The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com

Monday, September 30, 2013 - 7A

The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Monday, September 30, 2013 - 7A

We have to stop
romanticizing
gang violence


Gillis,
the mix
were t
realup
comer
guys G
would
be sam
to crea
own m<
ups. An
others
this gu
never h
of. "I t
Chief
buzz ri
"He's d
he cou
charac
"Cli
runnin
youngi
see wh
"street
Keef is
who w
of air h
who pu
rollick
membe
rapper
violenc
inner-c
"Kil
feel lik
guns t
Tha
earlies
which
in mus
Keith
the Ke
deal w
rapper
with h
both sh
at by p
month
blockb
investi
the mu
JoJo.

he first time I'd heard sent read: "lmao im on 069 Stop
of Chief Keef was during The Fuckin flexin." And, not long
an interview withGregg after JoJo's murder, two entries
a.k.a. Girl Talk. I'd asked appeared on Keef's Twitter.
x-master who he thought First: "hahahahahhahahahah
he ahahahaahhAAHAHAHAHA
-and- #RichNiggaShit."
s, the And then: "Its Sad Cuz Dat
regg Nigga Jojo Wanted To Be Jus Like
one day Us #LMAO".
pling Of course, the rapper later
te his blamed the tweets as a byproduct
ash- of hacking. He would pull the
mong ELLIOT stunt again after Lupe Fiasco
was ALPERN slammed Keef asa "hoodlum,"
y I'd tweeting: "Lupe fiasco ashoe ass
heard nigga. And wen I see him I'ma
hink, from the rap world, smack him like da lil bitch he is
Keef definitely has the most #300."
ight now," Gillis told me. To be honest, I'm not writing
definitely a street rapper ... this article to rail on Chief Keef
ld be the next Waka Flocka - guys like him don't, or won't,
ter." change. Who would possibly look
ck clack, pow, now he at $6 million and think, "Wow,
g/Don't be fuckin' wit my time to change my ways"? Fame,
ins" - it's not too hard to fortune, idolization - it's all the
y Chief Keef garners that fuel an egocentric bonfire needs
-rapper" classification. to keep burning without relent.
the kind of character Really, the blame needs to
alks onstage to a chorus reside in those ignorant souls who
orns and police sirens, keep buying this stuff.
umps raw energy into a Yes, ignorant. Yes, I'm calling
ing crowd. But more, he's a Girl Talk ignorant, even though I
er of the new class of"drill" still really like Gregg as a person.
s - so named forthe gritty, Because, really, only ignorance
e-saturated inspiration of can foster that kind of separation
city Chicago. - rapping along to Keef in the
l y'all then forget y'all / I car, as his schoolmates, his
e popping red dots /Big blockmates, his family members,
hat knock ya head off." all die in the name of Chicago
t comes from one of Keef's gang life. Street life - driller life.
t hits, "3hunna," upon I know Itrailed on the guy in
he began to build his career my lastccolumn, but as a Chi-town
ic. By the age of 18, when native, Kanye seems to see the
Cozart (the man behind warfare clearer than most: "314
ef) signed a$6-million soldiers died in Iraq, 509 died in
ith Interscope Records, the Chicago." That was back on Watch
had already been charged the Throne, which even then used
eroin manufacture, had 2008 numbers, but the message
hot at and had been shot is the same: Where's the media
olice officers. A few coverage for Chicago? Why hasn't
s after that three-album anything changed - and more,
uster deal, Cozart was why are guys like Chief Keef
gated in connection with getting featured on "Grand Theft
:rder of rival rapper Lil Auto V"?
Speaking of which, Keef was
eventually let off the hook, even
though Lil JoJo's mom still
thief Keef's maintains that the Chief paid off
JoJo'skillers.Inan unrelated
lyrics are incident, though, our driller was
brought up on parole violation
;rounded in charges after postingavideo
which showed Keef firing off guns
olent reality. at the shooting range.
"Fucka TOOKA gang!!
BITCH IM 3Hunna," he tweeted
after leaving juvie. His account,
ou haven't seen the which goes under the moniker
on Wired about the role AlmightySo, has close to 800,000
al media in Lil JoJo's followers.
do yourself a favor and It doesn't have to be like this.
it out. The recounting At least, it doesn't have to be
of the night Lil JoJo got glorified - the sooner we can stop
is chilling in its accuracy, romanticizing about throwing
tted out over the cold, up gangasigns,athe sooner we can
ng frames of Twitter actually see that there's avery
The gist of it is pretty clear real, serious problem growingin
h. Chicago.

law dawn.
Is Beyonce a femme fatale
or a third-wave feminist?

By HANNAH WEINER
Daily Arts Writer
She's a brand, a household name
- she's even on the big screen at
the Big House. And she's married
to arguably the biggest and most
commercially successful rapper of
this era. She's the halftime show
of the Superbowl, she's sexy, she's
rich. To put it simply: Beyonce is
powerful.
And, so what?
The answer to this question
lies in the minds of academics
far more learned on American
culture and feminism than myself,
but it's worth asking. Because it
matters that Beyoncd presents
herself in an overtly sexualized
outfit and performance during
the Superbowl halftime show. It
matters that she took Jay Z's last
name - and that he took her last
name, too. It mattersthat she sings
"Bow Down, Bitches." .
It matters that, in the beginning
of her film, she says, "I truly
believe that women should be
financially independent from their
men. And let's face it: Money gives
men the power to run the show.
It gives men the power to define

value. They define what's sexy.
And men define what's feminine.
It's ridiculous."
It matters that she's a self-
proclaimed feminist.
It matters that Beyonce
straddles the line between
objectified and empowered,
sexual hedonism and militant
feminism. Remember when she
sang the lines: "The shoes on my
feet, I've bought it / The clothes
I'm wearing, I've bought it / The
rock I'm rockin', I've bought it /
'Cause I depend on me"? Beyonce
has undoubtedly bought all these
things and more. She's financially
independent, which gives her
power to "run the show" and
define value. With this power and
position, she can sway the mindsof
young America to redefine what's
sexy and valuable.
But, Beyonce knows that the
game is the game. She knows that
her audience includes men who
love nothing more than submitting
her to the "male gaze." So, while
those sexy, dominatrix outfits
(a la Superbowl halftime show
and "Single Ladies" music video)
show "control" of her sexuality,
they also cater directly to a male

audien
suppor
clothes
she's r
of dep
relies
album:
So
domin
a step
song "
most l
hyper-
use of'
d
Wh
Ladies
World
Wit
and
of "
(like
campu
Hip-h

ce - you know, the one that put it best when she tweeted:
ts the shoes on her feet, the "Beyonc's value to feminists
she's wearing and the rock isn't that she's a feminist.
ockin'. Beyonce only kind It's that she gets feminists
ends on herself - she also to talk about really nuanced,
on these dudes buying her complicated shit."
s and thinking she's hot. Beyonc6 knows whatever she
she plays the role of a says or does, we (at least the
atrix, but then she takes it college girl fanbase) will drool
further. If you've heard her over, tweet and probably recall
Bow Down, Bitches," you've in some cultural studies class,
ikely felt astounded at her just because we can and just
aggressive message and her because Bey did it. With this in
"bitch." mind, Beyonce holds a bizarrely
novel power card in empowering
women. She encourages us
W ho reall to celebrate our bodies. She
really encourages us to be financially
oes run the independent. She encourages us
to love our ancestry: Beyonce
lusic world? helps keep her female rhythm
and soul and blues ancestry line
alive (Aretha Franklin, Etta
James, Diana Ross, Josephine
at happened to "Single Baker, etc.) and progresses
," Bey? Or "Girls Run the this African-American musical
?" inheritance in a rebelliously
h "Bow Down, Bitches" spirited way other singers
her self-appointment cannot.
Queen Bey," fangirls She encourages us to shake
myself) all over college our hips, to sing and dance in a
ses are left perplexed. way only third-wave feminists
op feminist Joan Morgan understand: with all our bitches.

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Sept. 4, LilJoJo drove into
Disciples territory, the gang
ented bynone other than
ef. The last tweet he ever

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