Individual and cultural differences undermine the message artists convey through hiphop as interpretation differs from each individual

First, although the dominant conceptualization of hip-hop authenticity does not seem to recognize non-U.S. cultural members, these global hip-hop members are still a real part of the hip-hop community. The concept of “keeping it real” is so prevalent among artists that claim hip hop authenticity, and as O’Hanlon (2006) found, Australian hip-hop artists maintain this American hip-hop cultural norm by also staying true to their own cultural identity, as they ”keep it real” with their Australian heritage. With the Australian hip-hop artists studied by O’Hanlon, the desire to promote identification with a local audience overrides any allegiance to an American pronunciation, which is typically defined as African-American English (AAE). The Australian English accent is performed by Australian hip-hop artists to aid identification with their target audience, which mostly consists of the working class youth of the urban areas of Australia, to maintain a local authenticity in Australia, which is also validated with the hip-hop philosophy of authenticity.

Sexuality also impacts how one can be seen as authentic in hip-hop culture. For example, a homosexual artist expressing their truth about being a part of a culture that discriminates against them would not be seen as authentic to many hip-hop cultural members because they are homosexual, and homosexuality has most often been trivialized and discussed in a negative manner in hip-hop culture.

This is also seen with race; arguments have been made in the past that one of the most popular hip-hop artists, Eminem, would not be seen as inauthentic based on his race being classified as White. Since hip-hop has become so appropriated within Black culture, Eminem would not be seen as authentic. I argue that race has no bearing on who is or is not an authentic cultural member. Race, heritage, and sexuality do not prevent a hip-hop artist and/or cultural member to portray an authentic hip-hop identity because that is the nature of who they are. Hip hop cultural members, who use the expression of their personal cultural truth, are what authentic hip-hop is truly about. Thus, they should be seen as some of the most authentic identities within hip-hop culture. So, even through hip-hop globalization, racial differences, and performances of sexuality, the notion of “keeping it real”, in relation to hip-hop authenticity, can be seen to still maintain a bulk of hip-hop culture, which expresses that “keeping it real” is a foundational hip-hop cultural element that surpasses geographical borders and subcultures.

In light of these phenomena, I define hip-hop authenticity as a genuine performance of a hip-hop identity, which is in accordance to the character of the individual performer, including cultural and personal nuances that are incorporated in the hip-hop artists’ persona. I believe that hip-hop authenticity could only be made on the individual level, because as stated previously, I believe that determining one definition of authenticity of a culture is inherently problematic for all individuals affiliated within the culture. When one makes claims of authenticity on the collective cultural level, many identities within the culture can become assimilated or forgotten altogether. Additionally, the communication of a collective hip-hop authenticity through commercial advertising may influence the individual claims one has or authenticity. Therefore, this thesis examines how hip-hop is portrayed in advertising messages in order to better understand what messages of authenticity hip-hop youth may be exposed to and potentially use when constructing their own identities and perceptions of the culture they inhabit.