I am analyzing a rap song created by a Youtube user. (riceboyliu) The song is probably not meant to be sold on albums, and it likely won’t bare any historical significance in the history of rap, but the lyrics and theme of the song could not be any more relevant to our class discussion on Friday. This entire song progresses through 12 different accents, and with striking resemblance to the Chappelle Show, it plays on stereotypes through both attire and lyrics.

In the introduction of the song, the rapper recognizes that all stereotypes are false and before making numerous stereotypical jokes, he ironically states that, “if this kid really traveled to those countries he’d realize that not all of those people act like that.” This statement represents how a stereotype cannot be well founded and that any one label cannot apply to an entire group of people because in any population there will be a large number of individuals which deviate from the stereotypes that we apply to them.

The song, much like the Chappelle clip that was featured, finds humor in the stereotypes that we can all almost instantly recognize. Stereotypes are so integrated into our culture that we rarely need to have them explained to us. For example, when the rapper impersonates a Japanese person, one can identify the stereotype before he even speaks due to his stereotypical appearance. Of course, not all Japanese people have that over the top style of moustache, constantly raise their eyebrows, and wear clothes that are representative of their culture, but those are some common stereotypes.

I think the lyrics “I can’t hear you over the sound of all this liberty” relates to the concept we discussed that many white people in America have the luxury, freedom, and ability to ignore or simply not understand the social problems that others face. This is because their privilege allows them to be mentally and physically distanced from the hardships that many face on a daily basis. It is easy to sit back and say we should help the American poor, and “poor countries”, but unless we familiarize ourselves with their situation on a more personal level and discover what is really happening, we cannot effectively solve or understand the problems of others.

The point of this song was meant to make one laugh from the humor of stereotypes, but listening to the song can help someone understand the abundance of stereotypes that exist and the funny, but often untrue and derogatory images that they portray of people from varying backgrounds.

I hope the bad language does not offend, here is a link to the song –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYcjMEg1Pm8