Hyphen magazine - Asian American arts, culture, and politics

Yesterday, 2DopeBoyz posted a cut from Filipino American rapper Bambu, called “Something.” The song samples Adele’s “Someone Like You,” and because I like both Bambu and Adele, I would’ve been talking about this song anyway. But this one is special.

From the post:

March, in case you were unaware, is Women’s History Month. Los Angeles’ own, Bambu, leaks a song that takes a look at domestic violence from a personal perspective. The song speaks on his family history with violence in the home, as well as his own struggles with it, even touching on the normalcy of such violence against women in our own Hip Hop culture. For this one, DJ Phatrick stepped out from behind the turntables to produce, sampling Adele’s “Someone Like You.” A video is set to drop at the end of the month and the song will also be included on Bambu’s …Exact Change… re-release bonus EP, Short Changed, dropping on April 29, 2011 through Beatrock Music Label.

This is an issue that isn’t talked about nearly enough, both in hip hop and Asian American communities. In one couplet, he addresses both our rap heroes and our household heroes: "B.I.G. did it, Eazy did it, Dre did it, Pun did it; When Dad did it, he just gave Ma kisses, hugs, and he done with it." He breaks it down with every line: the cycle of violence, how violent behavior can be passed down through generations, how domestic violence is as much a men's issue as it is a women's issue. He puts to words a painful truth for many of us: that the culture of violence can be inescapable. 

It's not just a deep, heartbreaking cut -- it's an important one. 

Why? According to the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum, 41-61% of Asian Americans report experiencing intimate partner violence in their lifetime. These are incidents that are reported. In another report from the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, “only approximately one-quarter of physical assaults, one-fifth of all rapes, and one-half of all stalkings perpetuated against females by intimate partners are reported to police.”

Thank you, Bambu, for speaking publicly on the subject and for putting a dope track down, to boot.

For more info on domestic violence in Asian American communities, check:

• Asian Task Force Against Domestic Violence (Massachusetts based)
• New York Asian Women’s Center
• Sawnet (international, South Asian-focused)
• Asian and Pacific Islander Domestic Violence Task Force (So Cal based)
• Asian Americans for Community Involvement (Nor Cal based)
• Sawera (Oregon based, South Asian-focused)