam" public events, with a competitive element. Grand corps malade (France) is the best-known francophone spoken word artist as this article is being written. [18] Link in March of 2008 for Atach Tatuq's "Plastiq doré": < http://www.youtube.com/watch?v = TZebtjcB-QM>. [19] Montreal is an island, so virtually any suburban commute, except for "West Island" bedroom communities, involves a bridge. [20] Longueil is the first community across the Saint Lawrence south of Montreal, while Laval is the northern equivalent—a huge off-island bedroom community. [21] " La vit ti neg" music video can be viewed on YouTube at: < http://www.youtube.com/watch?v = glS4Dy5U4i8>. [22] The notion of being a community spokesperson came literally to pass in August of 2008 when a young man was killed in a confrontation with police in the Saint-Michel neighborhood, a riot ensued, and Imposs was interviewed by both newspapers and television as one who had articulated community concerns (his raps were quoted) and was well situated to comment on the causes of the violence (see Petrowsky Petrowsky, Nathalie. "Le 'poing de vue' d'Imposs." La Presse 13 Aug. 2008: Arts et Spectacles 1. Print [Google Scholar]). [23] Paul Martin was the Prime Minister of Canada when the interview with Loco Locass took place. [24] Bernard Landry is a former Prime Minister of Quebec and leader of the Parti québécois. [25] Allophones are essentially all who don't fit into Anglophone or Francophone language origins. This would include speakers of Italian, Portuguese, and Vietnamese, and Dominicans, among dozens of others. [26] Robert Charlebois is a major figure in Quebec music history, beginning in the 1960s and still active today. He is credited with the first synthesis of chanson (song in the French tradition), rock and pop in Quebec. [27] This term (a combination of "global" and local) is beginning to appear in many contexts, notably food (the mix of Fair Trade coffee and local fresh vegetables) and economics (micro-loans in India). It applies equally well to the phenomenon of localized hip hop. [28] A sample editorial comment, after describing waiting three hours in the rain for the doors to open for a Montreal rap show: "Ils font attendre le monde, ils font attendre le monde, ils font attendre le monde, ils font attendre le monde.…Tout le monde est dehors-là! Il pleut-là!"…Les promoteurs sont whack! This is Québec, motherfuckers!" ("They make everybody wait, they make everybody wait, they make everybody wait.…Everybody's outside! It's raining! The promoters are idiots! This is Quebec, etc.") Not the sort of commentary likely to get you renewed on commercial radio (Montreal Underground, La rue du hip hop radio show, July 2006, accessed Aug. 2006.) [29] The expression current in Quebec public policy (as defined in the Bouchard-Tayler Commission report of 2008) is now "intercultural," with the difference being an implicit obligation to communicate across cultures, as a counterpoint to the right to maintain original and separate cultural practice inherent in the term "multicultural." This was a major topic at the recent International Association for Quebec Studies conference in Quebec City, including the paper by Jürgen Erfurt Erfurt, Jürgen, "Interculturalisme québécois: les défis pour l'immigration et la nouvelle Francophonie au Québec" ("Quebec Interculturalism: Challenges for Immigration and the New Francophonie in Quebec"). Paper given at International Association for Quebec Studies conference, Quebec City, 2008 [Google Scholar], "Interculturalisme québécois." [30] Within-language diversity refers to the multitude of dialects and registers available within a single language universe. To illustrate with French, one could cite standard and familiar Québécois, joual (Montreal dialect), standard and familiar Continental French, verlan (French slang), and local variations from West and North Africa, the Middle East (Lebanon—a major source of recent immigration), and the Caribbean (especially Haiti).
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