Sales wise the "pop" hip-hop sells well. In terms of culture it hasn't been embraced main stream. We haven't embraced hip-hop as a movement. And I don't mean the cartoon stuff like 50 Cent or Black Eyed Peas or Nelly or any of that shit because I'm sure that even kids in Poland like that shit. I mean like the whole thing, the art and fashion and attitude of what is hip-hop is still an underground thing. I was in Ireland a few months back and there are Irish kids who think they're gangsta's or some shit like that. It's quite funny. So yes, hip-hop has global recognition but not on par with rock or so-called acoustic or dance music (I would say that dance music is probably the biggest scene world-wide) in the adult world. I'm talking about anyone still buying CD's over the age of 20.
Hip-hop was used to replace the testosterone fuelled rock of years gone by - a misunderstood form of expression in the first place then turned into something it wasn't really in the first place. It's still thought of as being a bit juvenile. Anyone over 20 shouldn't be listening to hip-hop - that's the general perception. And that's a very narrow view of what hip-hop is - it's not all cash and pretty woman or people hating on each other or the whole false bravado or showboating. Yes, those things have a place in hip-hop - but it's like saying all rock music is about cars and girls and drinking beer, when it has been used to protest injustice, to talk about racism, the falling of social standards, politics you name it, rock music has pretty much every topic covered. As does hip-hop - it can get political, it can protest, it can talk about all of the above - why is it portrayed then as being about guns and money? It's this perception of what hip-hop isn't which has held it back from being a serious thing outside the US. Globally we've embraced the pop music that's using hip-hop beats, but have gutted it of any meaning and have turned it into something that can be easily digested by 13 year olds.
