The first track on rapper Kevin Gates’ 2019 album Only the Generals Gon Understand is “Big Gangsta.” Lyrics include, “Bitch, I’m a big gangsta! I turn her out with that foreign love. Cocaina slanga! A hunnid of ‘em, just sold it all.”
It’s the kind of track that I would’ve played on repeat when first exposed to gangs in middle school. In the referenced verse, Gates uses prison slang (“turn her out”) regarding the transformation of an individual through coercion, intimidation, or violence.
“Foreign love” represents “cocaina,” as cocaine is typically grown outside of the United States. Presumably, the rapper boasts of selling a “hunnid [hundred]” kilograms of cocaine.
Conclusively, the woman of Gates’ interest is converted to his lifestyle through the allure of the rapper’s drug-related success. When in middle school, I understood how turning out women in such a way was accomplished through the infusion of pimp rhetoric with rap music.
Although too ignorant to fully comprehend the ramifications of gangbanging and pimping, I admired those men who seemed to lead exciting lifestyles. Back then, being a “pimp,” “mack,” “player,” gangsta,” “banger,” or “street soldier” was something to which many children aspired.
Thankfully, I never officially fulfilled any of those roles. While I did befriend gangsters and human traffickers from middle to high school, I somehow had the wherewithal to think critically about what being fully turned out by the appeal of criminal activity would mean for my future.
Recently, I was reminded of how naïve I once was. Momentarily, I once again saw the world through the eyes of a child. For context, consider what one source states:
While actors often play gangsters, serial killers, or even terrorists, great performers remain mindful of their influence on society. In the 2007 film American Gangster, Denzel Washington earned praise for his portrayal of notorious Harlem crime boss Frank Lucas.
However, one 8-year-old boy who watched the movie became a little too inspired, starting to dream of becoming a gangster himself. Fortunately, Washington quickly stepped in, offering the child wise advice to steer him in the right direction. Their heartwarming exchange was caught on video and soon went viral.
To further enrich the reader’s understanding, the aforementioned video unfolded thusly:
Child: Child expresses admiration and alludes to wanting to become a gangster.
Washington: You shouldn’t be a gangster. You’re too smart to be a gangster. I bet you—what’s your favorite subject? […] Math and science? So, you going to be a doctor? Okay. Better to be a doctor than a gangster. Okay? Never want to be a gangster.
Viewing Washington’s response through the lens of rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT), I recognize that the talented actor made use of a recommendatory should statement. Unlike an absolutistic or conditional belief, a recommendatory should expression is meant to be helpful.
Memorably, Washington’s comment reflected a scene from the 1973 blaxploitation crime drama film The Mack. After his release from a five-year prison sentence, character Goldie becomes a pimp who’s admired by neighborhood children. One particular scene unfolded thusly:
Child (Kevin): I wanna be like you, Goldie.
Goldie: Hey, look, I told you ‘bout that. I don’t ever wanna hear you sayin’ that again, okay? And that goes for the rest of you [children]. You wanna be my partner, I don’t wanna hear you say that, okay? But you can be a lawyer, you can be a doctor, you can be anything you wanna be. But I don’t ever wanna hear you saying you want to be like me, okay?
Washington, who played the role of a gangster and who used a recommendatory should advisement as an actor, attempted to dissuade a child from emulating the life of a gangster. Similarly, Goldie inferred a recommendatory should statement to Kevin and his friends.
Whether aspiring to be a gangster or a pimp, both Washington and Goldie communicated recommendations which were designed to help construct a more productive role within society. Their examples are logical and reasonable juxtapositions from the destructive behavior they portrayed.
Perhaps one day Gates will opt to exercise similar discretion. Perhaps not. Of course, people could critique my perceived support of gangbanging activity. After all, I’ve written a number of blogposts which address my former role that could be misconstrued as upholding an unsavory lifestyle.
However, when I speak of gangbanging in my blog it’s done with an emphasis on where I once was in life and where I am currently. Generally, I write through a retrospective lens of REBT in order to assist others who are on a destructive path as I once was. They don’t have to continue down that road.
In any case, I appreciate a lot of Gates’ music, I enjoyed both American Gangster and The Mack, and I support use of recommendatory shoulds to help people forego a life of crime. Still, I understand that I’m not absolutistically or conditionally demanding that people do as I believe they should.
I’ve made plenty of mistakes in my lifetime. I’ll make plenty more. If I’m unsuccessful at helping someone transition to a more productive role in society, because the individual is turned out by gangbanging or pimping tactics, I unconditionally accept that outcome.
If you’re looking for a provider who works to help you understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.
As the world’s foremost hip hop-influenced REBT psychotherapist, I’m pleased to help people with an assortment of issues from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.
At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply helping you to feel better, I want to help you get better!
Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW
Photo credit, artist: TruGfx, fair use
References:
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Broadcasting_Network. (2023, July 30). Dont be like me….Film: The Mack ft Max Julian (1972) [Video]. TikTok. Retrieved from https://www.tiktok.com/@broadcasting_network/video/7261697566700490026
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