Let the World Listen Right: Freestyle Hip -Hop at the Contemporary Crossroads of the Mississippi Delta Ali Colleen Neff A thesis submitted to the faculty of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of the Arts in the Curriculum in Folklore Chapel Hill 2007 Approved by: William R. Ferris Mark Anthony Neal James Peacock 2007 Ali Colleen Neff ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii ABSTRACT LET THE WORLD LISTEN RIGHT: Freestyle Hip-Hop at the Contemporary Crossroads of the Mississippi Delta (Under the direction of William R. Ferris) Hip-hop in the Mississippi Delta is defined by the interaction of Diasporic aesthetic practice, local cultural tradition and global networks. Through collaborative ethnographic work with Delta hip-hop artists and the community that surrounds them, I explore the ways in which these forces influence the form and function of expressive culture in the area. Because the music of the region has been a site of intensive ethnographic collection for over a century, I will draw from scholarship on traditional Delta music to demonstrate its relationship to contemporary styles. Today, the freestyle hip-hop artist has taken on the prominent role once reserved for the bluesman. Rather than representing a break with the blues tradition, Delta hip-hop carries on many of the stylistic traits, performance techniques and functions of the blues. In its relationship to the blues, Delta freestyle hip-hop demonstrates the dynamic nature of Afrodiasporic folklore. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I thank Jerome “TopNotch the Villain” Williams, who has put as much work into this document as I have, and whose beautiful words have shaped my understandings of the Mississippi Delta. I also thank my many consultants and friends in the Delta, including Terry “Big T” Williams and Bobbi Collins, Miss Martha Raybon, the people of First Oak Grove Missionary Baptist Church, Pleasant Grove Missionary Baptist Church, Red, Wesley Jefferson, Puttin’ Hatchett, and Jeweline Williams. The members of DA F.A.M. have provided me much inspiration in the past three years, and created much of the poetry of this book: Kimyata Dear, Keithan Dear, Timothy Williams and Anthony DeWayne Buggs. Friends in the Delta who opened doors and provided much-needed support include Marilyn Fontenot, Luther Brown and Henry Outlaw of the Delta Center for Culture and Learning, Robert Birdsong, Jim Field, Bill Talbot, James Butler, Roger Stolle, John Ruskey, Frank Ratliff, Maie Smith, and Troy Catchings. Much support has been provided by the faculties of UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke University, including Trudier Harris, Robert Cantwell, Marcie Cohen-Ferris, and Della Pollock. Jim Peacock and Mark Anthony Neal have provided patient and creative support as thesis committee members and teachers. My best work is a product of the aforementioned faculty members’ generosity, guidance and intellectual creativity. I extend a special thanks to my advisor William Ferris, upon whose incredible work this thesis has been built. The Center for the Study of the American South, Folkstreams.net and UNC’s ScreenArts program, especially Barb Call and Ayse Erginer of CSAS, have provided support for this piece in important ways. Andrew Kropa’s photographs illustrate the contemporary Delta throughout this piece. Katherine Doss, Eddie Huffman, Sarah Poteete, Brian Graves, Kate Brandes, Shannon O’Neill, Rosa Castaneda, Alton Balance and my classmates in the UNC Folklore Curriculum have supported this piece through their friendship and collaboration. Tim Gordon, my partner in ethnography and life, made this research possible and provided many of the photos within. I may never have seen my first juke joint without his unending support. iv DEDICATION This piece is dedicated to Rebecca Hood-Adams, who loves the Mississippi Delta infinitely. This work has been buoyed by our laughter. v TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES...........................................................................................…viii INTRODUCTION: At the Crossroads.................................................……….1 I. CHAPTER ONE: This Game Is for Life............................................…….13 Delta Blues on the Coolin’ Board................................................................20 Catch a Greyhound Bus and Ride........................................................…....31 Getting Schooled in the Love Zone............................................................37 II. CHAPTER TWO: New Blues in the Mississippi Delta..................…..42 Freestyle and Make-Ups................................................................................50 Poetic Elements of Delta Hip-Hop.............................................................56 Musical Elements of Delta Hip-Hop..........................................................60 Dynamic Culture in the Mississippi Delta.................................................63 A Blues-Oriented Town................................................................................64 III. CHAPTER THREE: A Family Affair.................................……..............66 For All My Ladies..........................................................................................81 The Black Ski Mask........................................................................................84 All in DA F.A.M.............................................................................................88 Cuttin’ up in Clarks Vegas.............................................................................91 IV. CHAPTER FOUR: True Blues Ain’t no New News...........……..........93 The Power of the Word.......................................................................….....97 Signifyin’ Rap in the Mississippi Delta......................................................106 vi Ain’t I a Blueswoman?..................................................................................109 Moms and Second Moms............................................................................115 V. CHAPTER FIVE: Hip-Hop’s Urban/Agrarian Network................….121 Bridging the Gap.......................................................................................…125 Southern Roots of Hip-Hop....................................................................…128 Hip-Hop’s Third Coast.............................................................................…134 Bass Is the Place.............................................................................................139 VI. CHAPTER SIX: The Undivided Road...........................................……...141 I Am Trying to Learn Your Language....................................................…147 Collaboration Conversation..........................................................................152 CONCLUSION: Let the World Listen Right........................................…….156 APPENDICES........................................................................………...............….166 REFERENCES...................................................................................………...….216 vii LIST OF PHOTOGRAPHS Photograph 1. The Illinois Line railroad tracks divide Clarksdale in two…………….1 2. Abe’s Barbeque, at the junction of Highways 161 and 49……………3 3. A teen stands in front of a juke joint in the New World District…….5 4. Clarksdale’s reverence for the past and globalized modernity………..6 5. “Singing Barber” Wade Walton’s place, Clarksdale ………………….7 6. Sign from Po’ Monkey’s juke joint, Merigold, MS …………………...9 7. Red’s Juke Joint by day, Sunflower Avenue, Clarksdale……………..13 8. Robert Belfour and Dancer, Red’s Juke Joint, 2005………………....14 9. The author and Red, Clarksdale, 2007………………………………15 10. Wesley “Junebug” Jefferson, Red’s Juke Joint, 2006………………...17 11. Audience members take turns singing, Red’s Juke Joint, 2005……....19 12. Tutwiler water tower, Mississippi Delta, 2005……………………….22 13. New World District, Clarksdale, Mississippi 2005………….………..24 14. Terry “Big T” Williams, Clarksdale, 2007…………………………...31 15. Harvell Thomas and friends, Messenger’s, Clarksdale, 2005………...38 16. Jerome “TopNotch the Villain” Williams, Clarksdale, MS 2006…….40 17. A turn from Highway 49, just south of Clarksdale, 2005……………45 18. Abe’s Barbeque at the tourism-friendly blues crossroads……………64 19. Keithan “K-Deezy” Dear on his Brickyard porch………………..…67 20. DA F.A.M. at the red-carpet premiere of their documentary: Small Tyme, K-Deezy, Yata Dear, TopNotch and Buggs Diego. January, 2007, Clarksdale………………………………………….. 68 21. Kimyata Dear in her bedroom, Clarksdale, 2007……………………83 viii 22. Small Tyme dances, Delta Blues Room, Clarksdale, MS. 2007..……. 91 23. George Hines showing an article about Early Wright at WROX studios, Clarksdale, MS, 2006………………………….…94 24. Antonio Coburn, Red’s bartender, Red’s Juke Joint…………………96 25. Hick’s Superette, still-functioning New World District grocery……..102 26. Big D in conversation, Big D’s juke joint, Clarksdale, MS 2005…….108 27. Jerome “TopNotch the Villain” Williams and Miss Martha Raybon, Clarksdale, MS 2007…………………………118 28. The defunct Clarksdale train station, 2006…………………………..122 29. DJ Doctor Pepper, Delta Blues Room, Clarksdale, MS, 2007……….132 30. K-Deezy makes beats on his pc, Clarksdale, MS 2006 ……………...140 31. Free Greens on East Tallahatchie, Clarksdale, MS 2006 ……………141 32. Mr. Tater the Music Maker, Red’s Juke Joint, Clarksdale, MS 2006….145 33. View from author’s front door, Clarksdale, MS 2004………………..147 34. Documentary directors