<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>Hustling is considered almost an obligation of the modern-day rapper, who is supposed to monetize his talent, while also remaining true to himself and his roots. Being a hustler or just achieving the status of one is desirable for modern-day rappers, as it validates their position in their social group. The voices that stand out are therefore those belonging to rappers who chose to go a different route and instead of bragging about their riches, prefer to present themselves as slackers, who are more concerned with the comfort of ‘laziness’ provided by their lyrical talents. As a case study I have selected a well-known rapper, Redman (1970), who is respected in the hip-hop community and has enjoyed some mainstream success, yet never commodified his image. He is one of the few rappers whose authenticity is never disputed, and in this article I want to argue that the main reason behind his special status is the laziness he projects through his lyrics as well as visual representations of his rap persona: the <italic>MTV Cribs</italic> episode, his role as Jamal in the 2001 movie <italic>How High</italic>, and the fictionalized version of himself in the short-lived <italic>Method &amp; Red</italic> TV series.</p>
</abstract>

Hustling is considered almost an obligation of the modern-day rapper, who is supposed to monetize his talent, while also remaining true to himself and his roots. Being a hustler or just achieving the status of one is desirable for modern-day rappers, as it validates their position in their social group. The voices that stand out are therefore those belonging to rappers who chose to go a different route and instead of bragging about their riches, prefer to present themselves as slackers, who are more concerned with the comfort of ‘laziness’ provided by their lyrical talents. As a case study I have selected a well-known rapper, Redman (1970), who is respected in the hip-hop community and has enjoyed some mainstream success, yet never commodified his image. He is one of the few rappers whose authenticity is never disputed, and in this article I want to argue that the main reason behind his special status is the laziness he projects through his lyrics as well as visual representations of his rap persona: the MTV Cribs episode, his role as Jamal in the 2001 movie How High, and the fictionalized version of himself in the short-lived Method & Red TV series.

Redman and the Realness of ‘Laziness’

Discourses on Culture

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

{"article-title":"Redman and the Realness of \u2018Laziness\u2019"}

Hustling is considered almost an obligation of the modern-day rapper, who is supposed to monetize his talent, while also remaining true to himself and his...

Redman and the Realness of ‘Laziness’

Published Online: Nov 20, 2022

Page range: 81 - 99

Received: Oct 24, 2021

Accepted: Jan 16, 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.36145/DoC2021.10

Keywords
Redman, laziness, hustle, hip-hop, work

© 2022 Łukasz Muniowski, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Redman and the Realness of ‘Laziness’

Published Online: Nov 20, 2022

Page range: 81 - 99

Received: Oct 24, 2021

Accepted: Jan 16, 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.36145/DoC2021.10

KeywordsRedman, laziness, hustle, hip-hop, work

© 2022 Łukasz Muniowski, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Keywords
Redman, laziness, hustle, hip-hop, work