Hi y'all, my name is Speech from the music group Arrested Development. I have loved Hip-Hop for over 30 years. It has changed my life and the lives of most of the people around me. I see it as the most powerful entertainment medium for social awareness and change in recent history, but it has unfortunately been taken hostage by institutionalized racism, fierce corporate greed, and unconscientious artists. Over the last 25 years we all have become desensitized to the ever increasing barrage of content that glorifies negativity, Black on black murder, hatred, hyper sensuality, hyper criminality and gross misogyny.

This is not about censoring art. I'm an artist myself, so I know that when artistic expression is limited, freedom and the evolution of ideas are often the casualty. This is about exposing hypocrisy and calling for an end to the negative stereotypes and hatred we are all fed through the radio.

The FCC has the ability to increase our societal standards by increasing their standards for what is played on the radio. We should consider violence and sexual exploitation on mainstream radio as being explicit, just like swearing on the radio.

For decades there have been different attempts to “clean-up” the radio. Discontent with music containing profane, misogynous lyrics and advocating violence, both Inner City Broadcasting and a Los Angeles-based All Pro Broadcasting station adopted policies to keep violence and profanity off their airwaves. More recently, Rick Ross and Lil’ Wayne (after being petitioned) both lost lucrative endorsement deals from offensive lyrics about date rape and victims of hate crimes, and rapper Action Bronson was removed from a public, free concert because of lyrics where he brags about gang-raping and murdering women.

While relying on the broadcast companies and artists to be responsible has been a great step, I have decided to petition the FCC. This institution  has the ability to determine what is considered obscene and they should update their standards for what should be pushed out to the public over the radio.

This toxic lyrical content is constant and literally changing our country. For over a decade, the CDC's leading cause of death for black males 15-34-years-old is homicide. It's not as simple as addressing poverty, education, and family structure; this is American pop culture promoting society's worst themes.

I have a beautiful daughter, Zoe and a wonderful son, Jahi. I'd like them and every child to grow up in a world where they can listen to Hip-Hop with a diverse range of topics as it was in the 80's and 90's. For every song talking about the harsh realities of the streets, let's hear songs about love, solutions and positive themes! Instead of simply complaining, let’s change the narrative!

Join me in asking the FCC for more positive influences on the radio! Together we will change things immediately for the sake of our kids!