WORDS FROM BAMBAATAA


The True Meaning Of Hip-Hop Culture
by Afrika Bambaataa / introduction by Faisal Ahmed
from The Bomb Hip-Hop Magazine #38 (March 1995)

	He is known by a number of titles, "Godfather Of Hip-Hop", 
"Master Of Records", "Greatest DJ On Earth" - etc etc. 
	Now while a number of teenage buckwild shorties who score 
with one hit record inflate their own egos to ridiculous levels 
through their own blunt-smoke induced gauge of talent, he is a man 
who truly deserves the above titles and more. However, if one word 
can accurately describe Bambaataa Aasim, more regularly known as 
Afrika Bambaataa, it is intelligence. 
	This is a man who could very easily be living in a 
multimillion dollar ivory tower, content with his life and focused 
purely upon money. But not Bambaataa. He recognises that a great 
deal of ignorance exists within society, and he constantly strives 
to educate the misguided, indoctrinated masses. Taking his previous 
experiences as a gangbanger, he redirects the lessons of the streets 
into a positive and knowledgeable form. Serving as a source of 
inspiration and wisdom, he uses a philosophy of not misguiding 
youth, simply highlighting the facts and allowing people to draw 
their own conclusions. He does this from the same South Bronx 
streets he ran 25 years ago with the notorious Black Spades. 
	The main thing that always strikes me about Bam though, is 
his genuine approachability and how humble he is about his 
achievements. He always speaks to you as an equal and he`ll always 
hug you like a brother when he sees you. Compare this to the 
behaviour of 95% of the current hip-hop community and you begin to 
understand the difference between men and boys, and you start to see 
where infiltrators began to fuck up our culture with that policy of 
"divide and conquer."
	The very fact that you are able to buy and read this 
magazine means that you owe a debt to Bambaataa, whether you 
acknowledge the fact or not. Now it`s crunchtime. Read the following 
and peep out your response. If you can understand and open your mind 
to the bigger picture, contact the Zulu Nation. If you have 
difficulty, check your head and ask yourself if you consider 
yourself to be long term with hip-hop or whether you are treating it 
as a fad. Remember, knowledge is infinite, and there is no power 
greater than the power of the mind, but it`s up to you as an 
individual to use it. 
		
peace, 
Faisal Ahmed


Hip-Hop vs Hip-Hop (Take it for what it is). 
	I, Afrika Bambaataa, have heard it all, read it all, in many 
magazines throughout the world, and seen almost all in this 
continuing bullshit about which rappers are better, east coast v 
west coast, Miami bass hip-hop is bullshit, British Rappers sound 
funny rapping, electro funk, techno rappers are soft, I like 
hardcore rap and beats, this one group is like that, old school vs 
new school, Rap wouldn`t be rap if it wasn`t for the battles, I`m 
the quickest, baddest rapper, deejay around, Go Go music in 
Washington D. C. is dead. It`s all about hip-house or house music 
all night long. I dis you, you dis me, my crew will take you out or 
kick your ass, fuck this or that, Nigger, Bitch, Nigguz, Nigguh, 
Hoe, Hooker, Bitches with Problems, Hoes with Attitudes. 
	Just look at yourselves, sounding like a bunch of fools, who 
really don`t have any true knowledge of self and knowledge of 
hip-hop culture and what it`s all about. First of all, let me tell 
you that the music (beats) that makes up hip-hop, comes from 
different nationalities and races, especially from black people, and 
if you think I am a brother who don`t know what he is talking about, 
just check out many of the music, beats, grooves and sounds that 
many of your rappers use to make their records or rap over. Hip-hop 
music in general is colorless and not racist. It comes from many 
categories in music, for example: Hip-hop music is made up from 
other forms of music like funk, soul, rhythm & blues, jazz, rock 
heavy metal, salsa, soca (calypso), TV shows, kiddie shows, horror 
movies, techno, pop, disco, african, arabic, reggae -etc. . . . and 
if you use any records from these categories, you will see that the 
music is made by people from different races or nationalities from 
all over the planet, but it`s roots start with black people. 
	I have read many interviews by different rap groups 
throughout the world, just to see where their heads are at, whether 
they are really knowledgeable about hip-hop music/culture or whether 
they are just plain assholes. Many of the rappers will down(dis) 
another rapper because he or she wanted to experiment with hip-hop 
by singing or adding a different sound in hip-hop to create 
something new. When are all of you in the hip-hop world going to 
"wake up"? You love to keep dissing each other for nothing and if 
you were wise in your disrespect of each other, you would know how 
to make money with respecting your disrespect of each other, if you 
truly understand what I am saying. 
	Many who are into hip-hop or part of hip-hop culture 
throughout the world need a check up from the neck up. In fact, and 
in truth, the whole human family needs one. Everyone needs to check 
up on their own roots and culture and seek the real truths on life 
on this so-called planet Earth. Knowledge, wisdom, and 
understanding, facts and truths about black, brown, red, yellow and 
white people and not that brainwash white supremacy shit that white 
people in power have taught all over the world and to their own 
people of the so called planet Earth.
	Yes there are many wrongs in the worldwide hip-hop 
community, but there are also many aspects of positivity within the 
hip-hop community that the media or trade magazines rarely focus 
upon. Many of you in hip-hop culture don`t even listen to the 
rappers who are trying hard to wake your asses up to what is going 
on in the bigger scale than of what you see in your neighborhoods, 
their message goes in one ear and out the other. 
	The media does play a big role in destroying the hip-hop 
culture movement, but many of you in the hip-hop community are the 
biggest enemies of hip-hop and you will be the ones who will help 
the enemies of hip-hop to destroy it, or to bring it back 
underground, because of your ignorance of knowledge of hip-hop. This 
has started the difference between "old school" and "new school". To 
myself (Afrika Bambaataa) there is only one school and that`s the 
learning, evolving, going through the different phases or cycles 
school of hip-hop. That is the real hip-hop school. A lot of you in 
the world of hip-hop better start looking at the problems in your 
own backyard as well as the world, because while you are enjoying 
yourselves etc. there are many plots being sprung to destroy hip-hop 
in the world. Because many people in government look at hip-hop 
music and its culture as a radical music that gets straight to the 
point and music that will wake up the youth and young adults 
throughout the world. They can also use hip-hop to backfire and 
destroy itself. You can believe what I`m saying. But time will tell 
and I see what you see not. 

Peace be unto you, 
Your brother In music and faith, Afrika Bambaataa.