It is human nature to want to be in control of your life and not follow certain rules. Now Corporate America has used the rebellion to its marketing advantage. Throughout history, actors, musicians and politicians have been seen to rebel against certain norms. Tupac Shakur, a famous rapper from the 1990s, exemplifies rebellion by using hip hop to speak about the social, political, and economic issues that African Americans have struggled with and conveying the mood of modern American culture. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay As Thomas Frank explains in the article, Commodify Your Dissent, America has turned rebellion into a marketing tool. Corporate America projects a world of leaders and risk-takers, who go against the status quo to sell their products. It's not about conforming to society, making it a homogenized world, but about standing out. According to Jerry Rubin, the only way to find ourselves is to break the rules. Therefore, a rebel is someone who questions the rules and rejects any values of society. They challenge the "establishment" that wants everyone to be equal. Tupac Shakur addressed social issues and tried to make a change with his music. He came up with the acronym THUG LIFE which stands for “The Hate You Give Little Infants F**ks Everyone.” This means that the hatred, such as racism, that society imposes on children increases and negatively affects the entire community. He tried to solve this problem by forming a rap group of ghetto children called "The Underground Railroad", inspired by Harriet Tubman. He wanted kids to be involved in hip hop, instead of the violence that was taking place in the streets. Tupac believed that schools should address social issues that young people face such as sex education, drugs, scams, police brutality, and racism. He made social commentary on some of these issues in the song "Brenda's Got a Baby". It captured the “life experiences of inner-city black communities.” It has the effects of poverty and how one person can affect an entire community. The statement "thug life" may also reflect the mood of modern America because thugs are the result of the racism, oppression and alienation of "African culture" that America has manufactured. It has used the hip hop as a way to bring awareness to political issues. He also wrote a “Letter to the President,” in which he opposed the government cutting welfare because people thought only lazy, dependent blacks used it 'America is so quick to blame African Americans and that freedom is a sham for blacks. He became a spokesperson for a group called the New Afrikan People's Organization. They focused on community policing, fighting police abuse and on promoting the release of political prisoners (Stanford). Through his rap “Violent” he vented his indignation towards police brutality “on the prejudices against young black people perpetrated by America”. He called it “violent” because that is the stereotypical label “attached to young black men who speak out against injustice.” Tupac's “Letter to the President” and “Violent” represent the mood of modern American culture as the country prides itself on being the land of the free, even though racism is still present. Tupac recognized how discrimination led to economic inequality. In his song “Words of Wisdom” he proclaims: “This is for the masses, the lower classes. Those you left out, they provided work, they lived better, but us.
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