In one of her more recent Billboard Hot 100 hits, Rihanna kindly pleads to the song’s fictitious DJ that he “please don’t stop the music.” While this Barbadian phenom’s infectious pop beats are by no means in danger of being stopped by real life DJs here in Madison, the ever-increasing buzz around campus that particular local clubs and music venues are preventing hip-hop music from being played at their location has many students echoing Rihanna’s request.

While there have been speculations that this reaction results from the fear that hip-hop will attract certain unruly crowds, what needs to be looked into is, at what point do these rumors stop and the truth begin?

Although there exists a number of reasons why clubs and music venues could potentially be apprehensive towards hip-hop music and the type of crowd it draws, chances are the actions that transpired at the old Majestic in Madison served as a major catalyst for many of them. In the summer of 2006, after two shootings and one stabbing occurred at the venue, a hip-hop oriented club at the time, the Madison Police Department decided to intervene and placed a strict security plan on the club, which many speculated led to the eventual closing of the venue.

Now, more than two years later, some things have certainly changed. The Majestic Theatre has not only been renovated but has now been under new management for the past year and a half. Yet, there are local DJs who believe the concerns clubs and music venues have regarding what music is played at events and who they let into these events still remain.

And when it comes to having an extensive knowledge of Madison’s music scene, there are very few people more in tune than the DJs who make a living performing at various hot spots throughout the city. Although many of the DJs contacted declined the opportunity to express their opinions, some were willing to share their personal experiences.

“It is really situational to the venue,” said Shay Newman (aka DJ Fusion), a local DJ and head of Speakerboxxx DJz. “Yes, venues do ask that hip-hop not be played and screen something they do not know. There are a lot of places like Madison Avenue, Majestic and various other venues around town where they start to see, sometimes it is not even so much the music, but they just start seeing a lot of black people in there they get concerned.”

When asked whether he was given a reason why he was not allowed to play hip-hop music, Newman said, “I really do not generally question anybody in that position because they are the one paying me. Yet, nine times out of 10 there is no reason that these guys need to stick their nose into it; they need to relax and have a little faith in the people they are hiring as DJs.”

DJ David Muhammad, a DJ in the area for over 10 years, expressed a more open opinion.

“Sometimes owners of venues are scared of black or Hispanic patrons, and stereotypes exist about these crowds,” Muhammad said. “There is a stigma attached, and it is racist, but it is one that, unfortunately, patrons of these events usually reinforce.”

But these problems do not end with their own personal experiences. Newman and Muhammad have been in touch with many other performers who have had similar encounters.

“I employ 10 to 12 different DJs as well as do networking with a good 10 other DJs,” Newman said. “It is a fairly common thing actually. Most of the venues want the hip-hop money, but they do not want the hip-hop crowds.”

Owners and managers of these local clubs and music venues themselves say they are familiar with various locations around town not allowing certain music because they are afraid it will draw unruly crowds.

“I do not know if there are any specific policies, but I know that some places steer away from certain kinds of music,” said Melle Rogers, an Orpheum Theatre manager. “I mean I think anyone who lives in this town knows that.”

Yet, when the Majestic was asked whether their venue has or has considered enacting policies that do not allow certain music, owners and managers responded with “no.”

“We do not have any direct policies towards any crowd or genre of music,” said Scott Leslie, co-owner of the Majestic Theatre. “Just because of the past of the venue, we do shy away from a lot of hip- hop, but we still have had hip-hop here in the past year and a half.”

Currently, the Majestic does not have any hip-hop-related events posted on its online concert calendar.

“The Madison Avenue owner has no problem with hip-hop or the black crowd or any of those situations; it is the general manager who has the problems,” Newman said. “Once the owner leaves, the general manager is like, ‘You cannot be playing this hip-hop; it is too dark in here.’ It gets on that borderline racist trip that the owner would not really appreciate if he was there.”

Madison Avenue representatives were unavailable for comment on the situation.

Although most of the direct communication regarding what music will not be allowed goes on between owners and the DJs, there are other various players who take part in this situation.

“The blame is on officials for discriminatory enforcement of license issues and lack of proactive dialogue and on the patrons for behaving irresponsibly and ruining it for everyone else,” Muhammad said.

When situations get out of hand at any particular club or music venue, the police department is often called to handle the problem. If this begins to happen on a regular basis, the police report to an even higher power.

“If a club is having major problems, the City Attorney’s office could file a motion to bring them up for a suspension or revocation of their liquor license before the Madison Alcohol License Review Committee,” said Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4.

In addition to 343 liquor licenses, the committee also regulates a total of 74 entertainment licenses that are granted to live entertainment venues with over a 100-person capacity. If a club or music venue becomes too problematic, one or both of these licenses can be dealt with.

“It is quite a powerful hammer that we have where we could quite possibly take an establishment out of business,” Verveer said, “But we actually very rarely suspend or revoke anybody’s license. We instead try to follow a model of what we call progressive discipline.”

The amount of power wielded by the government and police department seems to be enough to make any owner wary of playing hip-hop music, even if it does end up playing into stereotypical notions about the type of crowd the genre attracts.

In the end, just like any situation, pointing fingers gets us nowhere fast. Although many people may be to blame for certain aspects of this situation, what really needs to be addressed is how this problem can be solved.

“Ultimately, if people want hip-hop, they will learn how to behave and organize themselves to create the spaces they need,” Muhammad said. “Whining and complaining never got anything accomplished, and police harassment will not make the demand go away. As lovers of this music and scene, we have to step up our business acumen and cooperate with each other.”