So why rappers’ beef with Reagan and his legacy? Why is the story of Reagan told by rappers so dramatically different than the one told by conservative Republicans and even Americans more widely? Rap on Reagan: “The Reagan Era is when shit got great,” the story goes, and nearly the entire media establishment has adhered pretty faithfully to some version of that story. It is almost impossible to overstate the late president’s influence on the Republican Party and the direction of the country over the past thirty years We’ve been so overwhelmed by the story of Reagan’s unassailable greatness that the conservative narrative largely prevails. He was so successful that every president since him (including Obama) has largely stuck to the script. And with good reason: Reagan changed the country into what conservatives envisioned. He’s become even more venerable in death, and it’s not surprising to hear him invoked dozens of times at Republican debates. He’s like Pac, Biggie, Dilla and Pun rolled into one. They too regard the Reagan era as epochal, the so-called “Reagan Revolution.” Reagan “made American great again.” The late president is held up as a sort of prophet or saint. Republicans, especially those in the Tea Party, agree. Brother Ali and Jake One are currently prepping the release of Mourning in America, the title of which is an ironic play on Reagan’s “Morning in America” campaign slogan Whether it is rappers who came of age during the Reagan administration (e.g., Jay-Z, Scarface, Kanye) or those born during Reagan’s 80s (e.g., Wale, Kendrick, Juelz Santana), the consensus is that the Reagan Era constituted a watershed in American life, especially in the hood. Das Racist’s Kool AD returns to Reagan (and wife Nancy) even more often. Wale has mentioned Reagan multiple times in songs. Nearly eight years after his death, the president seems to finding his way more and more into rap lyrics. Kendrick Lamar’s album Section 80 is a meditation on the generation born in the 1980s, what he calls “children of Ronald Reagan.” Juelz Santana, too, plans an upcoming mixtape called The Ronald Reagan Era.
The Eighties may be over, but we continue to live in the Age of Reagan #DON'T CALL IT A COMEBACK A recent focus by rappers on the Reagan Era and its aftermath renews the anti-Reagan critique so historically prevalent in Hip Hop. While Hip Hop culture and conservative Republicans disagree on the effect of Reagan and his administration’s policies on the country, both agree that Reagan transformed the country and set the course on which the nation remains. Rap and Hip Hop culture has for decades cited the Reagan era as a decisive and dangerous turning point in modern American history, while conservative Republicans hail the late president as a sort of savior whose radical conservatism restored the country to strength. The cause can now be found in 951 cities in 83 countries including Europe, North America, South America, Asia and Africa.Perhaps no figure so divides the American people like Ronald Reagan. According to the press release, “all proceeds received from the sale of this work will go directly to the Occupy movement. Proceeds from Occupy This Album will benefit the Occupy movement, which has flourished from an initial staging in New York into an international grassroots effort. Several of the contributors, including Joan Baez and Crosby and Nash, performed at the New York OWS site while it was still active. The record will feature music from Debbie Harry, Jackson Browne, Yoko Ono, Third Eye Blind, Crosby and Nash and many more. Occupy Wall Street now has an A-list soundtrack: the compilation Occupy This Album, which was announced today and will be released sometime this spring.