Hip Hop Culture, Race, and Gender

Catalog description

Since its birth in the South Bronx, Hip Hop has been a means for Black and Brown youth to build on deep-rooted traditions of expressive culture. This course explores the origins, development, growth, and continued practice of Hip Hop and its emergence as a global phenomenon that simultaneously challenges and promotes the liberations and exploitations of the later stages of capitalism. Through an examination of Hip Hop's four basic elements (break dancing, rap, DJing, and graffiti art) students interrogate the ways Hip Hop culture has influenced and been influenced by discussions and expressions of race, gender, sexuality, and class. Beginning with its history, students deconstruct how Hip Hop culture has wrestled with ideas of blackness, whiteness, civil rights and nationalism, feminism/womanism, and sexism, heterosexism and homophobia, wealth and poverty to hypothesize Hip Hop's current and future direction. Students also explore the influence of Hip Hop on the politics of musical sampling and copyright, representation in visual and performing arts, and discussion about free speech. Students have the opportunity to analyze and deconstruct music lyrics, music videos and movies. Prerequisite: RGS 100 . Offered Occasionally.