VOA慢速英语2009年-EXPLORATIONS - Hip-Hop Goes Global to a So

VOICE ONE:

I'm Barbara Klein.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Steve Ember with EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English. Today we tell about hip-hop music with a message.

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VOICE ONE:

Hip-hop music started in the South Bronx area of New York City in the early nineteen seventies among young African Americans and Latino Americans. People would gather in the streets singing and dancing to hip-hop. It was a place for people to sing about social injustices¹ as well as what was happening on the streets.

Some of the world's greatest hip-hop singers started this way. Now, hip-hop is popular worldwide. It is often used to express social and political issues. Some people call these musicians socially conscious hip-hop artists.

VOICE TWO:
　
Dancer perform at a hip-hop competition in El Alto, Bolivia

There are four main parts of hip-hop: MCing is singing words or what is called rapping³. DJing is using records to produce special sounds. Graffiti is writing messages on outdoor surfaces. And breakdancing is a special kind of dance.

Today we will tell about how performers in several countries use rapping to spread messages. Rapping could be described as speaking or singing words at a fast speed over music with quick beats. Some reports say rapping came from the West African tradition of Griots. These storytellers would quickly tell a story while someone played music.

VOICE ONE:

Hip-hop beats were made when a DJ used two records to create a special measured sound. Sometimes the DJ would move one record while holding the other one down. Other times he would move both records at the same time producing a quick measured beat. This is called scratching. DJs do this using a turntable. Today the turntable may be replaced by music that is produced on computers. Here is part of the song "Beat Street" by the famous scratcher and DJ Grand Master Flash.

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VOICE TWO:

The Sugarhill Gang⁴ was one of the first groups to perform hip-hop. In the late nineteen seventies, music producer Sylvia Robinson realized that hip-hop was becoming a popular part of street celebrations. She decided⁵ to find three MCs in her neighborhood in Englewood, New Jersey⁶, and have them sing together. The men called themselves Wonder Mike, Big Bank Hank, and Master Gee⁷. They went on to sing one of America's favorite songs of nineteen seventy-nine, "Rapper's Delight."

"Rapper's Delight" was not one of hip-hop's first songs. But it made hip-hop popular in the United States and around the world.

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VOICE ONE:
　
Eric B & Rakim

Eric B & Rakim was another American group that changed the sound of hip-hop. In nineteen eighty-six, sixteen year old Rakim started to work with the New York City music producer, Eric B. Rakim added different beats to the music and began using poetic⁸ words to spread his message.

The two musicians produced four CDs together. As an individual musician, Rakim created four other CDs. One song that made the two famous is "Eric B is President". Many international socially conscious hip-hop artists say they became interested in hip-hop when they heard Rakim.

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VOICE TWO:
　
Immortal⁹ Technique

There are a huge number of hip-hop artists and rappers in the United States. Immortal Technique is a popular artist who has ignored requests to sign up with large companies to produce his music. Immortal Technique was born in Lima, Peru. But his family moved to the Harlem area of New York City to escape conflicts in their country.

Immortal Technique is considered a political activist¹⁰. Many of of his songs are about politics, poverty, religion, social class and racism¹¹. One song that became popular among young people around the world is "The Fourth Branch."

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VOICE ONE:
　
Didier Awadi

Hip-hop has influenced artists around the world. For example, Didier Awadi is considered the father of African hip-hop. Awadi is a Senegalese musician who created the band called Positive Black Soul in nineteen eighty-nine. He started a music center called Studio Sankara. Awadi's songs are about politics, social rights and fair elections¹² in Senegal and other African countries.

In two thousand seven he produced an album that mixes the speeches of African leaders with African MCs. The album is called "African Presidents." The album aims to bring young MCs from Africa together to explore their history and unite for a better future. Awadi also has an album called "Another World is Possible." In the song "J'accuse," he accuses all the powers and forces that have interfered¹³ with the development of Africa.

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VOICE TWO:
　
Emmanuel Jal

Emmanuel Jal is an African hip-hop artist who has become a well known activist and musician around the world. Jal believes he survived violence to spread a message of peace and forgiveness.

At the age of six or seven years old, Emmanuel became a soldier for the Sudan People's Liberation¹⁴ Army. He was made to carry a gun that was taller than he was. For almost five years he fought in wars in Ethiopia and Sudan. A British aid worker, Emma McCune, rescued him and took him to Nairobi, Kenya. She legally made him her son. But Mizz McCune died soon after in an automobile¹⁵ accident.

To help him recover from what he experienced¹⁶ as a child, Emmanuel Jal began singing. When he was in school in Kenya, he fell in love with hip-hop.

He believed the music was an easy and effective way to spread his message. His first CD was "Gua," which means "peace" in the Nuer language of Sudan. The CD made him famous. His second album, "War Child," is about his experiences as a child soldier in Sudan, how he changed and how he wants to make a difference. Emmanuel Jal started an aid organization called Gua Africa. He performs around the world to raise money for the organization. Here is part of the song "War Child."

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VOICE ONE:

Hip-hop has no borders. In the Philippines, people started listening to it in the early nineteen eighties. One hip-hop artist, Francis Durango Magalona, also known as FrancisM, made this music even more popular in the Philippines. Many of the songs in his first two albums were about political and cultural problems during the nineteen nineties. For example, in his second CD, "Rap² Is FrancisM," the song "Halalan" is about political insecurity in the Philippines. Other songs were about the illegal drug problem.

FrancisM became known as the leading socially conscious artist in the Philippines. But in March of two thousand nine he died from the disease¹⁷ leukemia. Other artists around the world are spreading their own messages through hip-hop music.

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VOICE TWO:

This program was written by Kim Varzi and produced by Mario Ritter. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Barbara Klein. Join us again next week for EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English.

 

1 injustices   

不公平( injustice的名词复数 )； 非正义； 待…不公正； 冤枉

参考例句：

• One who committed many injustices is doomed to failure. 多行不义必自毙。
• He felt confident that his injustices would be righted. 他相信他的冤屈会受到昭雪的。

2 rap   

n.轻敲，拍击，责骂，厉声说出，说唱音乐，谈话，最少量；vi.轻敲，敲门，表演说唱音乐，畅谈；vt.抓，抢，拍击

参考例句：

• I heard a rap on the door.我听到有轻轻的敲门声。
• Today we are going to rap about relationships.今天我们要聊聊关系的问题。

3 rapping   

n.轻击修光（锻造中）v.突然说出( rap的现在分词 )；（公开地）严厉批评；突然大声说出；连续敲叩

参考例句：

• All at once there was a brisk rapping at the door. 这时忽听得有人急匆匆的在敲门。 来自辞典例句
• A sharp metallic rapping came on the front door. 前门上响起一阵刺耳的金属敲击声。 来自辞典例句

4 gang   

n.一伙，一帮；结伴的朋友

参考例句：

• The gang live abroad,beyond reach of the British police.这帮匪徒住在国外，英国警方鞭长莫及。
• Some gang came in and shot the place up.有股匪帮进来对这个地方开枪扫射。

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

6 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

7 gee   

n.马；int.向右！前进！，惊讶时所发声音；v.向右转

参考例句：

• Their success last week will gee the team up.上星期的胜利将激励这支队伍继续前进。
• Gee,We're going to make a lot of money.哇！我们会赚好多钱啦！

8 poetic   

adj.富有诗意的，有诗人气质的，善于抒情的

参考例句：

• His poetic idiom is stamped with expressions describing group feeling and thought.他的诗中的措辞往往带有描写群体感情和思想的印记。
• His poetic novels have gone through three different historical stages.他的诗情小说创作经历了三个不同的历史阶段。

9 immortal   

adj.不朽的；永生的，不死的；神的

参考例句：

• The wild cocoa tree is effectively immortal.野生可可树实际上是不会死的。
• The heroes of the people are immortal!人民英雄永垂不朽！

10 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

11 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。

12 elections   

n.选举，当选，推举( election的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Republicans got shellacked in the elections. 共和党在选举中一败涂地。
• He emerged victorious in the elections. 他在竞选中脱颖而出获得胜利。

13 interfered   

v.干预( interfere的过去式和过去分词 )；调停；妨碍；干涉

参考例句：

• Complete absorption in sports interfered with his studies. 专注于运动妨碍了他的学业。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I am not going to be interfered with. 我不想别人干扰我的事情。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 liberation   

n.解放，解放运动（为获得平等权利和地位的行为）

参考例句：

• We should help those who are still struggling for liberation.我们应当帮助那些仍在为独立而斗争的人们。
• Many people died during famines every year before liberation.解放前每年有许多人在饥荒中死亡。

15 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

16 experienced   

adj.有经验的；经验丰富的，熟练的

参考例句：

• Experienced seamen will advise you about sailing in this weather.有经验的海员会告诉你在这种天气下的航行情况。
• Perhaps you and I had better change over;you are more experienced.也许我们的工作还是对换一下好，你比我更有经验。

17 disease   

n.疾病，弊端

参考例句：

• The doctors are trying to stamp out the disease.医生正在尽力消灭这种疾病。
• He fought against the disease for a long time.他同疾病做了长时间的斗争。