The Ice Cub-narrated Planet Rock provides another perspective on why crime and gang culture are so prevalent in rap discourse: by telling the hip-hop story through the complete social annihilation. Narrated and executive produced by Ice-T, “Planet Rock: The Story of Hip Hop and the Crack Generation” is the first documentary to focus specifically on the connections between crack and hip-hop. Certified Fresh Picks.
Photo: Musically Motivated
Narrated by Ice-T, Planet Rock: The Story of Hip-Hop and the Crack Generation tells the story of how crack influenced hip-hop in the 80s. Rappers from the East Coast and the West Coast speak on their first time seeing the drug, selling the drug, and how it changed their lives. Crack was a way of life for many people. Whether you were a user or dope dealer, crack made an impact on many people’s lives both white and black in the 80s. For dope dealers, one could make hundreds and thousands of dollars for selling the drug. For the users, it made them so high they began to neglect their responsibilities such as feeding their children. Women who were hooked on the drug and would use sex to hit the pipe were called strawberries on the West Coast and Skeezers on the East Coast. Crackheads would steal or prostitute sometimes even both to get their hands on the drug. Crack was so powerful that it shook the entire nation. Rappers took from the drug dealers and incorporated their style into their music. Rappers would wear big gold chains and name brand clothes just like the dealers. The material items symbolized that one was coming up in the game whether a rapper or a drug dealer. Eric B. and Rakim brought the gold chains to the entertainment world. Gucci and MCM could be seen worn on Eric B., Rakim, LL Cool J, and Run DMC just to name a few. Rappers were like reporters rapping on how crack affected their neighborhood or block. Drug traffickers idolized Tony Montana from Scarface at that time. On the West Coast, one rap group would combine the world of drug dealing and hip-hop and shake the rap game forever. N.W.A. were a Gangsta rap group, explicitly rapping about topics that many rappers didn’t dare to. However, they sold millions of records from “Dope Man,” “Gangsta Gangsta,” and “Fuck the Police.” Police at the time were arresting young black males, using batter rams for homes they thought people were selling drugs out of, and trying to bring an end to the crack epidemic. N.W.A. took these issues and put it in their music making them one of the most influential hip-hop groups in the world. Take a look down memory lane with Planet Rock: The Story of Hip-Hop and the Crack Generation and learn how the crack world hugely impacted the rap world.
Planet Rock Hip Hop And The Crack Generation
“Crack basically funded hip-hop.” – Too $hort