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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great Introduction., November 30, 2005
This review is from: Letter to the President (DVD)
Letter to the president is a wonderful introduction to the world of hip-hop. Like any genre of music, or movies or books, or even within a political organization there are people (in this case Hip-Hop artists) who are shallow and dont deserve the spotlight. Many people view rapping/hip-hop as a joke, and one large reason (although not the only) is because Hip-Hop Has become corporatized. Much like Hollywood has. I, Robot is a crappy movie meant solely to get as much money as possible. There are many movies like this. And same goes for hip hop. Some artists sacrifice content and importance for money. The same is true of any genre of music though, just look at britney spears.
This movie attempts to explain the other side of the genre. It doesnt defend the bad, but it just says there are artists and songs out there with a deeper message, and in this case, a political message. Worth watching.
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2.0 out of 5 stars
The usual invectives, August 26, 2011
This review is from: Letter to the President (DVD)
The usual cabal...and purveyors for the cult of victimology (ie.Maxine Water, Michael Dyson, etc.) The film starts offs by revisiting the 1980's context for this vibrant musical genre/culture, but quickly degenerates into conspiracy theories, finger pointing and little acknowledgment by the "culture" for its misguided dogma; whereas the `Message' by Grand Master Flash was critical of their social environment, the subsequent generations have glamorized apathy, materialism and violence as central to the character of Hip Hop.
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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
surprising documentary, January 9, 2009
This review is from: Letter to the President (DVD)
As it is narrated by Snoop Dogg who I never have seen as particularly socially conscious, I was expecting a documentary with a lot of samples of hip hop music and then the artist or others using many swear words to explain what the music was really saying. To my surprise and pleasure, this was much more. The artists who are mainly speaking about subjects of the economy of the late 70s and into the 80s, the crack epidemic, how automatic guns get into the inner city, up to the current war are KRS-ONE, Chuck D, and others usually seen as socially conscious. They talk about how rap became socially conscious, how gangsta rap was often socially conscious, and how the big record companies are now suppressing socially conscious hip hop. This is more of a history-timeline type documentary and is very good. They never touch upon the 'does music simply reflect society or does it affect society' issue but it is definitely one that I would suggest for a library of good documentaries. If you are looking for a lot of music and entertainment, this isn't it, but it flows well and keeps you engaged.
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