Hip Hop Research Articles

"Karabakh or Death, no Other Way!": Hip Hop and War in Post-Soviet Azerbaijan

In post-Soviet Azerbaijan, hip hop is the main musical genre that articulates the ongoing Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that escalated into two wars (1992-94; 2020). The creativity of hip hop artists is a prime example of intertextuality as they reference, quote, and remake texts of previous Azerbaijani hip hop songs, thus offering accounts of the way the conflict unfolded throughout history. Yet their creativity goes further than providing narratives: it becomes a powerful tool to promote nationalist imagery and inspire patriotism. In this paper, I rely on interviews and first-hand experience while doing fieldwork in Azerbaijan when the Second Karabakh War erupted, and analyze popular hip hop songs, focusing on discourses that arise as part of hip hop’s generic intertextuality. Specifically, I focus on the figure of the martyr that continuously reappears to accentuate the topic of sacrifice and to trigger affects at the core of mobilization and patriotism.

Networking the Black Church: Digital Black Christians and Hip Hop, written by Erika D. Gault

Networking the Black Church: Digital Black Christians and Hip Hop, written by Erika D. Gault

How Hip Hop Became Hit Pop: Radio, Rap, and Race

How Hip Hop Became Hit Pop: Radio, Rap, and Race

Engaging Dwight Radcliff’s Remixing the Center

In this response, the author engages Dwight Radcliff’s contributions in Remixing the Center by demonstrating the pastoral and historiographical possibilities that emerge through use of Hip Hop Culture’s practices of sampling, mixing, and poesis. The author expands on Radcliff’s notion of pericolonial by suggesting some hopeful and pessimistic interpretations of youth dis-engagement, or sideways engagement, from institutional religious life. In conclusion, the author points to the globalization of HHC as indicating the potential of applying Radcliff’s missiological intervention at global scales of analysis and practice.

Walking histories: narratives of young urban dancers in the city of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

ABSTRACT The aim of the study is to investigate the construction of street dances in the city of Rio de Janeiro, describing urban dancers and their daily ‘art of doing’, listening to their voices and observing their physical and virtual interactions. In this paper, a specific methodological approach is applied towards a tactical plan in order to understand the urban dance phenomenon within the universe of hip-hop culture. This particular approach includes the analysis of eleven narratives of young dancers and their everyday experiences, their personal life stories, interlinked with categories such as masculinity and business. The results reveal the complexity of hip-hop and street-dance culture in general, and specifically among young Brazilians. The narratives of these young men have provided an effective means for representing hip-hop dancers’ concerns and bodily articulations in order to comprehend their dance practice and the construction of spaces, but also indicate aesthetic and commercial dimensions.

A proposed Critical Theory of Music Vilification to explain “problem music”

Links between certain music genres and detrimental behaviors and impacts have often resulted in labeling specific music genres as problematic. The resultant concept of so-called problem music (SCPM) typically focuses on hip hop and rock as well as their related genres. However, researchers have repeatedly found a lack of causal empirical evidence of SCPM and noted that the essential aspect is not the music genre, but rather how the music functions for the individual. This paper proposes the Critical Theory of Music Vilification (CTMV) to explain the vilification of SCPM. First, individuals exist within greater societal systems that oppress and marginalize people. Drawing from theories of social and musical identities, people may embrace SCPM to critique oppressive systems and develop social cohesion through in-group identities. Based on theories of stereotypes in music, societal systems often further ostracize people based on their music preferences and musical identities and people may experience harm. The experienced vilification and harm can reinforce people’s music preferences and corresponding musical identities. Societal systems then may vilify the music that was meant to critique their own systemic and policy failures, resulting in a cycle of music vilification. By including systems of oppression, classism and stereotypes in music, and music preferences and musical identities that critique systems and provide social cohesion, the CTMV provides context to SCPM as a socially constructed idea lacking empirical evidence. Implications, limitations, and suggestions for future research are provided.

Hotep anti-Blackness: Misogynoir and queer exclusion in online conspiracy theorizing

Research suggests African Americans are more likely than Whites to support conspiracy theories, especially those related to the U.S. government. Locating the pedagogical practices of Black activists in the online hotep subculture, I use the concept of public pedagogy to understand how these activist influencers use social media to spread political messages in the public sphere. This essay situates hotep subculture as a conspiritualist project that uses Pan-Africanism, Afrocentricity, Black spirituality, and hip-hop culture to advance conspiracy theories among Black communities for consciousness-raising and economic independence. While hoteps have promulgated a pro-Black politic, their reliance on ethnonationalist homophobia and misogynoir promotes a form of erasure that is not only exclusionary and anti-Black but also reflects racial fears rooted in anxiety. This essay contributes to the growing literature on conspiritualism’s investment in white supremacy and the need for conspiritualist critiques to investigate how anti-Blackness shows up in discourses at the intersection of faith, spirituality, and global regimes of power. Drawing on the concepts of misogynoir and anti-Black heterotopias, Black gender and sexual minorities are framed within hotep discourse as subservient, deviant, and perilous to Black liberation.

‘The Illuminati want my mind, soul and my body’: Three 6 Mafia, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony and occult knowledge in hip hop

‘The Illuminati want my mind, soul and my body’: Three 6 Mafia, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony and occult knowledge in hip hop

Commercialization of Hip-Hop Culture and the Evolution of Youth Consumption Patterns from Symbols of Rebellion to Fashion Trends

This paper explores the commercialization of hip-hop culture and its profound influence on fashion and youth consumption patterns. Originally a symbol of rebellion and a voice for marginalized communities, hip-hop has evolved into a mainstream cultural force, reshaping global fashion trends. The transition from underground streetwear to luxury fashion is analyzed through key moments in hip-hop’s history, including collaborations with major brands like Adidas, Nike, and Gucci. The rise of streetwear brands such as Supreme, Off-White, and Yeezy exemplifies how hip-hop’s commercial success has transformed it into a powerful influence on youth identity and social status. However, this commercialization presents a double-edged sword, raising concerns about the loss of authenticity and cultural roots. The paper examines how social media and digital platforms have amplified hip-hop’s reach and discusses the ongoing tension between its original rebellious spirit and its role as a commercial enterprise. The study also highlights the global impact of hip-hop on consumption behaviors, focusing on the rise of exclusive product drops and the commodification of streetwear.

Interrogating your positionality and leveraging hip hop to decolonize education

Interrogating your positionality and leveraging hip hop to decolonize education

Le hip hop à l’école: Practising the ‘fifth element’ as a pedagogical tool in French schools

Le hip hop à l’école: Practising the ‘fifth element’ as a pedagogical tool in French schools

Surgaal and the lineage of Mongolian didactic hip hop

Surgaal and the lineage of Mongolian didactic hip hop

‘At the table I sit, making it legit’: Legitimate knowledge, and the legitimacy of knowledge in a hip hop classroom in India

‘At the table I sit, making it legit’: Legitimate knowledge, and the legitimacy of knowledge in a hip hop classroom in India

The incorporation of Hip Hop dance in English language education in Japanese universities

The incorporation of Hip Hop dance in English language education in Japanese universities

Remixing The center: Missional frameworks from young adult lenses via Hip Hop culture

This article contends that mission practice can learn from Hip Hop culture. The article looks to Hip Hop culture to glean tools and frameworks for missionally engaging youth and young adults. Specifically, the article describes the processes of sampling, mixing, and poiesis and, then, offers missional applications. There is an explicit invitation for youth and young adults to be involved in sampling and mixing the missional and missiological classics in order to engage in a poiesis. In providing this application there is also the positing of understanding our current societal conditions under the heading of pericolonial, as opposed to postcolonial. The term pericolonial is not offered as it is used in archaeology and anthropology. Rather the state of perimenopause is centered, as one of the foci of the article is also how mission can make space for women and marginalized voices.

Freedom Moves: Hip Hop Knowledges, Pedagogies, and Futures ed. by H. Samy Alim, Jeff Chang, and Casey Philip Wong (review)

Freedom Moves: Hip Hop Knowledges, Pedagogies, and Futures ed. by H. Samy Alim, Jeff Chang, and Casey Philip Wong (review)

An Analysis of Women Rappers’ Lyrical and Video Performances in Hip Hop Collaborations

Women in Rap often occupy spaces in which they are marginalized or pitted against one another. Yet, recently, more popular women artists are working together, instead of attempting to commodify their rap beefs. With this historic shift in mind, it is critical to take a moment to investigate the collaborations that have occurred in the past, as they are rare. These collaborations allowed a space for women to work alongside other women, when it was not popular or often profitable to do so, and men, who dominated the hip hop music genre and often did not find value in collaborations. Therefore, this study intentionally seeks the elevation of women’s narratives and representations in hip hop culture and academic scholarship by focusing on collaborations and women’s voices within them. It works to add to women’s studies by investigating representations of women rappers in both their lyrics and music videos. The latter of which are ripe with visual message often ignored in scholarship that heavily focuses on lyrics.

Your favourite authors favourite authors: a bibliometric social network analysis of hip-hop education literature

Abstract Hip-hop culture can be found globally, and hip-hop educators can be found in these same spaces. Therefore, hip-hop has been in classrooms and has been increasingly popular in a multitude of disciplines, including but not limited to health sciences, sociology, and education. Given the vast reach of hip-hop education research, a logical next step is to characterize the impact of hip-hop education scholarship using bibliometrics. We examined hip-hop education through the lens of bibliometrics and social network analysis (SNA). A pool of 371 studies was identified for citation analysis. The findings of this study contribute to the literature by characterizing the development of hip-hop education research. Specifically, we contribute to the field by: (1) identifying key scholarly contributions in hip-hop education and the linkages among them, (2) tracing the evolution of the field over time, (3) analyzing the impact of hip-hop on the field of education, and (4) exploring the cross-disciplinary role of hip-hop education research. Implications are provided for future research and praxis to support learners in urban spaces.

The Impact of K-POP and Hip-Hop Culture on the Mate Selection Criteria and Ideal Marriage Age of Chinese Women

This study evaluates the influence of K-POP and hip-hop culture on the ideal marriage age and mate selection criteria of Chinese female fans by collecting and analyzing data from 29 Chinese women who are fans of these cultures. Utilizing the perspectives of cultural capital theory and cultural globalization, it was found that the globalization of K-POP culture may symbolize high cultural capital, thus affecting womens decisions regarding marriage and mate selection. Hip-hop culture, which emphasizes individuality and freedom, has a limited impact on mate selection criteria. However, this study relies on self-reported data and lacks a sufficient sample size. Future research should expand the sample size and employ various data collection methods to further explore the complex effects of K-POP and hip-hop culture on mate selection criteria and ideal marriage age.

Identity and cultural expression in Nigerian hip hop

This paper explores the profound influence of vernacular language on the construction of identity and ideology within Nigerian hip hop music. By analyzing the lyrics of prominent Nigerian hip hop artists, the study highlights how artists like Olamide, 9ice, and Tuface utilize Nigerian Pidgin and local dialects such as Yoruba to forge a distinct cultural and national identity. These artists not only celebrate their linguistic heritage but also leverage it as a form of resistance against linguistic and cultural imperialism, promoting a nationalist ideology that resonates deeply with their local audience. The paper argues that the incorporation of vernacular language in Nigerian hip hop goes beyond mere artistic choice; it serves as a critical tool for social and political commentary. This linguistic strategy enables artists to address and critique socio-economic inequalities and political issues, making hip hop a voice for the marginalized. Moreover, the study sheds light on how the use of local dialects and pidgin enhances the accessibility and relatability of the music, thereby strengthening the bond between artists and their audiences. This exploration into the intersection of language, identity, and ideology in Nigerian hip hop not only enriches our understanding of the genre's cultural significance but also underscores the dynamic role of language in shaping artistic and social landscapes. The paper contributes to broader discourses on language policy, cultural expression, and identity politics within the global context of hip hop.