Hip Hop Culture And The Production Of Black Cinema History Essay (Essay Sample)

Name of Student
Class, Subject
Name of Professor
Date
Hip-Hop Culture and the Production of Black Cinema
Introduction
One of the great spectacular achievements of the of the African American youths in the post-civil rights movements era is their penetration of the popular and the ever-changing cultural mainstream. This has consequently transformed their economic status and has tentatively enabled them to assert their influence in the transformation of the cultural landscape of America. However, popular culture is one that is very volatile and thus experiences changes in trends constantly and this has forced the African American youths to be able to adapt. This has culminated into diversity in the popular culture as the changes in trends, fashion, as well as tastes and preferences has necessitated constant dynamics to meet the demands of the audience or the consumers so to speak. The development of hip hop culture and the ultimate establishments of Black cinemas, therefore, stand as one of the greatest millstones which have revolutionized the American cultures in general.
This paper will seek to answer some questions, discuss and analyze some issues and views based on the readings from the book Representing Hip Hop Culture and the Production of Black Cinema by Samuel Craig Watkins. To begin with, the analysis will focus on how the black youths are portrayed towards the end of the 20th century and the role played by the both the media and some of the mivie industries played in that. Secondly, the paper will discuss some of ironies presented by Watkins in his book as far as capitalism for the black youths is concerned. Thirdly, the major themes and ideas discussed by Watkins in Chapter 3 of the book will be analysed in greater details. Forthly, the paper will define what ghetto pictures are,some of their main features, the first time they came into existence, how and why. Finally, the paper will discuss in greater details what Watkins meant by the term “ghettocentric imagination”.