The following program
discusses sensitive issues.
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Parents are
cautioned that some material
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may be too candid
for younger children.
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Welcome to the Pure Choices,
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and I am your
host Timothy Lawson.
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And I have some
friends with me here today.
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I am going to get
right into introducing them.
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We have right here on
my right Brittany Morales,
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and this is her
husband Xavier Morales,
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this is Jacques LaGuerre,
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and this is my lovely
wife beautiful Myesha Lawson.
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Now before we go any further,
this is a spiritual show,
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so we want to ask God
to be with us in prayer
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so if you bow
your heads with me.
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Dear Heavenly
Father, we thank You again
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for bringing us again here today
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and blessing us and keeping
us, in Jesus' name, amen.
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Amen.
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All right, the
topic of today's program
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is an interesting one.
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We're going to talk
about hip-hop and sexuality.
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Does hip-hop
affect your sexuality?
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Does it teach
you about sexuality?
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And are those
effects negative or positive?
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But before we get
into that, let's...
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Once again I love definitions.
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Defining what we
are talking about.
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What is hip-hop?
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Or just what do you
guys think hip-hop is?
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I think hip-hop, it's a culture.
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Hip-hop, it's a way of thinking,
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it tells you how to
dress, it tells you how to act,
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it tells you how to
talk, it tells you how to walk.
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I think hip-hop is a package.
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It's a whole package deal.
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Yes. Okay.
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I like to say
that it's a religion,
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their religion.
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They want to push what
they believe that you...
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How you should be,
how you should live.
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So it's a
spiritual kind of movement,
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and it affects
your spirituality.
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Yes, most definitely. Okay.
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Yes. Okay.
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Anybody else?
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Was it... Go ahead.
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When I think of hip-hop,
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well, my first thought
is the John Wayne music,
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the different beats,
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probably, the different rappers.
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That's the first
thing that comes to my mind
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when I think of hip-hop.
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Well, I was listening
to one of the, you know,
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main voices in
hip-hop describe what it was,
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and I like the way he put it,
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and it ties into
what all of you guys said.
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The rappers, the
cultural movement,
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and how it
affects your spirituality.
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He said the word hip,
it means to know something.
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If you're hipped to something,
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then you have
knowledge of that event.
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And if you hop, that
means you are in movement,
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and so it's an
intellectual movement.
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And so what it's
for is, like you said,
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to teach you a certain culture
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and that is done through music,
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and the people that use it,
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and this also
affects your spirituality.
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And so that's what hip-hop is,
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even though,
some of you watch it,
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may listen to it, and enjoy it,
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its purpose is also
to teach you something.
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And so what is sexuality?
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Just what is
that, human sexuality?
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It's trying to
just be in a, you know,
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it's about sex, you know,
like sexuality in the sense of,
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you know, who you are.
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It can go anywhere though,
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it could be a gender,
it could be lifestyle,
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you know, it's a
very broad term to define.
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I like to think of
another word as being desirable.
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It's another form of sexuality,
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you know, you
want to look the par,
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you want to be looked at,
you want to be lust after.
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Lust after, sexuality. Yeah.
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Well, there's
good and bad sexuality.
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So some of it's used to lust,
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and I think some of
it is just the attraction
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from one person
to another person.
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Okay, now I know in hip-hop,
there is a lot of pride.
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You know, battle rap is popular,
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everybody's trying to
be the best as it were,
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that's one of the main tenets.
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So if you listen to hip-hop,
and it's teaching you things,
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how does the
pride that it instilled,
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how can that
affect your sexuality?
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How can something
that's teaching you pride
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be used, you know,
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and how you view your sexuality?
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Well, part of the
thing with sexuality
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is just that it's supposed
to be an expression of love
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because it's supposed
to bring us closer to God.
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It's supposed to
be an act of worship.
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But when you
feel pride in the mix
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which was the first sin,
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then that bleeds
into your sexual life,
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and instead of
your sexual expression
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being holy and pure,
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it's all about conquests,
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and how many
girls, or how many guys,
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or how many
looks, or how many likes,
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or how many, you
know, followers that I have.
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And it stops being about worship
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and it starts being about self,
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and that could be because
of the pride you're receiving
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in hip-hop,
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you know, you have all
the women dancing on stage
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and all these different things,
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and a man feels
like he's more of a man
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because he has all
these women around him
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and that is one of
the core tenets of hip-hop
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is having a lot of women.
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Right. Having a
lot of women and...
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I want to say the
same thing about...
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For women, I mean, it's
the same thing, you know,
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women, we want to be,
like I said, looked at,
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we want to be lust after,
we consider ourselves sexy,
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you know?
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And that is exactly what
hip-hop teaches women nowadays
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that you can be
sexy, that you can be...
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Basically, you can
be nasty, it's okay.
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I mean, I grew up hearing about
if men can do it, so can women.
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And so yeah,
that's what I get from it.
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Now does hip-hop have any...
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has it had any negative effects
on the majority of culture
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that people that listen to it?
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And I know
there's a broad culture
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now out there in the world
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and a lot of
people listen to hip-hops,
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but I want to hear some
of the negative effects,
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as it relates to sexuality
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that it's had on
inner city communities.
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It's pretty much
incarcerated or enslaved them.
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You know, the
very slavery there,
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you know, we talk about
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they're in it
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because it
enslaves you to an agenda,
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an underground agenda, you know,
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you have to be rich
even if you go bankrupt,
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at least you
got to look the par.
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You know, like
Jacques was saying,
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you got to have
the girls, you know?
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Even if you're
messed up, you know,
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and a lot of times we see that,
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we see them smiling
and dancing and everything,
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but behind the scenes, we
don't see what's going on,
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that depression, you
know, the self-worth.
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You know,
hip-hop, in its essence,
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has destroyed the inner city,
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you know, ethnic
inner city communities,
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the lifestyle
because we talk about MLK,
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but yeah, we follow other people
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that are not
from that persuasion
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that are not good
leaders, you know,
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and essentially it's
from the hip-hop community
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that teaches us, you know,
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we need to have the bling-bling,
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we need to have the
jewelry, the cars, the money,
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the women, the power,
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when essentially we're
nothing, we don't have anything
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but at least if
we look like we do,
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then we fit in,
then we look good,
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then we act the par.
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So do you
think... Go ahead, Jacques.
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And I know you're
asking about how does it affect
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the inner city,
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but I feel like with hip-hop,
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the devil has been
able to take that culture
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that Xavier was
just talking about
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and transport it anywhere.
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And so a lot of parents,
they might leave the cities
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and go to a more rural
setting to raise their child
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in a more healthy environment,
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but yet that child
is now being exposed
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to all the filth of hip-hop.
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And so in essence,
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you have a prodigal
who's living at home.
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And so you thought that
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you could bring
them out of the city
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but then the city kind
of crept into the back door,
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and then all the
vice and crime...
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And I speak from
personal experience
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'cause I lived in the suburbs
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but then I love
listening to rap,
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and I loved hip-hop,
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and I loved
doing all these things,
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and my clothes
were four sizes too big,
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my parents were sagging, I
was cursing, I was swearing.
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And I didn't learn that at home,
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and I didn't learn that
from the people around me,
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but I learned that from hip-hop.
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Learned that from the music.
I learned it from the music.
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I like what you said about
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something that the
devil is trying to use.
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Now we know in anything,
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nothing is "hundred percent bad"
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or there's some
good in everything.
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You can listen to
some songs, I guess,
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and they can be positive
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'cause I know
some of you viewers
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might be thinking out there,
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"But there's some
songs I listen to,
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and they don't tell
me to do these bad things
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or say these bad
things, they're positive."
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But the overall
message you guys are saying
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or at least
what's being promoted
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from the overall message
is having a negative effect.
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Do you think that's by design?
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Do you think that's on
purpose? And if so, why?
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That what mostly
you see is negative
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and not the positive.
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I think it is intentional.
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And why do you think so?
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I think because the
devil's trying to keep us down.
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He's trying to get
us to reflect his image.
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He's trying to mar
the image of God in us.
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And if you could
use music to do that,
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then I believe that
it's very intentional,
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that he knows
exactly what he's doing,
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and he's very
familiar with music,
00:09:49.18\00:09:50.99
and so that's
the medium he chooses
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to get through our subconscious
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and to influence us
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without us even really
consenting a hundred percent.
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Now that's beautiful
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because music is one of
the greatest teaching tools
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you can use.
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I have whole...
00:10:05.47\00:10:07.04
I haven't listened to that
kind of music in a long time
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and I have still whole albums
in my head, that's memorized,
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they're just still there.
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You know, you
can recite a verse,
00:10:13.48\00:10:15.04
but it seems like you are saying
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that this music focus on a
lot of that outward display
00:10:17.08\00:10:21.05
and outward show,
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and inwardly it
just wants you to do
00:10:22.45\00:10:24.19
what you want for yourself.
00:10:24.22\00:10:25.65
And so how does this music genre
00:10:25.69\00:10:29.59
affect the
self-worth of so many people
00:10:29.62\00:10:32.39
all across the world?
00:10:32.43\00:10:34.00
Now I don't want everybody
to chime on in on this.
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So how does
seeing a person up there,
00:10:36.40\00:10:38.73
with all this
money, with all these cars,
00:10:38.77\00:10:40.44
saying he's important,
00:10:40.47\00:10:42.10
what do you think that does
00:10:42.14\00:10:43.47
to the person
who doesn't have it
00:10:43.51\00:10:44.84
in seeing these women up
there that are "desirable,"
00:10:44.87\00:10:48.11
what does that
do to young ladies
00:10:48.14\00:10:49.48
who don't look like that?
00:10:49.51\00:10:50.85
How does it
affect the self-worth?
00:10:50.88\00:10:53.01
Well, for one,
00:10:53.05\00:10:55.32
that person
don't know who they are
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because they're not with Christ,
00:10:57.72\00:10:59.15
they don't know
their self-worth.
00:10:59.19\00:11:00.52
So when they're
looking at these people
00:11:00.56\00:11:02.62
that have, you know,
all the glitz and glam,
00:11:02.66\00:11:06.19
you know, they want that,
00:11:06.23\00:11:08.13
they're like, "Oh, I
want to be just like them,"
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'cause everything looks good
out on the surface, you know,
00:11:10.73\00:11:13.94
but like you said we don't know
what's going on in the inside
00:11:13.97\00:11:17.21
or behind the scenes.
00:11:17.24\00:11:19.04
So like I said,
it has to start with
00:11:19.07\00:11:22.08
do you know
yourself, who are you,
00:11:22.11\00:11:24.48
you know, you have to
just ask yourself that.
00:11:24.51\00:11:26.68
Okay. Anybody else?
Jacques, what do you think?
00:11:26.72\00:11:30.19
I would say it does
affect someone's self-worth
00:11:30.22\00:11:32.32
because if you're seeing
all these people with money,
00:11:32.35\00:11:34.72
and cars, and
girls, and jewelry,
00:11:34.76\00:11:37.56
and then you look in the mirror
and you don't have all that,
00:11:37.59\00:11:40.53
then you might feel
like you're less of a person,
00:11:40.56\00:11:43.26
and then the devil
will then try to tempt you
00:11:43.30\00:11:45.03
to try to go and get that stuff.
00:11:45.07\00:11:47.20
And whether you
have the money or not,
00:11:47.24\00:11:49.37
you might resort to petty crime,
00:11:49.40\00:11:52.54
you might
resort to selling drugs
00:11:52.57\00:11:54.24
or you might
resort to any measures
00:11:54.28\00:11:57.15
so that you can get that
so you can "be somebody."
00:11:57.18\00:12:02.28
What do you think, Xavier?
00:12:02.32\00:12:03.65
I think we forget that
the devil was, originally,
00:12:03.69\00:12:06.82
the one who
directed the music in heaven.
00:12:06.86\00:12:08.76
Oh, all right.
You know what I mean?
00:12:08.79\00:12:10.79
And coming from that
kind of background myself,
00:12:10.83\00:12:14.60
I understand, you know,
00:12:14.63\00:12:15.96
I lived that
lifestyle like that.
00:12:16.00\00:12:17.53
I had brand new car,
00:12:17.57\00:12:18.90
I had a house
on an acre of land,
00:12:18.93\00:12:20.40
it was wow.
00:12:20.44\00:12:22.60
You know, I had the
money, I had money in my pocket
00:12:22.64\00:12:24.54
and everything like that,
00:12:24.57\00:12:25.91
I had the
girls, I had the women.
00:12:25.94\00:12:27.94
But at the end of the day,
00:12:27.98\00:12:29.31
my self-value
was placed on that.
00:12:29.34\00:12:32.65
And when I would
look in the mirror,
00:12:32.68\00:12:34.12
I wouldn't know who I
am, I don't know who I was,
00:12:34.15\00:12:36.69
I just couldn't even look
in the mirror for too long
00:12:36.72\00:12:39.55
because you had to find
the next habit, you know,
00:12:39.59\00:12:41.86
you've got to find
the next, you know,
00:12:41.89\00:12:43.22
that will makes you feel good.
00:12:43.26\00:12:44.73
So, you know, you
look in the mirror
00:12:44.76\00:12:46.13
you have to face reality
00:12:46.16\00:12:47.76
but then when
that doesn't feel good
00:12:47.80\00:12:49.96
then you go out and try to
do, you know, get the money,
00:12:50.00\00:12:52.10
and go ahead
and get those girls,
00:12:52.13\00:12:53.87
and get those
numbers, and, you know,
00:12:53.90\00:12:55.67
live the life
that you see on TV,
00:12:55.70\00:12:57.77
which looks so good.
00:12:57.81\00:12:59.77
Live that lifestyle
because you want to feel good.
00:12:59.81\00:13:02.51
And it wasn't until I find
out value in Christ that...
00:13:02.54\00:13:05.88
Not only that I
started feeling better
00:13:05.91\00:13:07.45
but I got even better
stuff than I had before, so...
00:13:07.48\00:13:12.05
Mrs. Morales?
00:13:12.09\00:13:13.69
I was just
sitting down and thinking
00:13:13.72\00:13:15.99
'cause every time
I've heard hip hop music,
00:13:16.02\00:13:17.96
like the first thing that
has always come to my mind
00:13:17.99\00:13:20.60
is who's better at it?
00:13:20.63\00:13:24.07
As in
00:13:24.10\00:13:26.23
when it comes to performing sex,
00:13:26.27\00:13:28.07
you hear the guy is saying,
"Okay, I do this with the girl
00:13:28.10\00:13:30.71
and I make her go crazy."
00:13:30.74\00:13:32.24
Or you would hear a girl say,
00:13:32.27\00:13:34.98
"I'm the best
versus the other girls,
00:13:35.01\00:13:36.71
I know what..." kind of
like, "I know what I'm doing."
00:13:36.75\00:13:39.55
So it's like you
hear these little songs,
00:13:39.58\00:13:41.88
little tenets of
competition of what it means
00:13:41.92\00:13:44.45
to that you've
actually accomplished,
00:13:44.49\00:13:46.92
quality sex in their minds.
00:13:46.96\00:13:49.29
If the neighbors down
the street don't hear her,
00:13:49.32\00:13:51.96
that means, it's not good
00:13:51.99\00:13:53.53
or if the guy is not
doing crazy stuff with his feet,
00:13:53.56\00:13:58.00
then it's not good.
00:13:58.03\00:13:59.37
Like these different
ideas and concepts of this
00:13:59.40\00:14:01.70
this is what it
means to have quality sex
00:14:01.74\00:14:06.37
in your relationship
00:14:06.41\00:14:07.84
whether you're married or not,
00:14:07.88\00:14:09.21
these sounds are
called like babymaking music.
00:14:09.24\00:14:11.31
This is what it is, or
you should probably, dance,
00:14:11.35\00:14:13.98
and be up on the
corner somewhere,
00:14:14.02\00:14:15.95
and that's what it is
to have that full pleasure
00:14:15.98\00:14:18.79
when it comes to sexuality.
00:14:18.82\00:14:20.49
I know from personal experience,
00:14:20.52\00:14:23.66
especially not
growing up without a father,
00:14:23.69\00:14:25.93
and growing up...
00:14:25.96\00:14:27.30
And so what you do is
00:14:27.33\00:14:29.80
things that you don't get taught
00:14:29.83\00:14:31.40
that a father is
supposed to teach you,
00:14:31.43\00:14:33.07
you listen to him, and
try to hear from anywhere.
00:14:33.10\00:14:36.04
And so what I thought
00:14:36.07\00:14:37.41
a man's
self-worth was supposed to be
00:14:37.44\00:14:39.11
is just what was in the
music, you pose to be tough,
00:14:39.14\00:14:42.24
you pose to be
successful in some kind of way,
00:14:42.28\00:14:46.11
and success means
that you have money.
00:14:46.15\00:14:48.38
You know, not necessarily
how you look at yourself
00:14:48.42\00:14:51.89
or how you treat others
but that you have money.
00:14:51.92\00:14:54.69
If you don't have it,
00:14:54.72\00:14:56.06
you need to either go take it
00:14:56.09\00:14:58.59
or create some
kind of atmosphere
00:14:58.63\00:15:00.30
where you can make it.
00:15:00.33\00:15:01.66
And I know at an
early age that got me into,
00:15:01.70\00:15:03.83
you know, selling drugs,
and marijuana, and cocaine,
00:15:03.87\00:15:07.14
and these things
looked acceptable
00:15:07.17\00:15:09.34
because it was all in
the music I was listening to,
00:15:09.37\00:15:11.54
and coming to find out
00:15:11.57\00:15:12.91
that half of the
guys I was listening to
00:15:12.94\00:15:14.28
never did that
in the first place.
00:15:14.31\00:15:16.54
You know, when I was listening
to something that was fake,
00:15:16.58\00:15:20.25
but not...
00:15:20.28\00:15:21.68
I'm thinking I'm
listening to the music
00:15:21.72\00:15:23.55
because I like it,
because I enjoy it,
00:15:23.59\00:15:25.55
but actually it was
teaching me about manhood
00:15:25.59\00:15:29.59
and never taught me
about anything inner,
00:15:29.62\00:15:32.06
about what I
was worth in Christ,
00:15:32.09\00:15:33.63
about being kind to people,
00:15:33.66\00:15:37.37
it just only taught me about,
00:15:37.40\00:15:38.97
you know, maybe
taking care of my family
00:15:39.00\00:15:40.67
but never being
self-sacrificing.
00:15:40.70\00:15:43.14
And this is really important
00:15:43.17\00:15:44.81
because I think that the devil
00:15:44.84\00:15:47.38
is going to use sexuality
and perverting in the last days
00:15:47.41\00:15:51.95
to really confuse people.
00:15:51.98\00:15:55.28
Now if you think that,
00:15:55.32\00:15:57.65
tell me exactly
00:15:57.69\00:15:59.15
what the devil's
purpose for sexuality
00:15:59.19\00:16:01.29
in these last days
right before Jesus comes back,
00:16:01.32\00:16:03.73
how does he want to use it
00:16:03.76\00:16:05.26
against people
who are Christians
00:16:05.29\00:16:07.10
and people who
aren't Christians.
00:16:07.13\00:16:08.73
I think to have
that now you see it,
00:16:08.76\00:16:10.70
and don't get
married, just go have sex.
00:16:10.73\00:16:13.10
You know, getting married
is now an anomaly, it's taboo.
00:16:13.13\00:16:17.21
You don't get married anymore,
00:16:17.24\00:16:18.57
you're supposed to just
go out there and get it,
00:16:18.61\00:16:20.38
and that's it.
00:16:20.41\00:16:21.74
And, you know,
'cause people say, you know,
00:16:21.78\00:16:23.51
"Why get divorced if
you just don't get married?"
00:16:23.55\00:16:25.98
And that has to lots to do
with our society, you know,
00:16:26.01\00:16:29.05
if you see
hip-hop the way it was
00:16:29.08\00:16:31.32
to the way it is now,
it's more over sexualized,
00:16:31.35\00:16:34.19
there's more and
more sex in the media,
00:16:34.22\00:16:36.96
more and more sex in hip-hop
00:16:36.99\00:16:38.96
because sex sells.
00:16:38.99\00:16:41.03
That is what it's about.
00:16:41.06\00:16:42.40
And with the
sexuality and hip hop,
00:16:42.43\00:16:44.37
you know, it teaches you,
that's what it teaches you,
00:16:44.40\00:16:47.04
you know, to what moves are
supposed to be the right ones.
00:16:47.07\00:16:50.97
What are the
"right words" to say?
00:16:51.01\00:16:52.44
And I used this right
here because obviously we know
00:16:52.47\00:16:55.01
what God says is different.
00:16:55.04\00:16:56.48
But, you know, it feeds,
00:16:56.51\00:16:58.98
it just feeds
that pleasure center
00:16:59.01\00:17:01.08
of your brain
00:17:01.12\00:17:02.45
so you can never get
enough and that's the issue.
00:17:02.48\00:17:05.02
It's not that
issue is utterly wrong,
00:17:05.05\00:17:08.02
it's also that you
will never get enough,
00:17:08.06\00:17:09.82
so where is your limit?
00:17:09.86\00:17:11.69
You know, if the
limitation going to be like
00:17:11.73\00:17:13.90
the rest of a lot of
those hip-hop artists in jail,
00:17:13.93\00:17:16.97
is that going to be your limit?
00:17:17.00\00:17:18.33
You know, like what is it?
00:17:18.37\00:17:19.70
What are you
trying to seek out of it?
00:17:19.73\00:17:21.47
I like to say that
the devil is using music
00:17:21.50\00:17:24.67
to insult God's character.
00:17:24.71\00:17:29.58
I mean, what's that
scripture "By you behold..."
00:17:29.61\00:17:34.45
"By beholding you
will become changed."
00:17:34.48\00:17:35.88
become changed, yeah.
00:17:35.92\00:17:37.25
So what we're also listening to,
00:17:37.29\00:17:38.62
we're also
seeing on these videos.
00:17:38.65\00:17:42.22
It's totally
opposite from God's character
00:17:42.26\00:17:44.66
and how we should be, you know.
00:17:44.69\00:17:47.33
So I think that's
what the devil is using,
00:17:47.36\00:17:48.93
he's trying, you
know, he's using the music
00:17:48.96\00:17:53.94
to, basically,
for us to act like him
00:17:53.97\00:17:57.77
and to be what he want us to be,
00:17:57.81\00:17:59.34
which is totally
opposite from God.
00:17:59.37\00:18:01.38
Go ahead.
00:18:01.41\00:18:02.74
I was going to say,
well, if you go to the story,
00:18:02.78\00:18:04.65
the children of
Israel, you know,
00:18:04.68\00:18:06.45
they were on the
borders of Canaan,
00:18:06.48\00:18:07.82
they had wandered in
the wilderness for 40 years,
00:18:07.85\00:18:11.82
and they were
finally about to go in,
00:18:11.85\00:18:15.12
and the devil used music
00:18:15.16\00:18:18.03
and used women
00:18:18.06\00:18:20.06
to get them to commit
the apostasy Baal-Peor.
00:18:20.10\00:18:22.90
Wow.
00:18:22.93\00:18:24.27
And I think, as long
as we can be sidetracked
00:18:24.30\00:18:27.67
with music
00:18:27.70\00:18:29.50
and a false expression sexually,
00:18:29.54\00:18:33.81
then we won't be
ready to go into Canaan,
00:18:33.84\00:18:36.38
and we won't go into Canaan.
00:18:36.41\00:18:38.18
Myesha and Brittany,
00:18:38.21\00:18:39.55
how do you feel
women are mostly portrayed
00:18:39.58\00:18:42.28
in hip-hop?
00:18:42.32\00:18:43.65
Like do you watch hip hop video
00:18:43.69\00:18:45.02
and you see like a
lady who's a lawyer,
00:18:45.05\00:18:47.36
and she's got a lawyer job,
00:18:47.39\00:18:48.72
and you see a
lady who's a doctor,
00:18:48.76\00:18:50.19
or do you see a girl
studying hard for her exams?
00:18:50.23\00:18:52.89
What kind of women
do you naturally see?
00:18:52.93\00:18:55.73
And is that reality
00:18:55.76\00:18:57.63
and how does it make, you
know, like a woman who feels,
00:18:57.67\00:18:59.87
especially is a black
woman that you see in it?
00:18:59.90\00:19:01.50
Well, for one,
00:19:01.54\00:19:03.00
we see a woman whose
image is totally fake
00:19:03.04\00:19:07.68
because she is,
00:19:07.71\00:19:09.84
well, nowadays, we know that
00:19:09.88\00:19:11.21
they're getting
surgery nowadays,
00:19:11.25\00:19:12.78
so don't know how real,
00:19:12.81\00:19:14.15
they're getting hair extensions.
00:19:14.18\00:19:15.78
And no, we don't see lawyers
and doctors on these videos
00:19:15.82\00:19:20.02
or on these televisions.
00:19:20.06\00:19:21.39
We're saying women who
are for, one, exotic dancers.
00:19:21.42\00:19:26.46
We also see women who
are degrading themselves
00:19:26.49\00:19:29.83
by shaking their
behinds in front of the camera
00:19:29.86\00:19:35.00
and think that is okay.
00:19:35.04\00:19:36.81
We're seeing women,
00:19:36.84\00:19:38.17
who are allowing men
to touch and feel on them
00:19:38.21\00:19:41.51
and even grab on
them or abuse them.
00:19:41.54\00:19:44.61
We're seeing all these things
00:19:44.65\00:19:46.01
and it's just... it's not right.
00:19:46.05\00:19:48.88
And it's put it
in a woman's mind
00:19:48.92\00:19:50.62
that it's okay for
her to act like this,
00:19:50.65\00:19:53.02
to accept these
things from a man, from one,
00:19:53.05\00:19:56.32
to even degrade her ownself.
00:19:56.36\00:19:58.53
Call herself out her, you know,
out of her own name, you know,
00:19:58.56\00:20:02.06
something that
is totally not good.
00:20:02.10\00:20:04.63
You know, I am
guilty for that, you know,
00:20:04.67\00:20:07.67
I used to call
myself, what, a female dog,
00:20:07.70\00:20:11.34
and thought it was okay.
00:20:11.37\00:20:13.07
I am the baddest,
you know, female dog.
00:20:13.11\00:20:15.24
And I would...
00:20:15.28\00:20:16.61
My friend's
nickname was "My female dog,"
00:20:16.64\00:20:19.51
like, you know,
it's just totally wrong,
00:20:19.55\00:20:22.88
and that's just
not how it should be.
00:20:22.92\00:20:27.59
I would add that...
00:20:27.62\00:20:29.39
For me, it has
been in some videos
00:20:29.42\00:20:31.43
but not all... Right.
00:20:31.46\00:20:32.99
Hip-hop videos.
00:20:33.03\00:20:34.90
The most of them
and, unfortunate as well,
00:20:34.93\00:20:37.37
most young people gravitate to
00:20:37.40\00:20:39.77
is the ones where
they have the girls,
00:20:39.80\00:20:42.70
as she said, it's
dancing all crazy,
00:20:42.74\00:20:44.74
and, you know,
provocative clothes,
00:20:44.77\00:20:47.14
but they do have some
songs which really do have,
00:20:47.18\00:20:50.45
you know, good messages.
00:20:50.48\00:20:52.25
Relationship songs,
I guess, you saying?
00:20:52.28\00:20:54.28
You can kind of
say relationships songs
00:20:54.32\00:20:55.72
where I remember one artist,
00:20:55.75\00:20:57.95
he was telling young girls
to value your body and to wait,
00:20:57.99\00:21:03.16
but that's like one song
00:21:03.19\00:21:04.53
compared to like
all the other songs
00:21:04.56\00:21:06.09
that you're always hearing.
00:21:06.13\00:21:07.56
Or you see in some
videos where you have...
00:21:07.60\00:21:10.60
And there are artists
that don't really make it
00:21:10.63\00:21:12.80
into hip-hop culture,
00:21:12.83\00:21:14.20
the artists that
talk about strong women
00:21:14.24\00:21:16.30
and how they're attracted to her
00:21:16.34\00:21:18.24
and how she walks and
how she's handling business,
00:21:18.27\00:21:21.14
but unfortunately,
those are not the individuals
00:21:21.18\00:21:24.15
that make the most income.
00:21:24.18\00:21:26.55
They're not the ones
that are touring all over
00:21:26.58\00:21:28.62
and, as they say, making money,
00:21:28.65\00:21:31.32
it's those who
are talking about,
00:21:31.35\00:21:32.69
"Just shake, just shake it,"
and all that different stuff.
00:21:32.72\00:21:35.52
They're the ones who
are giving out this idea
00:21:35.56\00:21:38.86
that this is what a
woman's sexuality is,
00:21:38.89\00:21:41.30
this is how she's
supposed to be portrayed.
00:21:41.33\00:21:44.43
And I think if I
didn't have some of my values
00:21:44.47\00:21:46.77
that I had
growing up as a child,
00:21:46.80\00:21:48.54
I probably wouldn't
even have known about those,
00:21:48.57\00:21:51.14
you know, little underground,
00:21:51.17\00:21:53.07
people who try
to use the culture
00:21:53.11\00:21:55.24
for something good
00:21:55.28\00:21:56.61
but can't thrive in it.
00:21:56.64\00:22:00.18
So what about
me, as a Christian,
00:22:00.22\00:22:03.05
can hip-hop be used as a vehicle
00:22:03.08\00:22:06.02
to get me closer to Christ,
00:22:06.05\00:22:09.89
to teach me about the culture
00:22:09.92\00:22:12.16
'cause there's people who
are Christian hip-hop artists
00:22:12.19\00:22:14.66
as well,
00:22:14.70\00:22:16.03
so can it be used to
teach me positive things
00:22:16.06\00:22:18.53
about my sexuality and
my relationship for Christ?
00:22:18.57\00:22:22.17
What do you guys think?
00:22:22.20\00:22:23.54
Now you're shaking your head.
00:22:23.57\00:22:24.91
I don't think so. No. No.
00:22:24.94\00:22:27.14
Why?
00:22:27.18\00:22:28.51
Well, for one,
00:22:28.54\00:22:30.31
you can't serve
two masters, okay?
00:22:30.35\00:22:33.45
So you need to...
00:22:33.48\00:22:36.25
There has to be a separation.
00:22:36.28\00:22:37.72
I mean if I'm going to listen
to rap music out in the world
00:22:37.75\00:22:40.99
and I'm listening
to all these beads
00:22:41.02\00:22:43.26
and all these
catchy verses and choruses
00:22:43.29\00:22:48.10
and all that thing,
00:22:48.13\00:22:49.53
it has to be different
from, you know, God's music.
00:22:49.56\00:22:54.20
You know, I feel that,
you know, it has to be pure.
00:22:54.24\00:22:58.87
You know, it shouldn't have,
you know, I can listen to words
00:22:58.91\00:23:01.81
but, you know, again,
00:23:01.84\00:23:04.01
it's the beat too
that goes with it.
00:23:04.05\00:23:06.58
And, you know,
you can nod your head,
00:23:06.61\00:23:09.15
and you can...
00:23:09.18\00:23:10.52
I mean it's no different
00:23:10.55\00:23:11.89
from the music you
will hear in a club,
00:23:11.92\00:23:13.25
and I think there
should be a difference.
00:23:13.29\00:23:14.62
Right. Okay.
00:23:14.66\00:23:15.99
You were going to say something?
00:23:16.02\00:23:17.36
I'd probably say
the same thing as well,
00:23:17.39\00:23:20.16
like the actual
music, the actual bed,
00:23:20.20\00:23:26.53
the actual, like, the beat,
00:23:26.57\00:23:28.37
and the rhythms, and
everything that comes in,
00:23:28.40\00:23:32.51
it is highly
sexual in and of itself.
00:23:32.54\00:23:35.34
And it's meant to
inspire us to do sexual acts.
00:23:35.38\00:23:39.45
And if you'd go to
any city institution,
00:23:39.48\00:23:43.72
even if the music
doesn't have words,
00:23:43.75\00:23:45.35
it's going to
have a certain beat
00:23:45.39\00:23:47.66
and a certain rhythm
00:23:47.69\00:23:49.02
to try to help
encourage sexual behavior.
00:23:49.06\00:23:51.99
And so to take that music
00:23:52.03\00:23:53.36
and just to throw
Jesus' lyrics on top of it,
00:23:53.40\00:23:56.46
I think you're mixing
the holy with the profane.
00:23:56.50\00:24:00.27
I would have to
actually disagree.
00:24:00.30\00:24:02.34
Okay.
00:24:02.37\00:24:03.71
Because I mean,
I guess, I'm biased
00:24:03.74\00:24:05.07
because one of my best friends,
00:24:05.11\00:24:06.44
he's a Christian hip-hop artist.
00:24:06.47\00:24:07.84
And I believe it depends on
where your stumbling block is
00:24:07.88\00:24:11.75
in discernment
00:24:11.78\00:24:13.31
because, for example,
00:24:13.35\00:24:14.68
there's people that I know
that listen to Christian rock.
00:24:14.72\00:24:17.35
I don't because that
was my stumbling block
00:24:17.39\00:24:19.59
before that was
what I fed off of
00:24:19.62\00:24:22.16
because I can't say
everything Christian
00:24:22.19\00:24:24.69
is inherently good
00:24:24.73\00:24:26.06
just as everything
secular is inherently bad,
00:24:26.09\00:24:28.50
you know, in the sense of
00:24:28.53\00:24:29.86
you have to really
use that discernment
00:24:29.90\00:24:31.50
to really
understand what the message is
00:24:31.53\00:24:33.07
being portrayed.
00:24:33.10\00:24:34.44
Yes, the beat has
to do a lot with it
00:24:34.47\00:24:36.20
but also the lyrics
have to do a lot with it
00:24:36.24\00:24:38.07
to the message
that's being portrayed.
00:24:38.11\00:24:40.11
That is beautiful.
00:24:40.14\00:24:41.48
I love what you said
00:24:41.51\00:24:42.84
'cause I know I
got another question.
00:24:42.88\00:24:44.21
All right, I've
been listening to this.
00:24:44.25\00:24:45.65
I don't really see
anything wrong with it
00:24:45.68\00:24:47.18
but I kind of see
what you're saying
00:24:47.22\00:24:49.62
about, you know, it
teaches me about sexuality
00:24:49.65\00:24:51.72
and the images I see.
00:24:51.75\00:24:53.22
And like,
Brittany, you mentioned,
00:24:53.25\00:24:54.66
you had a lot of
training when you were younger
00:24:54.69\00:24:56.49
that helped you see
some of those things.
00:24:56.52\00:24:58.79
I don't have that, you
know, I agree with you.
00:24:58.83\00:25:02.00
So how do now I begin
to regain my sexuality,
00:25:02.03\00:25:05.80
regain my self-worth now?
00:25:05.83\00:25:09.47
What are some steps I can take?
00:25:09.50\00:25:11.94
As it relates to I
stop listening to the music,
00:25:11.97\00:25:14.01
do I listen to
better music, do I...
00:25:14.04\00:25:17.25
How do I do that?
00:25:17.28\00:25:18.98
Well, I'd say the
best way to combat error
00:25:19.01\00:25:21.88
is with truth.
00:25:21.92\00:25:23.69
And so as Christians,
00:25:23.72\00:25:26.15
our worth can be
found at the cross
00:25:26.19\00:25:30.36
because Jesus
literally paid for us
00:25:30.39\00:25:33.26
with His own life at the cross.
00:25:33.29\00:25:35.26
And so in order to
repair your self-esteem,
00:25:35.30\00:25:39.70
you have to go
where Jesus paid it all,
00:25:39.73\00:25:42.14
and so you have
to get into the Word,
00:25:42.17\00:25:44.51
you have to study the Bible.
00:25:44.54\00:25:45.97
You know, if you're a beginner
00:25:46.01\00:25:47.34
and you have a lot of questions,
00:25:47.38\00:25:48.71
I suggest the
amazing little book
00:25:48.74\00:25:51.01
called Steps to Christ.
00:25:51.05\00:25:52.98
And when you read
books like Steps to Christ,
00:25:53.01\00:25:55.88
when you go to the gospels
00:25:55.92\00:25:57.25
and you read about the sacrifice
00:25:57.29\00:25:58.69
that Jesus made for you,
00:25:58.72\00:26:01.29
then slowly but surely,
00:26:01.32\00:26:02.79
it will start
to make yourself...
00:26:02.82\00:26:05.89
It will start to make you
00:26:05.93\00:26:07.26
a little bit
more self-confident.
00:26:07.30\00:26:09.46
About who you
are. About who you are.
00:26:09.50\00:26:11.30
Now you said
you had been in this
00:26:11.33\00:26:13.13
with all the money and the cars
00:26:13.17\00:26:14.50
and the things
like that, Xavier,
00:26:14.54\00:26:16.50
is the steps you talking about,
00:26:16.54\00:26:17.87
are these some of
the steps you used?
00:26:17.91\00:26:19.37
Was it a gradual process?
00:26:19.41\00:26:20.91
Was it just night and day
00:26:20.94\00:26:22.38
or did it take, you know,
a process for this to happen?
00:26:22.41\00:26:24.51
God knows His creation.
It depends on the person.
00:26:24.55\00:26:28.18
But He pinpointed right there,
I did read Steps to Christ.
00:26:28.22\00:26:31.82
I did read Steps to
Christ, you know, I did.
00:26:31.85\00:26:33.62
It's a little book, you know,
00:26:33.66\00:26:34.99
nobody wants to read
all these other books I got.
00:26:35.02\00:26:36.62
You pick up that little
book, it does, it's not magic,
00:26:36.66\00:26:40.40
God's not magic, but it
works to reveal your character
00:26:40.43\00:26:43.26
and what, you know,
there's nothing wrong with you,
00:26:43.30\00:26:45.60
like you're not a bad person,
00:26:45.63\00:26:47.24
you just got to
make some changes.
00:26:47.27\00:26:48.80
And I prayed,
and I just asked God,
00:26:48.84\00:26:50.24
you know, "Help me to...
00:26:50.27\00:26:51.61
Whatever music I
have and movies and games,
00:26:51.64\00:26:54.41
whatever might be
blocking me from getting to you,
00:26:54.44\00:26:57.08
help me to remove it."
00:26:57.11\00:26:58.45
I ended up with pretty
much nothing in my collection
00:26:58.48\00:27:01.28
and selling my gaming systems
and everything because of it.
00:27:01.32\00:27:04.25
So what he said was true,
00:27:04.29\00:27:05.95
you know, that little
book, Steps to Christ,
00:27:05.99\00:27:08.02
you know, does change your life.
00:27:08.06\00:27:09.39
And praying, you
know, asking God, "Help me,"
00:27:09.42\00:27:13.19
you know, 'cause it's
easier said than done,
00:27:13.23\00:27:15.40
just asking for help.
00:27:15.43\00:27:16.77
So you prayed to
God, you read the Bible,
00:27:16.80\00:27:19.23
and almost it's like
00:27:19.27\00:27:22.80
you went on a fast
from that thing for a while.
00:27:22.84\00:27:25.47
You changed some things
00:27:25.51\00:27:26.84
and didn't have
anything for a while,
00:27:26.88\00:27:28.21
and then God
taught you the right way
00:27:28.24\00:27:30.65
and the right way to go.
00:27:30.68\00:27:32.48
Well, friends, we
just want you to know that,
00:27:32.51\00:27:36.38
just like our
friends mentioned earlier,
00:27:36.42\00:27:37.99
Christ is the right way to go.
00:27:38.02\00:27:40.86
And it doesn't
matter what you've done,
00:27:40.89\00:27:42.72
before you watched this program,
00:27:42.76\00:27:44.56
we want you to know now
that God can come to change you,
00:27:44.59\00:27:47.10
He can come to restore you,
00:27:47.13\00:27:48.70
and that what God has for
you, what He thinks about you,
00:27:48.73\00:27:52.13
and how He wants your sexuality
to be is not filled with pride,
00:27:52.17\00:27:56.17
it's not filled
with who is better,
00:27:56.20\00:27:58.31
it's not filled
with any competition
00:27:58.34\00:28:00.64
for anybody else
00:28:00.68\00:28:02.01
because Jesus made you unique.
00:28:02.04\00:28:03.78
And He wants you to live
out your unique life in Him,
00:28:03.81\00:28:07.55
dedicated to Him, serving Him.
00:28:07.58\00:28:10.49
And so we implore you,
00:28:10.52\00:28:11.95
when you make
your music choices,
00:28:11.99\00:28:13.86
as always, we want
you to make pure choices.
00:28:13.89\00:28:17.33
I'm your host Timothy Lawson.
00:28:17.36\00:28:19.29