Hyper-Masculinity

Hip-hop culture projects and image of a society that is hyper-masculine. Male artists are presented as being physically strong, tough, rich, and as having many different female partners. The projected toughness shows how the society they grew out of was a place where life is hard. The hyper-masculine image is presented by many artists, but especially artists like 50 Cent. 50 Cent is one of todays most popular rappers. In many of his music videos he is shown has a hyper-masculine person. In his "Get up" video, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSg4m1hpEFI, he is shown shirtless working out, and is very jacked. He is dressed similar to character from a military movie, and is running around blowing things up. At the end of the video he saves a beautiful woman, and after saving her he becomes intimate with her. In his "Many Men" video, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5D3crqpClPY, he is depicted as being shot, and surviving. By the end of the video he gains revenge on his enemies. Sending the message that he can't be killed, and if you try he will kill you after. Throughout the video he is shown, again shirtless and oiled up. Many of his videos depict a lifestyle where he is the ultimate man, a sort of untouchable man. He can't be killed, he can get away with murder, he has unlimited amounts of money, he has lots of different women all over him, he as fast expensive cars, and pretty much anything that money can buy. This hyper-masculine image is easy for me to lose myself in. Hearing the stories of people like 50 Cent and seeing their music videos gave me an impression that those standards of living is what defines manliness. Growing up as a kid I always wanted those fast cars, I wanted to be able to be shot 9 times and live, I wanted to have extremely attractive women all over me, and I wanted to be jacked. Listening to rap music is a way for me to submerse myself in a culture that is different then mine considering I have been a middle class white kid who has grown up in a rural area. It is something that I am not, but my ideas of masculinity have somewhat been shaped by the idea of masculinity that Hip-Hop presents to its followers.