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Facing Challenges

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Black Masculinity and Hip-Hop Music

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Abstract

This chapter investigates some of the key problems that have affected black gay men, especially HIV/AIDS and “the down low” phenomenon. First discussed is how the HIV/AIDS pandemic had caused tremendous anxiety and moral panic among men in general by “outing” those who lived a double life and were otherwise considered “straight”. This leads to a psychoanalysis of men living “on the down low” that further reveals the self-destructive nature of heterosexual masculinity and women’s role in safeguarding straight men’s ownership of masculinity. At the end, the chapter argues that the crux of the matter regarding men reconciling masculinity with homosexuality is to alter their “heterosexual superego” that has been established and reinforced by peer groups, the media and society at large.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    From Death Certificate (1991), Priority/EMI Records.

  2. 2.

    Given that, in 2003, black and Hispanic MSM (n = 5128) constituted 46% of HIV infection cases among all MSM, while black and Hispanic women constituted 80% (n = 7986) of HIV infection cases amongst all women, and yet only 2% of those women had a male sexual partner who were known to be bisexual (Wolitski et al. 2006: 520), public suspicions arouse about whether secretly bi-active black men were the major cause of the ongoing HIV/AID infection (the “bridge theory”, see Phillips 2005: 6).

  3. 3.

    EnterSextions, Vol. 2. (2013) All Out Media Group & Cleveland Tapes, Inc.

  4. 4.

    Doe’ is another slang term for homie, dog, etc.

  5. 5.

    Mo’ refers to “moment”.

  6. 6.

    Another way of saying bro or brother.

  7. 7.

    “Toss your salad” means when a man spreads his ass cheeks and someone licks his bum-hole.

  8. 8.

    A person who’s had sex with most of the men in the hood.

  9. 9.

    Aim inhibition refers to accepting partial or modified fulfilment of desires.

  10. 10.

    All lyrics except those by Tim’m T. West and Sonny Lewis which were transcribed by the researcher can be accessed at Bandcamp.com or their personal websites.

  11. 11.

    Thus Far(2009), self-published online.

  12. 12.

    Nut: act of ejaculation; semen.

  13. 13.

    Although existing quantitative research on the DL phenomenon has increasingly distinguished between MSMW and MSM in sampling, rarely did any of these data reflect upon the role of women in constituting the DL phenomenon.

  14. 14.

    From Late Nights & Early Mornings (2011), J (records).

  15. 15.

    E.g. Heidegger’s notion of “mitsein” that being is simultaneously being-with, Levi-Strauss’ “zero-institute”, and Lacan’s Phallus.

  16. 16.

    Single, published in 2011, Purple Steal Productions.

  17. 17.

    Meaning gay stereotypes, such as gay men being very feminine etc.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chengdu, China

    Xinling Li

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  1. Xinling Li
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Li, X. (2019). Facing Challenges. In: Black Masculinity and Hip-Hop Music. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-3513-6_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-3513-6_5

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-13-3512-9

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