Hip-Hop has borrowed from Italian culture for years. Names such as Gotti and Capone have been used; movies such as Goodfellas and A Bronx Tale have been continuously referenced. It is these facts that make the lack of a prominent Italian rapper hard to believe. The fact is, Hip-Hop, is African-American music and like with anything dominated by one race, racial barriers will eventually be broken. Big Pun, who was Puerto Rican, took Hip-Hop music by storm in 1998 with his debut album Capital Punishment. A later came The Slim Shady LP, from Eminem, the first credible and highly-successful White solo rapper, who has since gone on to become the best-selling Hip-Hop artist of all time. And while neither of these rappers were the first of their kind, both of these men will never be absent from a top ten list. Groups such as The Lordz of Brooklyn and House of Pain, whose members were all white, have made their impact on hip-hop music as well, the former sticking to a hardcore hip-hop formula while the latter produced one of the biggest hits rap music has ever seen in “Jump Around.” Members of House of Pain, Everlast and Danny Boy, still remain relevant today in Hip-Hop’s underground circuit, combining with fellow Caucasian rapper Ill Bill to form the group “La Coka Nostra.” It is all these factors that make me wonder what it is that keeps Italian rappers on the underground. When I spoke to Veteran Yonkers rapper Genovese, he thought the answer was clear, “I dealt wit problems in the game when they found out I was Italian...I had a deal not go through cause the executives didn’t want to deal wit me because of my name.” However, Genovese had the lineage to the 1930s Mafia that Young Gotti, Tone Capone and Bathgate imitated. What’s in a name? Apparently, a lot more than we thought.
In the year 2000, Genovese went on to make music history, but not for first week sales or a hit single. After eight months of promotion including tours and full-page advertisements in the largest trade publications next to artists of such star status as Nelly, his album was stopped just 27 days before its release. He was getting radio airplay and a video was shot for $150,000. Money was spent, why wouldn’t Universal at least drop the album to make some of their money back? According to Genovese, no answer ever was given, “To tell you the truth, I don’t know; I’ll probably never know. It could have been regular politics or it could be hate in the game, hate because I’m Italian.” Why would an artist in 2007 believe he is being blackballed due to culture? Could it be fear on the part of record executives? Organized crime did run rampant through the music industry for years. Is it prejudice? Racial tensions between African-Americans and Italians are no secret.
JoJo Pellegrino, a veteran Staten Island rapper, has faced similar industry woes to that of Genovese. JoJo was once signed to the largest management company in the business, Violator, headed up by industry heavyweight Chris Lightly. His buzz was heavy; he had tracks in heavy rotation, and a video on the table, when all of a sudden a stop was put to everything. He had done songs with superstars such as Busta Rhymes and was affiliated with Wu-Tang lyricist Ghostface Killah. Despite later affiliations with several labels, nothing changed. It is now 2007 and he is still unsigned. Asked about the racial tensions within the game, Jojo pleads no Fifth, “I’ve seen the ignorance. To me, though, I could care less what color somebody is. I have Black friends. I have Italian friends. I love them all. Anything racist that happens is ridiculous and those people should be punished to the fullest. I can only hope nobody judges me on somebody else’s behavior because of my culture.” One could look closer though.
Organized crime has played a part in the music industry for years dating back to as early as the 1940s. The stereotype is a Jewish or Italian man with mafia connections who exploits artists, most of whom are minorities, and reaps the rewards from the artists’ hard labor, essentially leaving them poor and without royalties. While the actual exploits of the mafia in the music business are unknown, their presence is a fact. Carlo Gambino considered one of the most powerful and intelligent mafia bosses ever owned his own record label based out of New Jersey. It is also fact that during the 1980s the mafia had dealings with powerhouse record label MCA. However, it is uncertain who gave the music business its ruthless reputation as Nino Gaggi, a respected and feared murderer with the Gambino crime family was once quoted describing the music business as a “dirty and rotten business,” to try and deter a younger relative from attempting to get involved in it. He instead brought him under his wing and taught him the ins and outs of the mob life.
For Italians and Blacks, racial tensions go back to the days of Prohibition. Harlem neighborhoods were divided by invisible East/West line, separating the two cultures. The line not only separated everyday individuals, it also served as a way for the gangsters of the era to stay out of each other’s hair. On one side was legendary number runner, Bumpy Johnson, on the Italian side was Dutch Shultz, and while he ran the neighborhood, his chain of command went all the way up to Charles “Lucky” Luciano.
Although African-Americans and Italians were in the same illicit businesses, they still remained segregated; nightclubs were either “White” or “Black,” a paradox of Harlem dating back to the earliest days. Over the years, number-running turned to heroin dealing led by Leroy “Nicky Barnes,” a Black Harlem drug dealer who was connected to the Italian mob. Barnes’ shared heroin game made way for Black dominance a decade later. AZ, Rich Porter, and Alpo Martinez controlled Harlem’s ‘80s streets. These three young men would go on to set the status quo for Hip-Hop fashion and lifestyle as. Whether these three young men knew it or not, they also had kept organized crime in Harlem to the African American culture.
During the 1970s, many neighborhoods in Brooklyn suffered from severe racial tensions between African-Americans and Italians. In many high schools, Black students had to be escorted to classes. Ironically, most problems between these two races have taken place within the same few neighborhoods. However, 1989 was the year, which truly exposed the worst of racist feelings, which Blacks and Italians cam harbor towards each other. The day was August 23, and Yusef Hawkins was standing on a street in Bensonhurst. He, and a few friends were in the neighborhood inquiring about a used vehicle, which they were interested in purchasing. While Yusef stood innocently waiting for his friends, he was attacked by a large group of teenagers, most wielding baseball bats. He was beaten and shot to death. The reason why Hawkins was murdered so brutally was because it was suspected that he was dating a girl from the neighborhood, which he was not. Subsequently, Spike Lee dedicated his movie Jungle Fever to Hawkins. This incident was a case of a few degenerate and disturbed individuals following up on an idea, which seems to have been given credibility by the media and other outlets.
With Hawkins’ and several other murders transpiring in the five boroughs, Spike Lee’s topical film Do The Right Thing spoke to New Yorkers. The movie depicted a riot in the making, set in the Bedford Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn, based on the actions of Italian and African-Americans. Both Jungle Fever and Do The Right Thing portrayed Italian-Americans in a terrible light, making them all look like violent, ignorant, thugs. In Goodfellas and many other mob films, African Americans have been portrayed as drug abusing, lazy, and incompetent. What’s that saying? An eye for an eye? Or are these films revealing looks at fundamentalist opinions for one another?
The year is 2007 and Hip-Hop has seen it all, or so we keep saying. We have a White British female MC in Lady Sovereign and one of our favorite hardcore rappers has become president of the most important record labels Hip-Hop music has ever seen. Why an Italian rapper hasn’t made it to the forefront is anybody’s guess. Racism still runs rampant, Hip-Hop is still a bridge between cultures, and rap has become a form of expression for millions. While tensions will always run high, I don’t think this is the time to keep any artist out of the game. Hip-Hop needs all the talent it can get, in any color.
Hip-Hop has become a melting pot. Young rap fans in China, Africa, Italy, Germany, and so on, who don’t speak a word of English, can recite American rap lyrics with precision. But let’s bring it closer to home, to the streets of Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island, and the Bronx where Italians and African-Americans co-exist on a daily basis. The truth is, Black kids love Goodfellas, and Italian kids love Jay-Z. Urban clothing lines such as Sean John and Roc-A-Wear have become universal attire. It seems as if the similarities between these two cultures are growing more and more everyday. We are all standing on a common ground so let us act as such. There is too much at stake.
J.M. Puglionisi can be contacted at JONMPNYC@AOL.COM
________________
this was from allhiphop.com
good read i think
In the year 2000, Genovese went on to make music history, but not for first week sales or a hit single. After eight months of promotion including tours and full-page advertisements in the largest trade publications next to artists of such star status as Nelly, his album was stopped just 27 days before its release. He was getting radio airplay and a video was shot for $150,000. Money was spent, why wouldn’t Universal at least drop the album to make some of their money back? According to Genovese, no answer ever was given, “To tell you the truth, I don’t know; I’ll probably never know. It could have been regular politics or it could be hate in the game, hate because I’m Italian.” Why would an artist in 2007 believe he is being blackballed due to culture? Could it be fear on the part of record executives? Organized crime did run rampant through the music industry for years. Is it prejudice? Racial tensions between African-Americans and Italians are no secret.
JoJo Pellegrino, a veteran Staten Island rapper, has faced similar industry woes to that of Genovese. JoJo was once signed to the largest management company in the business, Violator, headed up by industry heavyweight Chris Lightly. His buzz was heavy; he had tracks in heavy rotation, and a video on the table, when all of a sudden a stop was put to everything. He had done songs with superstars such as Busta Rhymes and was affiliated with Wu-Tang lyricist Ghostface Killah. Despite later affiliations with several labels, nothing changed. It is now 2007 and he is still unsigned. Asked about the racial tensions within the game, Jojo pleads no Fifth, “I’ve seen the ignorance. To me, though, I could care less what color somebody is. I have Black friends. I have Italian friends. I love them all. Anything racist that happens is ridiculous and those people should be punished to the fullest. I can only hope nobody judges me on somebody else’s behavior because of my culture.” One could look closer though.
Organized crime has played a part in the music industry for years dating back to as early as the 1940s. The stereotype is a Jewish or Italian man with mafia connections who exploits artists, most of whom are minorities, and reaps the rewards from the artists’ hard labor, essentially leaving them poor and without royalties. While the actual exploits of the mafia in the music business are unknown, their presence is a fact. Carlo Gambino considered one of the most powerful and intelligent mafia bosses ever owned his own record label based out of New Jersey. It is also fact that during the 1980s the mafia had dealings with powerhouse record label MCA. However, it is uncertain who gave the music business its ruthless reputation as Nino Gaggi, a respected and feared murderer with the Gambino crime family was once quoted describing the music business as a “dirty and rotten business,” to try and deter a younger relative from attempting to get involved in it. He instead brought him under his wing and taught him the ins and outs of the mob life.
For Italians and Blacks, racial tensions go back to the days of Prohibition. Harlem neighborhoods were divided by invisible East/West line, separating the two cultures. The line not only separated everyday individuals, it also served as a way for the gangsters of the era to stay out of each other’s hair. On one side was legendary number runner, Bumpy Johnson, on the Italian side was Dutch Shultz, and while he ran the neighborhood, his chain of command went all the way up to Charles “Lucky” Luciano.
Although African-Americans and Italians were in the same illicit businesses, they still remained segregated; nightclubs were either “White” or “Black,” a paradox of Harlem dating back to the earliest days. Over the years, number-running turned to heroin dealing led by Leroy “Nicky Barnes,” a Black Harlem drug dealer who was connected to the Italian mob. Barnes’ shared heroin game made way for Black dominance a decade later. AZ, Rich Porter, and Alpo Martinez controlled Harlem’s ‘80s streets. These three young men would go on to set the status quo for Hip-Hop fashion and lifestyle as. Whether these three young men knew it or not, they also had kept organized crime in Harlem to the African American culture.
During the 1970s, many neighborhoods in Brooklyn suffered from severe racial tensions between African-Americans and Italians. In many high schools, Black students had to be escorted to classes. Ironically, most problems between these two races have taken place within the same few neighborhoods. However, 1989 was the year, which truly exposed the worst of racist feelings, which Blacks and Italians cam harbor towards each other. The day was August 23, and Yusef Hawkins was standing on a street in Bensonhurst. He, and a few friends were in the neighborhood inquiring about a used vehicle, which they were interested in purchasing. While Yusef stood innocently waiting for his friends, he was attacked by a large group of teenagers, most wielding baseball bats. He was beaten and shot to death. The reason why Hawkins was murdered so brutally was because it was suspected that he was dating a girl from the neighborhood, which he was not. Subsequently, Spike Lee dedicated his movie Jungle Fever to Hawkins. This incident was a case of a few degenerate and disturbed individuals following up on an idea, which seems to have been given credibility by the media and other outlets.
With Hawkins’ and several other murders transpiring in the five boroughs, Spike Lee’s topical film Do The Right Thing spoke to New Yorkers. The movie depicted a riot in the making, set in the Bedford Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn, based on the actions of Italian and African-Americans. Both Jungle Fever and Do The Right Thing portrayed Italian-Americans in a terrible light, making them all look like violent, ignorant, thugs. In Goodfellas and many other mob films, African Americans have been portrayed as drug abusing, lazy, and incompetent. What’s that saying? An eye for an eye? Or are these films revealing looks at fundamentalist opinions for one another?
The year is 2007 and Hip-Hop has seen it all, or so we keep saying. We have a White British female MC in Lady Sovereign and one of our favorite hardcore rappers has become president of the most important record labels Hip-Hop music has ever seen. Why an Italian rapper hasn’t made it to the forefront is anybody’s guess. Racism still runs rampant, Hip-Hop is still a bridge between cultures, and rap has become a form of expression for millions. While tensions will always run high, I don’t think this is the time to keep any artist out of the game. Hip-Hop needs all the talent it can get, in any color.
Hip-Hop has become a melting pot. Young rap fans in China, Africa, Italy, Germany, and so on, who don’t speak a word of English, can recite American rap lyrics with precision. But let’s bring it closer to home, to the streets of Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island, and the Bronx where Italians and African-Americans co-exist on a daily basis. The truth is, Black kids love Goodfellas, and Italian kids love Jay-Z. Urban clothing lines such as Sean John and Roc-A-Wear have become universal attire. It seems as if the similarities between these two cultures are growing more and more everyday. We are all standing on a common ground so let us act as such. There is too much at stake.
J.M. Puglionisi can be contacted at JONMPNYC@AOL.COM
________________
this was from allhiphop.com
good read i think
