Australian Hip Hop - Style

Style

Since its inception, Australian hip hop has been very influenced by the urban African-American styles. Like many hip hop scenes outside the United States,including Tha Ruffneckz (from the Maroubra Area,Members The Chief,Slowmode & Syntz) formed in 1993 who performed a few Live shows alongside Defwish Cast also using D.J Vame as Producer. some Australian hip hop artists were also heavily influenced by reggae as well. One artist describes his own style has having been "influenced by London reggae rap rather than North American rap, conceding the Afro-Caribbean 'roots' of that scene, but carefully distancing himself from charges of imitation or of subjection to a putative American cultural imperialism." as general Australian hip hop is more similar to American hip hop as stylish, but the diversity of American hip hop is very different than Australian. In the United States hip hop artists are predominantly black, and Latino American. Possibly due to demographic differences, this contrasts with Australian hip hop artists, a majority of whom are white or from other cultural backgrounds indicative to Australia.

Though not at the forefront of Australian hip hop scene, Aboriginal rappers such as Brothablack, the South West Syndicate, Local Knowledge, Lez Beckett and the Native Ryme Syndicate produce songs that address the situation of Indigenous Australians. One of their musical influences is the American hip hop group Public Enemy. Since the early 1980s, many crews have focused on their presentation in the eyes of their competitors, portraying their skills as better and their turf as tougher. Another performer is Munkimuk, he works around Australia on community educational hip-hop projects such as 1999s Desert Rap with Brothablack from South West Syndicate and Morganics, organised with Tony Collins from Triple J, of which ABC TV made a documentary. Munkimuk also hosts a nationally syndicated weekly radio program "Indij Hip Hop Show" produced from Koori Radio in Sydney.

In Australia, dance moves associated with hip hop, like locking and popping has been one of the main things that has drawn public interest in hip hop, and contributed to its popularity. These dance moves that make Australian hip hop so intriguing to Australians, however, has being criticised as not original and another sign of proof that Australia suffers from not having a hip hop cultural identity of its own. As a result, it is hard to pinpoint what in Australian hip hop makes the hip hop Australian.

Some say that Australian hip hop is an example of how the country has been Americanised. However others argue that Australian hip hop has been localised with the use of the Australian accent, Australian slang, political views, references to localities, dealings with the Australian cultural identity, etc. This is demonstrated in the lyrics of early Western Sydney artists such as 046, Def Wish Cast and the White Boys. Additionally the non-Anglo immigrants of theses areas were attracted to hip hop because of it features in lyrics and content of racial opposition such as in African American hip hop. The American influence in Australian music and film has actually made its biggest impact in the 21st century with the internet. The internet has made American film, music, language and fashion popular worldwide.

In the industry this debate is a sore point with many Australian hip hop artists denying any association with American hip hop. One way of asserting their authenticity is by making clear that, for them, hip hop is not about race. This distinguishes Australian rap, the performers and enthusiasts of which are mostly white males, from U.S rap, which is very much associated with African American culture and style. Although one cannot deny that hip hop originated in the U.S. and that U.S. hip hop has major influences on hip hop scenes around the globe, in emphasising the lack of racial issues in Australian hip hop, Australian rappers imply that their hip hop scene developed separately from America's and is its own entity. In the lyrics of Def Wish Cast it is "down under, comin' up." But, despite the absence of a racial undertone Australian hip hop shares the same sexualisation found in its U.S. equivalent. Maxwell believes that the teens of the area find it "exotic". One problem is that Aussie hip hop does not play a large role in the grand scheme of things and many of the artists now it saying "once you leave our shores you realise how small a part we play". This tends to create a problem for the style of Aussie music as they may not be able to create their own identity and have to follow the more traditional Western hip hop fads.

As it progressed, Australian hip hop has taken on a greater diversity with influences from New Zealand and United Kingdom, but also by developing its own unique flavour with a focus on the Aussie battler, jovial, larrikin lyrics and the heavy use of samples and sound bites. There are, however, many instances of artists and their works that use their lyrics to analyse and discuss society, politics and how Australian suburbia interacts with the Australian culture amongst other such subjects. A theme that is becoming more and more prevalent throughout the work of various Australian MCs is that of their individual emotional struggles throughout life.