From my perspective urban means city, as an antonym of rural. If using urban to describe a style, I would use it in the context of describing something hip, trendy, youthful and reflective of numerous influences often found in larger cities. Yes, many cities have larger minority populations and significant representation from a multitude of cultural backgrounds, but it would not occur to me to use the word “urban” as a synonym of or implication of any racial group.

I’m in my mid twenties, which probably has something to do with my perspective, and I grew up in a part of the country where the largest minority group was Hispanic, predominantly Mexican. The African American population, and other minority populations, were very small. Also, the Hispanic minority wasn’t any larger in the area’s big cities than it was in smaller cities and rural communities. From my growing up experience, describing something as urban had no racial implications. Now I live in a rural, predominantly African American community in another state, and the nearby cities have large majorities of Caucasian residents; again the term urban would be out of context to describe the ethnic representation of this area.

I don’t have any good suggestions for lingo to represent respect and attention to various ethnic groups – this is a good question you raise. Diversity is the concept we’re seeking to describe, but I’m not sure what branded name works? I’m interested to hear if anyone else has suggestions.

The urban audience should not be defined by race, age, gender, geography or other previously restricting limitation’s, but by a shared spirit born out of the diversity of urban/youth culture linked by social change, style, and innovation.

Racially it is dead. But in the cultural world, the notion of Urbaness lives on. So long as there is the continued spread of counter-cultural, ground-breaking and genre crossing trends, there will continue to be a face to the Urban movement.