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Proof

Date: May 01 2006

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

Gunshots rang out last week in a Detroit bar, leaving Proof (DeShaun Holton) dead. Proof was a member of Eminem’s rap group D12 and appeared with Eminem in the movie 8 Mile.

Listen to Dave and Taylor talk about Proof and violence in the hip-hop industry.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Dave

Taylor

Dave: You saw in the news the other day that Proof, like, one of the lead rappers on Eminem’s band D12 was shot in the head at some Detroit bar?

Taylor: Yeah, I remember reading that, ah, he got shot in the head because he was trying to shoot the other guy in the head.

Dave: Right, and that’s funny: he pulled his gun first and started shooting.

Taylor: Right.

Dave: But, so, this, like, hip-hop violence, I mean, is not unique to, like, Detroit or L.A. It’s not something new.

Taylor: No.

Dave: It’s kind of always been around.

Taylor: Yeah. It’s a lot of chest-thumping, it seems to me.

Dave: Right. Well, and it’s all about being the alpha male.

Taylor: The alpha male, top dog.

Dave: And hip-hop is filled with that. Even the lyrics, it’s all about “I’m better than you!” and “My car is faster than yours! My house is bigger than yours!”

Taylor: Let’s say you, Dave, were a star rapper. You’re very popular, but, ah, the crowd that appreciates you have some doubts about your ability to keep it real. So let’s say you’re in a bar. You’re this star rapper, and you see this other guy who “done you wrong” in the past. Would you whip out that pistol and go for it?

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Discussion

Eminem and his group D12 have not had it easy. Eminem and other members of the group have been arrested a bunch of times for fighting and carrying guns. Obie Trice, another member of D12, was shot and wounded while driving down a highway in Detroit. Proof is the second person in the group to be killed. In 1999, another member of D12 named Bugz was killed during a picnic at a Detroit park.

Violence has been a problem in the music industry for a long time, though it seems to be more common among hip-hop and rap artists. A few years ago, two rap icons – 2Pac and Notorious B.I.G. – were killed. Last year, Jam Master Jay, from the group Run DMC was killed in his recording studio. His death sparked a group of “raptivists” – people who want to improve the image of hip hop music – to start cleaning up the hip hop industry.

What do you think of hip hop violence? Do you see other entertainers – movie stars, authors, stage performers – being violent as well?

Comments

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superchillhout

Panama

KOOL …KOOL KOOL.

c_a_n_3

Turkey

good

giette

Ghana

i would like to join

lili12080

Iran, Islamic Republic Of

whereis your todays lesson i mean 2007/10/18

herizo

France

I am too bad in english

Liliya-22

Russian Federation

Nowdays there are a lot of violence in the world. We fight for material stuff but forget about something is which is much more important. I feel a bit upset after reading this lesson ;(