Cultural Appreciation vs Cultural Appropriation in Music

Photo by Susan Mohr

Thomas Dartmouth Rice was a traveling actor in the 19th century, appearing on many New York stages, and frontier stages in the Ohio River valley and the coastal South, but it was under the name ‘Daddy Rice’ that he would gain notoriety. Under this name, Rice became one of the most popular minstrel performers of his time. After spending years growing up around black culture, Rice learnt their speech, songs and dances, and used this as the foundations of his shows. His song and dance ‘Jump Jim Crow’ birthed the phrase Jim Crow, which came to represent the segregation laws that dehumanised the black community in America from the 1870s up to the 1960s; the remnants of which US society is still facing today.

Rice, in his goal to entertain the people and forward his career, took from another culture and simultaneously, damaged it. Though minstrel acts are now an outdated and vilified performance, non-black musicians are known to take influence from black culture and use it in their own work, sometimes without acknowledgement or legitimacy. Can this be seen as a culture exchange, vital to creating a more equal and tolerant society, or the modern-day equivalent of a ‘blackface’ performance?

According to Simon Frith, a sociomusicologist, black music can be defined by the following characteristics: it is improvised/oral; it centres around melody; it has repetitive rhythm; it is immediate/democratic; it is music of the body; it is an expression on sexuality/passion. To name a few genres that can find their origins in black culture are jazz, blues, rock and roll, hip-hop and gospel.

Cultural appropriation can be defined as adopting elements of an outside, often minority culture, including knowledge, practices, and symbols, without understanding or respecting the original culture and context. To give a brief history of the origins of cultural appropriation from black music, one can start in the 18th and 19th centuries. During this period, the mass abduction and transportation of Africans to the “New World” to sell as slaves was at its peak. The remnants of slavery in America left an overwhelming mark on US culture, most notably seen through segregation. Within music culture, music that was prominently produced by black musicians was referred to as “race music” and was not played on “white” radio. This can be seen as one of the main reasons that cultural appropriation from black music became prominent in society.

One can draw parallels with the story of P.T. Barnum, the American showman. When short on performers, Barnum found a young black boy, who was a talented performer, to replace a minstrel. However, the boy was made to grease his face, apply a coat of burnt cork, paint on thick lips and wear a wig. In American society, there was a desire to hear the work coming from black culture, but they wanted it from a white face.

One of the most infamous examples of cultural appropriation in music comes from the song, “Tutti Frutti” [1955]. The song was originally released by Little Richard in 1955. Before the song was even released, it is arguable that it lost some of its “blackness”. Originally possessing sexualised lyrics, these were removed for the official release; music of a sexual nature being an above-mentioned quality of black music. The song did, however, contain what would go on to become Little Richard’s trademark “woos” and wails. Yet, when a cover of the song was released by white musician, Pat Boone, these were cut. This, again, distances the song from its origins with the “woos” certainly having an improvised essence. A regular and unfortunately consequence of appropriation can be seen in the success of the two versions: Boone’s rendition achieved both better sales and chart position.

Nevertheless, there are some that believe that appropriation is unavoidable. In 2018, pop artist, Bruno Mars was accused of cultural appropriation. In response to this, American writer, Shaun King tweeted: “I just want to be practical here. Are people saying that Bruno Mars shouldn't sing? Or that when he sings he needs to somehow whiten that shit up and sound more like Rod Stewart. I'm dead serious. What type of music is this man ‘allowed’ to do?”. King is essentially saying here that Mars stayed true to origins of the music, differing from examples such as Pat Boone. What can be taken from this is, is one key thing: authenticity.

Cultural appropriation is usually, and often fairly, closely tied to race. However, this cannot always be the case. When Mars produces his content, he is taking influence from the musical background from which he was shaped: he is, arguably, authentic. This is where the line between “appreciation” and “appropriation” starts to blur.

The taking of another’s culture for one’s own use is, by basic definition, cultural appropriation. However, this doesn’t necessarily have to include the negative connotations that are regularly associated with the phrase. One can analyse cultural appropriation via the criteria set out by Nisi Shawl in her essay, Appropriate Cultural Appropriation [2004]; it is here that we can begin to see the difference between “appreciation” and “appropriation”. Shawl outlines that those who take from other cultures can be categorized as “Invaders”, “Tourists” or “Guests”: an “Invader” comes unannounced, takes what they want, uses it however they please, destroys without thinking of value to the culture and stay for as long as they like; “Tourists” are expected, an annoyance but pay their way, are able to be accommodated and capable of being educated; a “Guest” is invited, long-term and the relationship is reciprocal.

The two polar opposites in this scale are the “Invader” and the “Guest”, yet examples of both can be found within the genre of hip-hop. An example of an “Invader” is Australian rapper, Iggy Azalea. Jonathan Williams, an academic, provides numerous definitions of authenticity within hip-hop, authenticity an aforementioned criterion to avoid cultural appropriation, yet Azalea struggles to meet any of the criteria. Growing up in rural Australia with her two parents, one being an artist/author, Azalea doesn’t align with the principles of adhering to “street values” as she hasn’t come from “the streets”. Some have claimed that Azalea strives to be the world’s biggest pop star which, again, discounts her from the authenticity standard of staying true to underground values. Furthermore, Williams’ outlining that having a knowledge of hip-hop culture is required to be authentic is where Azalea’s role as an “Invader” truly comes to fruition.

Though Azalea claims to have a knowledge of the culture, her statements suggest otherwise. In response to Azealia Banks, a black rapper, who claimed that white people were taking and exploiting her culture, Azalea responded by saying she was making hip-hop “racial” and “political”. This shows her lack of understanding of the culture and what is of value to it. Hip-hop, at its core, is both of these things and her complaining about the involvement of conversations around her race only furthers her appropriation.

The contrast within hip-hop, and the example that can be seen as a “Guest”, is Eminem. If one returns to Williams’ criteria for authenticity in hip-hop, Eminem meets all but one: the assertion of one’s blackness which is, in essence, the main reason one can argue Eminem is a “Guest” and not wholly part of the culture. A disadvantaged youth who’s farther abandoned him and mother, allegedly, abused him , Eminem possess the “street values” that Azalea is lacking in. He learnt his trade via underground rap battles in Detroit which heavily involved improvisation, a key characteristic of black music, and got his break in music when he was discovered by Dr Dre after coming second in the 1997 Rap Olympics; as opposed to Azalea, who got her break after appearing on the front of XXL Magazine, which has a white editor-in-chief and has received accusations of racism within the company.

Eminem doesn’t receive as much critique as other white rappers because he has shown his love and understanding of hip-hop culture. He, himself, has acknowledged his white privilege within the world of hip-hop: in his song, “White America” [2002], Eminem raps, “Let’s do the math: if I was black, I would’ve sold half.” Even some of his biggest critics (Lord Jamar) still refer to him as a “Guest in the house of Hip-Hop”. However, Eminem did rebuff this and in doing so, showed his reciprocal relationship with hip-hop. In his song, “Fall” [2018], he responds to Lord Jamar by saying: “I belong here, clown! Don't tell me 'bout the culture. I inspire the Hopsins, the Logics, the Coles, The Seans, the K-Dots, the 5'9"s, and oh brought the world 50 Cent.” Eminem’s key difference is that he created a passage between black and white culture.

An example of the tourist is an artist that has their appropriation still debated to this day, 40 odd years after their death, and shows the controversy of walking the line between appreciation and appropriation. That artist is Elvis Presley. Elvis was born into a Christian, working class family in Mississippi, arguably the birthplace of the blues, and attended the Assembly of God Church where gospel became a big influence on him. He would go on to popularise, and famously be the “King of…”, rock and roll.

However, there is evidence to suggest that Elvis appropriated much of his image and content from black culture. It is reported that before discovering Elvis, Sam Phillips, his early producer, said, “If I could find a white man who had the Negro sound and the Negro feel, I could make a billion dollars”. The resentment of Elvis by some within black culture is captured by lyrics from the Public Enemy’s song, “Fight The Power” [1988]: “Elvis was a hero to most, but he never meant shit to me you see. Straight up racist that sucker was, simple and plain […] ‘Cause I’m Black and I’m proud.”

The aforementioned statements point towards Elvis being labelled an “Invader”, not a “Tourist”. However, it could be argued that it is the fans of Elvis and their promoted legacy that moves him towards that category, not himself. Many of Elvis’ fans have disputed the influence of black culture on his music, as shown by the research conducted by the academic, Erika Doss. Though many of his fans claim not to be racist, this sentiment is opposed by many fan clubs publishing racist outburst when Lisa Presley married Michael Jackson.

Despite the image that his fans are attempting to depict, the truth of Elvis’ relationship is quite the opposite. In his book, Race, Rock, and Elvis [2000], Michael T. Bertrand argues that Elvis was instrumental in reshaping the attitudes of white Southerners towards black culture, a feat, he claims, which has largely gone unacknowledged. Furthermore, Elvis, himself, admitted the influence he took from black culture: “A lot of people seem to think I started this business. But rock ‘n’ roll was here a long time before I came along. Nobody can sing that kind of music like coloured people.”

Yet, with all this said, there is a problem that runs through all of these examples: the disadvantage to the black community. Even with the reciprocal nature of his relationship with hip-hop, Eminem is the bestselling artist in a genre dominated by black musicians. Debatably due to appropriation, no matter how “appropriate” it may be, we live in a world where white musicians dominate.

The difference between “appreciation” and “appropriation” will, arguably, always be a contested grey area to some. The benefits of culture sharing are undoubtably positive, but it is in attempting to reduce harm to black culture where one can definitively take action. To improve this relationship, one can simply do this: if you take from another culture, admit this and identify the culture. This, in turn, will promote the origin itself, too, rather than just the appropriator. Moreover, one must take with permission. Paul Simon didn’t record his album Graceland [1986] until he was invited to South Africa by the South African Black Musician’s Union. It can also be inferred from “permission” that a cultural understanding has been shown by the appropriator.

Finally, there is one important question that an appropriator must ask themselves. No matter the steps that are taken, white privilege will always be a theme that runs through appropriation. Therefore, when a non-black musician appropriates black culture, even if they follow the above recommendations, they must ask themselves this: “Through my success, am I willing to disadvantage black artists?” In answering this, one can truly see how much “appreciation” a white musician has for black culture.