I know I said this isn’t a hip-hop blog but I have to get this off my chest. Today at work we ended up having a rather enlightening discussion about rappers and accountability. It was sparked by Martin Luther King Jr’s ability to rally the troops to bring about social change and our (the young, hip-hop generation’s) lack of a leader.

Naturally, people look to trendsetters like Jay-Z or P. Diddy to devote their time (and possibly their money) to an issue, be it healthcare or politics, but that is problematic in my eyes for two reasons. First of all, the only things these guys are experts in are making music and making themselves moguls. Admirable? Absolutely. But that does not mean that these people are inclined or equipped to lead a generation of young people.

We need leaders that want to be leaders, not guys that desired to dance around in shiny suits. We need leaders that possess the knowledge and speaking ability to move 200,000 people with one speech.

Secondly, anytime a hip-hop personality gets behind an issue it comes across as contrived. Russell Simmons only cared about censorship in the weeks following the Don Imus controversy. Diddy only thought voting was important enough to die for last election. This time around he is nowhere to be found. And that’s cool because I would much rather hear Diddy telling me why I should drink Ciroc and Jay could tell me which color blue I should rock (powder blue Rocawear suit, white Nikes or perhaps Jay-Z blue?).

These guys are masters at gauging what’s hot and hopping aboard for the ride. They also have a knack for making things hot simply because they have a financial interest in the company. I hate to break it to ya but Jay doesn’t promote Budweiser, Ace of Spades or HP out of the goodness of his hip-hop heart. Dude is getting paid and that’s great. But let’s take these guys for what they are, opportunists who are good at entertaining and making moolah. Let’s not put the future in their hands just yet.

If, by chance, a hip-hop celebrity decided to actually commit himself (or herself) to an issue and ride with it until policies are changed or new officials are elected I’m totally down. But in until then, excuse my French, but F a fair-weather leader.