"Shark Tale", not only "Mobbed up", but "Hip Hopped Up", with it's "cleaned up" version of raunchy, profanity, foul mouthed, cursing, violence, misogyny, swagger, bravado, crews, posses, drugs, ho's, gangsta, punk rock REAL Hip Hop.

Give the kids a watered down version, so they think "Rap" is OK????

Rappers doff their R-rated garb to provide the soundtrack for PG-rated 'Shark Tale.'
Los Angeles Times
By Greg Braxton
Times Staff Writer
Sep 29 2004

Ludacris is easily one of hip-hop's raunchiest artists. He's made millions with his rapid-fire raps about his favorite subject — sex — and earned a fair share of "Parental Advisory: Explicit Lyrics" stickers with such R-rated lyrics as, "I want a lady in the street but a freak in the bed."

Not exactly the kind of artist you'd expect to see featured in the PG-rated "Shark Tale," the new animated feature from DreamWorks that opens Friday and features an A-list cast topped by Will Smith, Robert De Niro, Martin Scorsese and Renée Zellweger.

In addition to Ludacris, the soundtrack to "Shark Tale" also features Eminem's foul-mouthed protégés, D12. Although hip-hop has long gained crossover status, its high-profile use in a family film represents the biggest splash yet in the effort to channel rap's coarser elements into the cultural mainstream....

"It wasn't really a challenge at all," said Ludacris... "I'm very multifaceted. All I had to do was make a song without cursing. And it's still staying true to my audience because I'm branching out, reinventing myself. I don't have to do the same thing all the time."

"Shark Tale" floats its story about fish living and playing in a true sub-urban community — think New York City, underwater — and could be easily subtitled "Fishz N Da Sea." ... De Niro spoofs his many gangster roles as Don Lino, a great white shark who rules the reef with his mob crew. Other voices include...and Michael Imperioli of "The Sopranos."...

Several rap experts have already hailed "Shark Tale" both as a validation of hip-hop culture as well as a welcome shift from the celebration of more high-profile aspects of a universe that focuses on profanity, the mistreatment of women and material wealth.

[Shark Tale as a tool to "clean up" and validate profanity, the mistreatment of women and material wealth.]

"This is just further proof that 25 years after 'Rapper's Delight' by the Sugar Hill Gang that hip-hop culture has become American culture," said Kevin Powell, a hip-hop historian who appears frequently on cable channel VH1. "What was once seen as just a trend has now become part of the American fabric."

[Kevin, it's MUCH to soon, to tell.Can I tell you how many trends  I've seen in the last 50 years that thought they would survive???]

Added Yvonne Bynoe, head of the New York-based Urban Think Tank Institute: "When you see hip-hop on MTV, there's all this swagger and cursing and bravado. But the roots of hip-hop have always been about family. That's the whole concept of the crews and the posses. So it's not entirely surprising to see it go in this direction."

["Family"..as in "crews", "posses" and "gangs"?? Right, as in "Family Values"??]

Casting "Shark Tale" in a hip-hop vein was a part of the film's development from its inception... "Hip-hop is now a part of our culture and our world..., and I felt it presented an amazing opportunity to show that," said DreamWorks honcho and "Shark Tale" executive producer Jeffrey Katzenberg.

[Jeff, Yes, take society's "lowest common denominator" and in the cause of advancing culture promote Rap!!! ???]

Producer Bill Damaschke said that he knew some of the references might not connect with all audiences but, he added, "That's OK. There's enough stuff for all to enjoy."

[Yes, but how about Rap to English Translation dictionaries available]

Crucial to establishing the film's hip credibility and cool movie was Will Smith..

[What with "Fresh Prince..", and "Men in Black" that gives credibility to Rap?]

Wanting to establish authenticity and credibility, the film's music supervisors, Darren Higman and Laura Wasserman, said they contacted several harder-edged rap artists about contributing to the soundtrack.

["Harder-edge", code for "The Raunchiest"]

... "We let them know that lyrically, they had to stay within the parameters of a family film, and it was no problem for them. And the lyrics stayed true to who they are."

[How do you stay true to who you are, as in "shock rap" and yet still be 'family",
with No Problem?????]

D12, who usually raps about drugs and "ho's," was particularly pleased to be involved,...A lot of these artists may be harder edged in their careers, but they are also pop artists."

[Yes, "pop" and "rap", hardly distiguishable ??]

Several hard-core rap performers who have laced their music with profanity and violent images are turning from the thug life to the hug life, embracing new projects that do not require a parental advisory warning.

[From "thug" to "hug". How sweet, and such a short step :) :( ?]

Snoop Dogg, a rapper made infamous for his criminal past, brazen drug use and line of X-rated videos, is now a commercial pitchman...

Ice Cube, who is behind such violence-laden recordings as "AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted," is the star and producer of the popular PG-rated "Barbershop" franchise.

L'il Romeo will start his second season as the star of Nickelodeon's "Romeo!," which is the network's most popular series among African American children. His father, Master P, who created a gangsta rap empire...

"Dance 360,"...is co-hosted by Fredo Starr, formerly of the group Onyx, which developed a more punk-rock approach to rap....

While "Shark Tale" may represent the most expensive and high-profile animated project to have a hip-hop setting, it is not the first.

"The PJs," a TV series that aired from 1999 to 2001 and featured the voice of Eddie Murphy, was set in a housing project. And in 1992, Paramount Pictures released "Bebe's Kids," an animated comedy about rowdy children. The movie was written by Reginald Hudlin, who broke ground with the first hip-hop teen comedy, 1990's "House Party."

Historian Powell pointed out that while "Bebe's Kids" was targeted primarily at black audiences, "Shark Tale" is an all-access urban 'toon: "It shows how much things have changed in 14 years."

Despite the film's decidedly urban bent, DreamWorks is not heavily promoting that aspect.

"I'm always nervous about shining a spotlight on the film," said the studio's head of marketing, Terry Press. "People can react negatively...

Poet and activist Tonya Maria Matthews said she was proud that DreamWorks was embracing the hip-hop culture with "Shark Tale": "The folks who helped form the culture should be really ecstatic that it has become universally accepted. Now it's up to us to make sure that people use it right."

calendarlive.com: Taking the plunge
http://www.calendarlive.com/
cl-et-braxton29sep29,1,7127007.story