Hip Hop In the Music Classroom? Discussing Rap & Misogyny

One reason why many music educators are hesitant to integrate rap music in the classroom or even discuss it, is the misogyny present through much of the commercial rap music and videos that the general public and many students are familiar with. The difficulty in navigating through the complexity of this and other issues leads to many music educators avoiding the topic all together.

On September 25th of 2007 Congress will be holding a hearing focusing on media and

“”stereotypes and degradation” of women — particularly African- American women”

It is important to point out that the hearing is not focusing excluslively on rap music but the larger media culture and industry it fits in.

Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.), chairman of the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection was quoted in Variety Magazine as saying:

“I want to engage not just the music industry but the entertainment industry at large to be part of a solution,”

Many rap artists and critics make the point that the music industry plays a large role in the continuation of misogynist language in the music they promote and sell. A recent commercial by Hardees making use of its own rap music for example, demonstrates how misogyny is often promoted and maintained by various corporate entities, industries and forms of commercial media which benefit financially from their use.

These conversations are in no way new. As music educators we can draw on a long trajectory of discussions that are still currently taking place within the hip hop community, in academia, cultural critiques and between our own students to allow current and future discussions to be more informed and nuanced.

In following the upcoming congressional hearing, conversations surrounding it and becoming more familiar with discussions that have already taken place, we can become better prepared to deal with these issues in our own classrooms. How might we begin to touch on these topics with our students? How can we assist our students in negotiating these issues in their own lives and with conversations with their peers?

A Very Short Collection of Resources To Become More Aware of These Discussions

WARNING: Due to the topic, some of the resources below contain language, music and/or video images that are offensive

Hip Hop Cleanup Involves more than musicians Davey D. April 2007

Music Execs Silent as Rap Debate Rages – Marcus Franklin May 2007

Misogyny & Hip Hop – Radio Schomburg Junior Scholars Radio – Youth created radio program 2006

“Beyond Beats & Rhymes” a documentary by Byron Hurt addressing issues such as misogyny in hip hop

Interview with Byron Hurt & Mark Anthony Neal NPR Talk of the Nation Feb. 20 2007

Oprah Town Hall on Hip Hop & Misogyny Excerpt From YouTube

Hip Hop’s (Still) Invisible Women Yvonne Bynoe May 2007

Sexism, Hip-Hop and Misogyny Listen to a broadcast from NPR’s Talk of the Nation on 2/5/05 addressing these issues

Misogyny in Music Rap’s bad Rap – A series of several articles on Tolerance.org 2003

Misogyny, gangsta rap, and The Piano bell hooks Z magazine Feb. 1994

Simply Slang, or a culture of disrespect? NPR Youth Radio June 18 2007 also addresses race and language issues

Hip Hop Under Fire – 3 part NPR series May 2007