In today’s special section on hip-hop, LA Times researchers Swati Pandey and Ryan Smith write:

From Baghdad to Baltimore, Big Boi, Young Jeezy and countless upstart rappers are changing the world.

Apparently, hip-hop artists are an important voice in racial politics. Also, they are now in places other than America. For a paper that should have its finger on the pulse of West Coast hip-hop, LAT’s a little slow on the uptake. They even got scooped on hip-hop by that bastion of whiteness, The New Yorker, which totally did the global hip-hop thing last year and has now moved on to the Houston scene.

But I won’t harp too much on the glacial speed with which LAT has jumped on this story. Instead, a few words about the special guest stars of this special section. Vibe’s Mimi Valdes trumpets hip-hop artists’ unique ability to act and sell clothes. Ever heard of J. Lo?And John McWhorter, longtime linguist-iconoclast, complains that “conscious” hip-hop is too much like gangsta rap, without making the obvious point that dividing artists into “gangsta” and “conscious” camps is retarded.

LAT could take advantage of NYT’s troubles to set a new standard of cultural coverage. But first they need to get their heads out of their asses.

Posted in also, the sixties are back!

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