The influence of Drill which started in Chicago has gone mainstream, influencing acts such as Cardi B, Fivio Foreign, Drake, Travis Scott and even Kanye West. There are now groups in various parts of the world who have their own versions of Drill music.
Brooklyn drill rapper turned podcaster Maino, who helped organize the meeting with the mayor, posted the mayoral meetup on Instagram, as other rappers gathered around the newly elected Adams.
“I just wanted to create a conversation with the mayor … so he could get a real perspective and a real understanding of what drill rap is and so that we can have some real dialogue and really start to make things happen,” said the rapper in the video.
November 6 is one year since the death of Chicago Drill rapper King Von, who was gunned down outside a nightclub.
Von was one of 16 rappers who died in separate incidences of violence in 2020.
Reports are that he and his crew were involved in an altercation with Quando Rondo‘s crew outside of the Monaco hookah lounge in Atlanta, Georgia. The dispute turned into gunfire, which resulted in the “Welcome To O Block” artist being shot multiple times.
Two of the most widely known deaths in Hip Hop’s history have been that of Tupac and Notorious B.I.G who died in 1996 and 1997. Since then, their legacies have been immortalized through music and influence that transcend industries, generations and nations.
Some of their songs are even more popular now than they were in the 90s to the benefit of multi billion dollar record companies who own the music masters.
Soon after Tupac and Biggie died there were concerted efforts to stem the street violence in the music and encourage artist to become better leaders.
The 2002 Hip Hop summit had speakers Minister Louis Farrakhan, Russell Simmonds, Suge Knight and Steve Harvey encouraged new artists to become leaders.
At the summit Minister Farrakhan said, “You young people, become street leaders among yourselves then spread it to the adult population. You are the leaders, go on and lead”.
One street gang-member turned artist who was leading a different path when he was gunned down is Ermias Asghedom A.K.A Nipsey Hussle. He met a tragic death outside his clothing shop in Los Angeles. The second generation Eritrean-American rise to fame was accompanied by a message of independence, consciousness and unity.
Drake described him as “a man of respect and a don”, while Rihanna wrote on Twitter: “This doesn’t make any sense! My spirit is shaken by this!”
Hip Hop has taken shape in many forms and languages across the world but the culture of violence in the music remains. There is now Irish, Norwegian and Swedish Drill music which is experiencing its share of deadly street violence.
19 year old Nils Kurt Erik Einar Gronberg, popularly known as Einar, was Sweden’s most streamed artist on Spotify in 2019. He released three chart-topping albums, winning several Swedish Grammys and other music awards.
He was shot multiple times outside an apartment building in the southern Stockholm suburb of Hammarby Sjöstad.
5 artists from Trinidad were killed in violent circumstances last year including Chucky Blanco, who was fatally shot during a confrontation with police in Trinidad & Tobago. The 18 year old was known for songs like KRR, Nah Play, MURDER, and Bad Up & Bully.
18-year-old Brad Bailey (Bradbadlikethat) was shot and killed in March 2021, after allegedly issuing a threat to a gang. Per Dancehall Magazine.
Also in Trinidad In July 2020, 26-year-old Dancehall artist Rebel Sixx, whose real name was Kyle Roberts, was killed after he was shot several times during a home invasion.
Meanwhile, in Jamaica, a country plagued with violence, and some of the pioneers of rap and dancehall music, has seen its fair share of artists being killed recently due to street violence.
30 year old Dancehall artist Kashmar, was killed by unknown assailants, In Montego Bay and deejay Fadagad, 26, was shot and killed in Albion, St James the same day he dropped a music video titled ‘Jah Guide’. Per Dancehall mag.
Even in the U.K where they have some of the most advanced crime fighting technology, and Lyor Cohen says is making the most interesting music, there has been street violence linked to the music. In 2018 Top UK grime artist SafOne survived a Birmingham shooting for the second time.
He has since been sentenced to three years for admitting to waving an ‘imitation firearm’.
The BBC reported that police in the UK have noticed;
“Increasing numbers of teenage boys are making drill music videos while holding weapons.”
As artists line up to enter the music industry they look for the most compelling spectacles that will grab attention. Much like the film industry, the gun has been a source of action and interest that keep viewers in binge. Additionally, younger artists may see the streets as an authentic cultural zone where they get to validate insecurities even if one wrong move can mean death.
A 2015 study concluded that murder was the cause of 51.5% of American hip hop musician deaths often prematurely in their teens and 20s.
Hip Hop, Drill and Dancehall cultures is an attractive place for artists from the inner-cities of the world with neighborhood affiliations. No matter how successful they become, they keep a close proximity to their community.
Certified Gangster Rapper Jim Jones said “Being a rapper is the most dangerous job in the world” during an interview on Rap Radar.
“Its more dangerous than going to war in Iraq, because you always on defense, you don’t know who is who, people will get right up on you and try to do sumn to you. You always getting into beef. How many times you hear rappers get shot up this week” he said.
He continued; “The whole persona of being a raper is fucked…9 times out of ten these kids that are rappers I wouldn’t say they were good kids and angels but they didn’t do all the shit they rapped about”.
Following the shooting of Bennie The Butcher at a Walmart in Houston Texas, he followed up with an instagram post that doubled down on the comments.
“So y’all still don’t agree with wht I said
Being a rapper is 1 of thee most dangerous jobs in th world
Get well soon bro stay safe stay dangerous,” Jones said.
Try as he may, Mayor Adams would not succeed in censoring drill music. Like the rest of the politicians across the world, music becomes an attractive target to cast blame whenever the lines between street politics and the industry gets blurry. The music itself is harmless on the face of it, but the heinous circumstances depicted in the lyrics are the result of social inequalities all across the world.
If politicians should succeed, they need to get to the cause and the effects will take care of themselves.
