Boston University: Ever since the United States' "war on terror" began, American media has been rife with stereotypes of Muslims as violent, foreign threats. Advocates trying to push back against this characterization sometimes emphasize that "Islam means peace," since the two words are derived from the same Arabic root.
Indeed, the traditional Muslim greeting "al-salamu alaykum" means "peace be upon you." Some Americans were already familiar with the phrase, thanks to an unexpected source: hip-hop culture, which often incorporated the Arabic phrase.
This is but one example of Islam's deep intertwining with the threads of hip-hop culture. In her groundbreaking book "Muslim Cool," scholar, artist, and activist Suad Abdul Khabeer shows how Islam, specifically Black Islam, was a crucial part of hip-hop's roots – asserting the faith's place in American life. From prayerlike lyrics to tongue-in-cheek references, Islam and other religions are woven into hip-hop's beats.
That's the focus of a class we teach at Boston University. One of us is a professor of religion, history, and pop culture, while the other is a graduate student in Islamic Studies.
More than 'hello'-In Muslim cultures, "al-salamu alaykum" is more than a way of saying hello. It points to the spiritual peace of submitting to God – and not only in this life. Saying "peace be upon you" is a prayer that God will grant heaven to the person with whom you are speaking. Many Muslims believe that "salam" is also the greeting heard upon entering heaven.
The Quran instructs Muslims that "when you are greeted with a greeting, respond with a better greeting or return it." This means that the proper response to "al-salamu alaykum" is, at a minimum, to respond in kind: "wa alaykum al-salam."
This exchange has been adapted by several rap artists – including Rick Ross, who does not identify as Muslim and turns the phrase's meaning on its head. Ross uses the greeting in the hook of his song "By Any Means," referencing a famous speech by civil rights leader Malcolm X, who was a minister of the Nation of Islam for many years until shortly before his assassination. In 1964, Malcolm X declared African Americans' right "to be respected as a human being by any means necessary."
Half a century later, Ross rapped-
By any means, if you like it or not
Malcolm X, by any means
Mini-14 stuffed in my denim jeans
Al-salaam alaykum, wa alaykum al-salaam
Whatever your religion kiss the ring on the Don
Ross's use of the phrase, right after he mentions Malcolm X, appears to insinuate that if one wishes him peace, he will wish them the same. However, if one wishes him violence, he will not hesitate to respond in kind.
'Peace to all my shorties'-Other hip-hop artists have used "al-salamu alaykum" in many different ways, including lyrics that show broader familiarity with the laws of Islam. For example, it is sometimes contrasted with pork, which is prohibited in Islam, and by extension, the police – the "pigs," in derogatory slang – though it is more common for non-Muslim singers to use it in this way.
"Tell the pigs I say Asalamu alaikum," Lil Wayne says in "Tapout," a song that has little else to do with Islam. Joyner Lucas likewise raps, "I say As-salāmu ʿalaykum when I tear apart some bacon," in the song "Stranger Things." Combinations of the sacred and the profane are present throughout hip-hop, not limited to references to Islam.