The Gentrification of Hip-Hop

Hip Hop, which was once characterized as a niche subculture, has transformed into a dominant and increasingly lucrative lifestyle brand. In fact, according to analytics courtesy of PWC, Hip Hop is one of the leading creative industries currently driving the media and entertainment sector, which is now worth 1.8 trillion dollars.

1.8 Trillion! We aren’t talking a calm $100 million or even $500 million dollars of market share. Hip- Hop culture is feeding the global economy in ways we have not fully grasped.

Music has now become a premier economic engine in this heavily digitized era. “Consumers now enjoy unparalleled freedom in selecting media and entertainment options and their expectations are at an all-time high,” said Kevin Westcott, vice chairman and U.S. media and entertainment leader for Deloitte. “The rapid growth of streaming services and high-quality original content has created a significant opportunity to monetize the on-demand environment in 2018.”

The digital population worldwide as of July 2018 consisted of over 4.1 billion people that were active internet users which also included a total of 3.3 billion social media users. The swift digital shift is being propelled in part by the growing number of connected consumers, the expansion of mobile technology as well as elevated mobile broadband adoption.

So why is this conversation so important for the culture to have? Well the stakes in Hip Hop today are at an all time high. The power of the culture’s influence doesn’t simply stop at music anymore; it’s pervasive in fashion, sports, film, technology, business and across various other market sectors.

HIP HOP is the new KING of media and entertainment!!

But the majority of the creative class still hasn’t fully reaped the benefits that they are rightfully owed. Similar to much of Brooklyn and Harlem in the late 80s and early 90s, Hip Hop has experienced a parallel form of gentrification.

Long term residents in those particular communities endured through the underinvestment where drugs and violence ran rampant, only to see their neighborhoods become an attractive destination for hipsters and real estate developers in the 2000’s.

Hip Hop is gentrified because its original inhabitants have not invested in any real estate that would allow their equity to appreciate. Once you have finished reading this blog there is no doubt in my mind that you will see clearly what needs to be done

Content Creators, artists, designers and entrepreneurs within the culture must develop infrastructures built on business institutions that can house, accumulate, and redistribute wealth back to the originators.

A critical obstacle in developing the culture’s economic infrastructure is the access and mobility of capital. We will cover this a bit deeper in part 2 and explain why creating a powerful brand is a key growth strategy!!

Look out for part 2…