Barack Obama, Jay Z, Nas and Gangsta Rap: Dr. Wilmer Leon

by Dr. Wilmer Leon

During a recent interview with Rolling Stone, President Obama was asked about his musical preferences, he replied in part, “My iPod now has about 2,000 songs,…There's still a lot of Stevie Wonder, a lot of Bob Dylan, a lot of Rolling Stones, a lot of R&B, a lot of Miles Davis and John Coltrane. …A lot of classical music. …my rap palate has greatly improved. Jay-Z used to be sort of what predominated, but now I've got a little Nas and a little Lil Wayne and some other stuff, but I would not claim to be an expert…”

Soul, folk, rock, R&B, jazz, “A lot of classical”, and some rap; sounds like a fairly diverse musical palate.  This represents the musical tastes of a number of American’s of the president’s generation, especially those with school age children.  Diversity is good, unless you are reading the Fox Nation website.  According to the Huffington Post, Fox Nation took this description and briefly posted the headline, “President of the United States Loves Gansta Rap” with photos of tattoo laden Nas and Lil’ Wayne thrown in for “flava”.

 

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