Defining the contemporary could be really simple. If someone broke into my house, shook me awake and asked what it meant, I would probably just tell them it means belonging to or occurring in the present. If that same person shook me awake, apologized for intruding at such an ungodly hour, and asked me to explain in lengthily manner how to classify the contemporary, I would talk to them about Claire Bishop and Common.
Claire Bishop’s Radical Museology touches on themes of presentism, temporality, and dialecticism. She defines the contemporary as something that “is understood as a dialectical method and a politicized project with a more radical understanding of temporality.”
Bishop warns against the dangers of presentism in describing the contemporary. She uses the example of the New Museum in New York as a case study of presentism. This museum attempted to function as an “anti-collection”, constantly swapping out art pieces from various collections. The museum’s reluctance to establish any type of permanence prohibited it from instituting a dialogue amongst various pieces. Bishop emphasizes the importance of creating a conversation between the past and the present in museums of contemporary art, something that was missing during this instance of “anti-collection.”
Common’s new song, “Home”, follows this conception of contemporariness. On the surface, this song is simply a declaration of Common’s reemergence into rap after a brief hiatus. He talked recently about how he felt the moment was ripe for political-minded hip hop after the recent successes of Kendrick Lamar and Chance the Rapper. “Home” seems like an expression of self-assurance and confidence. He raps, “Your name is Common, you was born to fight the norm, I’ma put a hyphen on your name: rapper/actor/activist.”
This song follows Bishop’s vision of contemporary art. The song explores themes of black empowerment in a fashion that is deeply historical. In doing so, he relates classical examples of black oppression to the modern day. His uplifting message of authenticity and positivity gains more credence when he contextualizes the current struggle of African Americans with allusions to previous black leaders. He refers to Musa, the 14th century King of Mali that may have been the richest man in the world, and Marcus Garvey, the former civil rights leader and advocate of the Pan-Africanism movement.
The prevalence of historical references in the song make it less about Common’s personal obstacles and more about black leadership and liberation. In the artistic space of this song, he evaluates these themes in a temporal method that matches Bishop’s standards for the contemporary. Common begins with a sample from Minister Louis Farrakhan, the leader of the Nation of Islam, and references examples of black excellence present in the bible. He floats in and out of modern and classic examples of oppression and resistance, thus creating a conversation between the past and the present.
Thus, Common does not present his song as an organized, sequential representation of overcoming black injustice in terms of temporality. It is not a history lesson, but rather a necessary contextualization of the persecution of black people today. The lack of chronology allows the listener to listen to and interpret the individual parts of the song in whichever way speaks to them. Common establishes non-presentist, multi-temporal contemporaneity in regards to the theme of black empowerment.
I wholeheartedly agree with this method of classifying the contemporary. I believe that the contemporary should aim to initiate a dialogue about pertinent themes or issues, and must utilize the past in order to rationalize and interpret the present. However, I don’t necessarily agree with Bishop’s claim that the contemporary must be political.
The contemporary has more to do with defying what society considers to be sensible than expressing political viewpoints. In George Cotkin’s Feast of Excess, he articulates the ways in which Jerry Lee Lewis is considered to be revolutionary. Lewis’ unabashedly sexual lyrics and chaotic performances (he even once lit his piano on fire). He defied the sensibility of the 50’s, a decade defined by conformity.
While most of the country seemed to embrace suburban conformity, Jerry Lee Lewis pushed the envelope with his antics and lyrics. Jerry Lewis’ songs did not overtly decry the conservatism of this era, nor did they have any hint of political motivation or social critique. But the sexual innuendo in his songs and mayhem of his performances struck a chord with the younger generation’s fascination with sex, which existed underneath the surface of conservatism.
Additionally, Lewis brought a traditionally black genre to the attention of white audiences. For years, some of the best musicians of the 20th century were confined to a purely black audience because of widespread racism. These blues, R&B, and early rock and roll artists gained much more visibility because of Lewis and groups like the Rolling Stones that were heavily influenced by black musicians. By making music in a traditionally black genre, Lewis created a bridge between these established, extraordinarily talented blues and rock artists and the white population. This applies to the concept of creating a conversation between past and present. These black musicians went largely unnoticed in white America, but eventually entered the mainstream consciousness in part because of Lewis’ art.
Jerry Lee Lewis challenged the sensibility of his era, which I think is a crucial aspect of defining the contemporary. The contemporary should challenge and interpret our current moment while using appropriate context. This does not need to be overtly political in its intent, but can be. Overall, the contemporary can take a plethora of forms to create a diverse temporal landscape in order to comment on the times we live in.
1,006 Comments
I am thankful to you for sharing Betflix wallet
this awesome article.PG SLOT AUTO
thank you for the efforts you had made for writingLive22 auto
today I find it finally.JOKER WALLET
Would you like to visit once?สล็อตฝากถอนวอเล็ท
Greetings!918kissauto
I hope you continue to write goodslotxo wallet
I don’t makeสล็อตออนไลน์
The Custom Boxes Print is alsoเว็บสล็อต 168 ฝาก ถอน true wallet
Nice post.สล็อตเว็บตรงวอลเล็ต
How was your day?สล็อตฝากถอนวอเลท
ideas have been published in your post.สล็อตเว็บตรง
expertise.PUSSY888 เว็บตรง
Wish others will certainly additionallyPUSSY888 AUTO
Thank you very much for sharing good content.918KISS AUTO
It was truly informative.JILI WALLET
keep postingPG SLOT AUTO WALLET
I have joined your feedJILI WALLET
this accident didn’t happened earlier!JOKER AUTO WALLET
we get to learn a lot from such articles,MEGA888 AUTO
I value your message,ສລ໊ອດອອນລາຍ
if you want it at affordable price just go toBetflix wallet
Thank you very much.PG SLOT AUTO
The website style is perfect.Live22 auto
I’m really interested in this.JOKER WALLET
consumers are speaking intelligently about.สล็อตฝากถอนวอเล็ท
it’s great that you are sharing this with us , you can check this too dr-nouraradwan.com
Hello, I read this nice article. I think You put a best effort to write this perfect article. I appreciate your work. thank you so much.
Reacher S02 Dealer Leather Jacket
distributor grundfos grundfos cr termurah
Thank you ever so for you post.Really thank you! Awesome.
123bet
very interesting post.this is my first time visit here.i found so mmany interesting stuff in your blog especially its discussion..thanks for the post! tiliait.com
Thanks for taking the time to discuss this, I feel strongly about it and love learning more on this topic. If possible, as you gain expertise, would you mind updating your blog with more information? It is extremely helpful for me. https://tiliait.com/
1688starbet
1688starbet (https://www.1688starbet.com/)
คาสิโน ออนไลน์ เป็นเว็บไซต์อันดับ 1 ของประเทศไทย สำหรับคนที่ชอบเล่นคาสิโน ออนไลน์และสล็อต ออนไลน์ ผ่านทางเว็บไซต์ STAR BETTHAI เป็นเว็บพนันที่ดีที่สุดอย่าง 1688Star bet รวมของเกมคาสิโนและสล็อต ออนไลน์ต่างๆ ยอดฮิตมากมาย เช่น บาคาร่า เสือมังกร รูเล็ต แบล็คแจ็ค สล็อต และเกมอื่นๆ อีกมากมาย ให้ท่านสามารถเลือกเล่นได้ตามที่ต้องการ อย่างสนุกสนาน คาสิโน ออนไลน์ที่ดีที่สุด และ ครบวงจร มากที่สุด เต็มไปด้วยเกมคาสิโนและสล็อต ออนไลน์ มีระบบธุรกรรมการเงินที่มั่นคง ด้วยระบบฝาก – ุถอนอัตโนมัติ
Thanks in support of sharing such a good idea, paragraph is pleasant 789 สมัคร thats why i have read it fully.
I was able to find good advice from your articles. สล็อต crypto Thanks for taking your time to write .
Call us for a free consultation! 918kissauto
I like this article very much. สล็อตออนไลน์
The content was good. JILI WALLET
If any of the business person are looking for JOKER AUTO WALLET
digital marketing services, JOKER WALLET
I found this site they are providing Live22 auto
the best service to the business person regarding MEGA888 AUTO
Yes, PG SLOT AUTO
We Can. PG SLOT AUTO WALLET
Take Professional Essay Writing Services in the USA pussyslot
Submitting CDR securing เว็บสล็อต 168 ฝาก ถอน true wallet
EA’s approval is not a walk in the park. สล็อตวอเลท
It will help if you put a lot of effort time into slotxo wallet
successfully framing a CDR. สล็อต ฝาก-ถอน true wallet ไม่มี บัญชีธนาคาร
You can also get help from experts who offer support สล็อตเว็บตรง