Great blog post about Jazz and Hiphop from HiphopDX

The Continuation Of The Art - Ishmael El

This is the new blog about Jazz music and its connection to Hip Hop. As we look back to 1973 and the origins of Hip Hop as we know it today, those basic elements of DJing, Emceeing, Break Dancing, and Rhyming have done more than anyone could have ever imagined. The stars (and executives) of Hip Hop/Rap have sold hundreds of millions of records, and some of them have even gone on to appear in blockbuster films and change the face of entertainment. In the next blog or two, I will be as specific as possible what is about to happen. It is important that the correct dates of events are given also. The points must connect so that the examples properly serve their purpose.
We talk about ciphers in Hip Hop, right? A cipher/ circle/ or cycle. We see this as a point where we can now bring art back to our community in an elevated way. Jazz music has the standards in place that Hip Hop can look to as a guide. I want to argue that Hip Hop is Jazz music. The pioneers of Hip Hop will definitely point our how the “music industry” and the art form that started out in the Bronx, New York are not the same at all. Some of that growth was good and some was bad. So the best thing to do is to move forward. How are we going to do that? We are reaching back into our communities and letting our youth (and everyone else) know that the legacy of Jazz music is a standard that can assist in revitalizing music (and our lives).
If it is true that our communities are in a crisis, Jazz music can definitely serve as an inspiration and a blueprint of how to get to where we are supposed to be. Does every young man or woman in our community realize that Louis Armstrong was once arrested at twelve years old for firing a gun into the air? From there, the future legend who hailed from the Storyville section of New Orleans, Louisiana was sent to a home for delinquent youth. Yet when one looks at the complete story, the story will unfold about how Louis Armstrong is probably the most famous figure in Jazz music. His trumpet playing and showmanship set the tone for all others in Jazz music for almost 100 years. Yes, there are criticisms (due to his commercialism), but the overall achievements of Louis Armstrong must be respected for what it meant to advancing Jazz. We’ll get into the full history of all of the Jazz masters of the 20th Century here.
The purpose of showing how Jazz is the foundation and of all music after the Blues is to make a connection to what we are all in a position to do. We are all in a position to begin anew and raise the art form called Hip Hop. At the same time, we are in a position to reclaim our neighborhoods and bring practical information and solutions to the streets.
There has to be something else done. For example, go back to roughly 1986-1988 when Hip Hop artists were right on our blocks, streets, and neighborhoods. We’d see them on the streets, because they were from our neighborhoods, or they were there often. The material things Hip Hop artists had were things that regular people had. The clothes were clothes that we wore. They had certain luxury items, but there was someone around that had the same things. We will explain that at a later day though.
Hip Hop has grown in so many ways. The recording budgets are multi-million dollar, and the cars are ones that we seldom see in our neighborhoods. The tools that are immediately attainable are the jewels of knowledge that youth can use to move forward and avoid the ills of the streets.
The science of survival and advancing “is” Jazz music by definition. That message is also Hip Hop. These are the themes that we will deal with and we will provide solutions that will move us all forward. The potential of where music can go right now are beyond description. All of the tools are there. The impact of Jazz history has the potential to show people a new direction to take in their lives. The principals of Jazz focus of dedication, creativity, tenacity, consistency, and a long list of other qualities. These qualities can be applied to basic tasks and will give positive results. We will give examples of these ideas in Jazz and Hip Hop.
Jazz music began in the slums. Jazz musicians were not allowed to play in ‘legitimate’ establishments. Because of that (and segregation), Jazz musicians usually worked in the speakeasies and clubs that belonged to ‘questionable’ figures, etc. When one looks at Jazz today, it seems like it was always a sophisticated genre that is easily accepted. We know the truth of how Jazz artists had to keep pushing ahead until their art was respected for what it was: genius, layered in refined defiance. Overall, the standards of creativity and musicianship were a cornerstone of Jazz music. Hip Hop is that art form, if it wants to be. That young man/woman that may have gotten into trouble before is Louis Armstrong, if s/he wants to a master of his/her pursuits too. As things come together for the organization (our paperwork is being evaluated by ‘regulators’ right now), we will do things that will help everyone. This help will be at a high level too.
Among other things, Ishmael El works with the not for profit community organization Elevated Track Recording, Inc. The website is: http://www.elevatedtrackrecording.org