By Marie-Constance Latagan

Strong. Tough. Player. Pimp. Faggot. Soft. Pussy. Weak. Director Byron Hurt speaks these words directly into the camera in his documentary entitled Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes. Hurt, 37, a former college quarterback turned activist, describes the hour-long piece as a "loving critique" of the current state of hip-hop. Through poignant interviews with popular hip-hop artists and top music industry executives, Hurt takes a close look at the devolution of hip-hop from a socially conscious art form to a prepackaged, boxed-in product that reinforces misguided representations of communities of color. The film, which debuted at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival, tackles issues including hyperaggression, misogyny, and homophobia.   

Beyond Beats and Rhymes made its television debut in February as part of the Independent Television Series (ITVS) on PBS and was followed by Hurt's appearance on CNN's Paula Zahn Now. Despite a good amount of media coverage, the film is the centerpiece of a decidedly grassroots movement aimed at educating communities and college campuses through outreach. Currently, the documentary is making its way across the country as part of the Gender Public Advocacy Coalition's 2007 Gender Tour. On March 22, Hurt himself will moderate a screening at the Harlem Children's Zone.   

Hurt credits his involvement in helping to create a program to educate young men about gender and sexual violence called the Mentors in Violence Prevention (MVP) as a source of inspiration in working to end gender violence. A national partner in the Beyond Beats and Rhymes campaign, GenderPAC has the same mission and is sponsoring screenings in more than 30 major US cities.   

According to the film, 70 percent of mainstream hip-hop consumers are white youth. However, Jermaine Lewis, Program Coordinator at University of Maryland's Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, sees Beats and Rhymes' potential to bridge gaps. He spearheaded joint efforts of the Cultural Participation department, the Pride Alliance, the Black Student Union, the Caribbean Student Association, and the Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bi, and Transgender Equity to bring the film to the College Park campus. "When I heard of the film," explains Lewis, "I said I have to bring it in because it reaches all types of people: male, female, black, white, straight, and gay."   

After every screening a community dialogue addresses issues brought up in the film. GenderPAC sends a list of Beyond Beats Talking Points to get the conversation going for small groups and discussion leaders. Sample questions bring up issues of how gender is linked to the analysis of hip-hop and whether or not the film is an attack on hip-hop culture. Solomon Comissiong, a College Park professor of Blues and Hip-Hop courses and a self-proclaimed "hip-hop historian," was one of the discussion leaders at the College Park screening. "Socially conscientious music still exists, but it's all underground," he says, restating the sentiment of his small group. "They'll only play it on the radio if it's not too political."    

Beyond Beats is effective due to its in-your-face examples of the media's focus on hypermasculine, hyperaggressive artists. It's a wake up call for people to be conscientious of the music they're listening to and the stereotypes perpetuated by the hip-hop community. The audience at the UMD College Park screening reacted strongly to a slow motion clip from a music video entitled "Tip Drill," where multi-platinum selling artist Nelly swipes his credit card down the backside of a bikini-clad dancer.  Another scene in the documentary cuts to a freestyle battle between aspiring rap artists who attack each other verbally with their lyrics. One rapper ends his turn by stating, "Can't you see? I'm trying to get my rape on," before thrusting his pelvis into the air.   

Tyrone Hanley, Program Coordinator for GenderPAC's GenderYouth Network, references this particular scene's nonchalance toward rape to segue into GenderPAC's workshops and attempt to create dialogue regarding the issues of race, gender, and sexism. "We show clips of the film, and then we break it down into segments. First, we talk about violence or hyperaggression in terms of how masculinity is represented. Then, we talk about sexism and the corporatization of hip-hop and what that means in terms of who has control of what 'hip hop' is."   

"The goal of the partnership is to educate communities about gender violence and discrimination caused by gender stereotypes," Hanley continues. Hip-hop was chosen as a vehicle for creating dialogue within communities because of the diversity of the audience it reaches.   

Anwar Mohamed Nur, a recent graduate from School Without Walls in northwest DC, caught a screening of the film in Silver Spring, Maryland as part of the 2007 Strength Through Film festival, sponsored by the Men Can Stop Rape organization. "Conscientious rappers are not portrayed in the media, but they exist," says Nur during a discussion held after the screening. The 19-year-old, involved with the Men Can Stop Rape since high school, attempts to mediate that reality by running his own hip-hop website, fromdastreets.com, which posts articles and reviews centered on responsible up-and-coming artists.   

Not solely concerned with dialogue, GenderPAC also strongly focuses on action. If the film inspires people to get involved, the workshop offers ways to get active. Grassroots outreach include information sessions on hosting your own documentary screening or kicking off a letter-writing campaign to major record companies that addresses the representation of race- and gender-based stereotypes of people of color. "This is not about censorship – it's about opening up the discussion," says Hanley. "There's so much diversity, and it's a shame that communities of color have been limited in their ability to express themselves in their own art form."