"Bling Bling" is a 1999 hit hip-hop song by The B.G., featuring his Cash Money Records labelmates Juvenile, Lil' Wayne, Turk, Baby, and Mannie Fresh. The song, and its many follow-ups from the label, popularized a hip hop slang term which refers to expensive jewelry and other accoutrements. The word gained acceptance in the mid- to late 1990s as a result of gangsta rap music and videos, which frequently glorified high class clothing, jewelry and other possessions.

Mainstream hip hop music's fixation on bling bling and other material and luxury goods has led to much criticism from media pundits and musical critics. They charge that the phenomenon promotes consumerism and materialism, and strengthens racist arguments that young African American men are incapable of higher or more virtuous or spiritual goals than material gain.

Some of the most vocal critics of "bling bling"-oriented music are alternative hip hop artists. An example of this is the group Dead Prez, from "Hip Hop" [1] (http://www.elyrics.net/go/d/Dead_Prez/It%27s_Bigger_Than_Hip-Hop):

all y'all records sound the same

I'm sick of that fake thug, R&B-rap scenario, all day on the radio

Same scenes in the video, monotonous material

Y'all don't hear me though

These record labels slang our tapes like dope

You can be next in line and signed; and still be writing rhymes and broke

You would rather have a Lexus? or justice? a dream? or some substance?

A Beamer? a necklace? or freedom?

The extremely widespread proliferation of the term into the early 2000's inevitably lead to its downfall. With MTV itself even releasing a satirical cartoon commercial in 2004 showing the term being used by a rapper, then several other progressively less "streetwise" characters, then finally by a middle aged white woman who uses the term to describe her earrings to her elderly mother. It ends with the deadpan declaration: "RIP Bling-bling 1997-2004". The clip thus simultaneously recognizes the term's once attainment of an unusual level of popularity while cleverly underscoring the terms' perceived aspect of "tiredness" in the current youth culture.

Related meaning

Bling bling can also mean something cheap in southwest Asia. For example, if you are looking for the fake Rolexes and Oakleys, you would ask the salesman for the bling bling specials.

See also

• List of most frequently mentioned brands in the Billboard Top 20
• Gangsta rap

External links

• a "critical analysis" of the song "Bling Bling" (http://www.supz.org/bling/)