TURKISH RAP in the NETHERLANDS: Globalization, Diasporic Identity and Cultural Conservatism
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TURKISH RAP IN THE NETHERLANDS: Globalization, Diasporic Identity and Cultural Conservatism Ph.D. Dissertation TUNCA ARICAN Grieg Academy – Department of Music University of Bergen January 2011 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS...................................................................................... 4 CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION..................................................................................................... 5 2. METHODOLOGY AND ETHICS........................................................................ 16 2.1 Data Collection............................................................................................. 16 2.2 Analysis of Data........................................................................................... 20 2.3 Ethical Discussion of the Research .............................................................. 22 3. THEORETICAL INSIGHTS AND DISCUSSIONS OF GLOBALIZATION AND LOCALITY.................................................................................................... 32 3.1 Prelude to the Phenomenon of Globalization............................................... 32 3.2 Technology and Its Outcomes...................................................................... 35 3.3 The Economic Side ...................................................................................... 37 3.4 Diasporas and Hybridity............................................................................... 38 3.5 Nationalism and Locality ............................................................................. 45 3.6 Cultural Conservatism.................................................................................. 49 3.7 The Concept of Scene .................................................................................. 54 3.8 Outro............................................................................................................. 58 4. COMPARING THE NETHERLANDS AND GERMANY: MULTICULTURAL VS. MONIST MODEL ...................................................... 61 4.1 Discussion of Multiculturalism.................................................................... 66 4.2 The Netherlands, Multiculturalism and Migration Policies......................... 72 4.3 The Netherlands in the Aftermath of the Theo van Gogh Murder............... 81 4.4 Germany and the Issue of “Guest Workers” ................................................ 89 4.5 Differences between Migration Policies of Germany and the Netherlands . 94 5. THEORETICAL INQUIRY INTO HISTORY AND AUTHENTICITY OF RAP MUSIC .......................................................................................................... 102 2 5.1 Brief History of Rap Music........................................................................ 102 5.2 Theoretical Insights on Hip-Hop................................................................ 104 5.3 Sampling: The Hallmark of Rap Music ..................................................... 114 6. LOCALITY AND TURKISH RAP MUSIC IN DIFFERENT GEOGRAPHIES ................................................................................................................................. 123 6.1 Personal Insight.......................................................................................... 123 6.2 Rap Music and Diasporic Consciousness................................................... 126 6.2.1 The Use of Language: Examples from Turkish Rap Scenes...................... 134 6.2.2 Rapping, Storytelling, Turkish Culture and Âklar “Minstrels”............... 146 7. TURKISH RAP IN THE NETHERLANDS....................................................... 151 7.1 Preface........................................................................................................ 151 7.2 The Beginning of a Long Run of Fieldwork.............................................. 155 7.3 Turkish Rap in the Netherlands: The Past and the Present ........................ 157 7.4 Turkish Rappers and the Use of Language ................................................ 164 7.5 Turkish Rappers and the Process of Integration into Dutch Society and “Gurbet” Rap ............................................................................................. 172 7.6 The Role of Religion among Turkish Immigrants in the Netherlands....... 184 7.7 The Impact of the Murder of Theo van Gogh ............................................ 189 7.8 Gangsta Rap vs Arabesk/Love Rap............................................................ 198 7.8.1 Reflections on Kreuzberg, the “Cradle of Turkish Rap” ........................... 198 7.8.2 Gangsta Rap............................................................................................... 201 7.8.3 Arabesk “Love” Rap .................................................................................. 208 7.9 Turkish Hip Hoppers and Cultural Conservatism...................................... 215 7.10 Reflections of Dutch-Turkish Rappers on Rap Music ............................... 227 7.11 Live Rap Performances in the Netherlands................................................ 232 8. CONCLUDING REMARKS................................................................................ 234 REFERENCES...................................................................................................... 248 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost I thank my supervisor, Thomos Solomon. This dissertation would not have been completed without his helpful guidance, support and patience. He has taught me valuable lessons that will continue to benefit me throughout my academic career. I was fortunate and honored to study with him. I also thank the members of my dissertation committee, Andy Bennett, Jeroen de Kloet and Jill Halstead for their valuable comments and recommendations, all of which made this dissertation better. I am grateful to Bergen University for all of the support the University provides. That support makes it easier to write this dissertation. I am indebted to Grieg Academy members, especially Bjørn Einar Halvorsen for his help dealing with official matters. To write such a long and academic text in a foreign language without language mistakes is a challenging task, particularly for someone like me whose mind is a little dispersed. I was really lucky to meet my editor David Hill, who is both friendly and good at his job. I want to express my gratitude to him for proofreading this dissertation and his useful comments. I owe my deepest gratitude to my mother and father for their patience, love and faith in me. Without their love and understanding, I would not have completed this dissertation. My sister, Ebru Arcan, does not just mean love and patience to me but unlimited help and support that she provided throughout the writing process. She worked as much as I did. Without her great support, I would lose my mind. I am indebted to her for everything. The many other people I want to thank are too numerous to mention but I must specifically acknowledge a few more: Banu Demiralp for correcting language mistakes in this dissertation; Çala Kulakaç-Solomon for her hospitality and support; and also my friends, for motivating me throughout a tiring process. Thanks also to the Dutch-Turkish rappers who shared their opinions and experiences with me during fieldwork. Finally, I extend my gratitude to all kinds of music that made this process meaningful and fun. 4 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION In this dissertation firstly I aim at exploring and interrogating how rap music and hip- hop culture have become significant means of imagination of diasporic identity in the Netherlands among Turks, since the Turkish population has the highest density among immigrants in the Netherlands, similar to Germany, and forms one of the major groups that have non-Dutch origin. In this context, this research explores the ways of expression that hip- hoppers in the Turkish Diaspora follow, as related to national and diasporic identity, everyday perceptions, and political attitudes. Apparently, the main reason for the rising popularity of rap music among Turkish youngsters is “the unexpected and rapid success of the German- Turkish rap group Cartel… [which]…had a considerable impact on the image of German- Turkish popular culture in general and on the hip-hop scene of German-Turks in particular” (Çalar 1998: 253). Therefore, how Dutch-Turks react to this musical culture, and to discover ethnographically-specific peculiarities of hip-hop culture among Turks in the Netherlands, are the main concerns of this study. Moreover, this project surveys the relations between Turkish rappers in the Netherlands and Islamophobia, and cultural conservatism, including moral and religious understandings toward the host society. In this context, notions of musical, cultural and national identity are interrogated through the analysis of hybridization in the context of the Turkish Diaspora, predominantly in Amsterdam and Rotterdam. Secondly, the main purpose of this study is also to investigate to what degree socio-political differences between Germany and the Netherlands affect developments of the Turkish-speaking rap music scenes in two countries. Here, the basic question is why Germany comes to mind when many people generally think of Turkish-rap music, but the Netherlands does not. To answer this question, I will basically examine to what extent political (particularly as regarding migration policies) and social conditions in the two countries have influenced the development of Turkish- language rap music. The immigration