“The music shines a light on a lot of things. It was always not having enough leaders on the front lines,” said Daweirdo, who created the Stop Teen Violence Music Tour, where he performed at numerous local high schools.
“I see it every day when I was a kid growing up it was never the music. In 2003, researchers from Iowa State University and the Texas Department of Human Services reported findings that aggressive music lyrics increase aggressive thoughts and feelings, which might perpetuate aggressive behavior.Įnglewood rapper Daweirdo describes the critiques as “bullcrap” and lays the blame on a “lack of leadership” within communities marred by violence. Meanwhile, there’s plenty of scholarly work connecting rap - and other musical genres - to violence. “Jay-Z and Kanye had a song ‘Murder II Excellence’ that wasn’t played as much because it talked about stopping the violence.”įormer GD enforcer Wallace “Gator” Bradley (from left) his son, Kahdmiel Bradley, and GD co-founder Larry Hoover. “Why aren’t we apprehensive when rappers use music and social media to say they are going to kill someone?” Bradley asked. He contrasts the handling of violent hip-hop with the treatment of rapper DaBaby, whose Lollapalooza set was canceled after he made homophobic remarks during an earlier concert. Wallace “Gator” Bradley, a former enforcer for the notorious Chicago street gang Gangster Disciples, is among those who believe music purveyors play a part in augmenting violence. When it comes to explaining the city’s heartbreaking violence, local rappers and their lyrics are a frequent target, as are the radio stations - primarily WGCI-FM (107.5) and Power 92-FM (92.3) - and record companies that traditionally showcase them.īut many in the community say the aforementioned groups are convenient scapegoats and the real issue is city officials’ historical failure to rectify systemic issues within marginalized communities. Three months later the world would realize he was the main participant in covering up the 2014 video of local teen Laquan McDonald being murdered by a Chicago police officer. In 2015, Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office commented on the shutdown of a Chicago hologram concert by local drill rapper Chief Keef by saying the Englewood native was “an unacceptable role model” who “posed a significant public safety risk.”īut while Emanuel was utilizing his platform to punch down on Keef, he was being a less-than-perfect role model himself.
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