Hip-Hop: Controversy, Censorship, and Copyright

Flashcards on Hip-Hop Controversy, Censorship, and Copyright Law

West Coast Hip-Hop & Gangsta Rap

A controversial topic in hip-hop, often facing censorship and legal challenges

2 Live Crew

Hip-hop group involved in obscenity cases, testing community standards and censorship

Parental Advisory: Explicit Content

Stickers placed on records and CDs due to lyrical content concerns, resulting from PMRC pressure

Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC)

Organization formed in the 1980s concerned with lyrical content in heavy metal and rap; pushed for voluntary ratings system

N.W.A.

Hip-hop group whose song 'Fuck tha Police' sparked protests and controversy related to rap and law enforcement

Henry Louis Gates

Literary scholar who testified in the 2 Live Crew obscenity trial, arguing their work was not obscene within the context of African American traditions

Intersectionality

Term coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw to describe how racism and sexism impact Black women, relevant in discussions of 2 Live Crew's content

Community Standards

Legal basis of obscenity, questioned in the 2 Live Crew case regarding music's communication between communities

Copyright & Sampling

Issues in hip-hop concerning ownership of music, cultural history, and how laws affect production

Composition & Sound Recordings

Two separate works for copyright purposes, even if a sound recording is derived from a musical composition

Performance Rights Organizations (PROs)

Organizations like ASCAP and BMI that collect royalties split between songwriters/composers and publishers

Signifying and Recontextualizing

Hip-hop's freedom to create and build off of each other, based on a mutual understanding, referencing Jamaica's Freedom

Sampling & Clearances

In early hip-hop, sampling violated rules of using both the sound recording and underlying composition, leading to legal negotiations and lawsuits.

Parody

A fair use exemption that 2 Live Crew successfully used in their Supreme Court case regarding Roy Orbison's 'Pretty Woman'

Bridgeport Music vs. Dimension Films

Established that if you directly sample a recording, you must pay for use of the recording

Blurred Lines Case

Established 'vibe' as a criteria for copyright infringement, tilting cases toward rights holders

AI in Music

Raises questions about intention, innovation, and listener perception as AI creates musical performances.