Some — though not all — hip-hop historians include “knowledge” as the fifth pillars of the art form. At All Around This World believe in the power of philosophy; for us, “knowledge” is a clear number five. Hip hop rose in the context of the politics of the 1960’s and ’70s, the politics of decaying American cities, the politics of classism, the politics of poverty and race. Hip hop’s early poets used the form as the way to speak their truth. Pioneers such as Afrika Bambaataa — recently disgraced, but that’s another story — and his “Zulu Nation,” brought global political consciouness to the form, broadening the perspective and purpse of raps. One of hip hop’s primary prophets has always been KRS-One, an icon of the artform who rose to priminence in the mid-’80s as part of Boogie Down Productions. In this video we see KRS-One, joined by Doug E. Fresh, performing “2nd Quarter.” You don’t have to agree with everything KRS-One is saying to appreciate that he is taking full advantage of hip hop’s power to make you think.
