Hip-Hop as Critical Pedagogy�Part Two: The Curriculum and Pedagogy

Noah J. Karvelis

Why include hip-hop/critical pedagogy in the classroom?

• In order to develop critical understandings
• Facilitate affirmation and inquiry of personal cultural background in the classroom
• Seemingly endless opportunities for musical skill development are present

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What does critical pedagogy aim to accomplish?

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Critical pedagogy strives to critically examine elements of human society and history in order to awaken a “critical consciousness” that, in turn, creates positive societal transformations through action.

“In practice, critical pedagogy would do the following: ��A. Study “the privileged texts of the dominant or official canons” in order to arrive at a better understanding of “the important role they have played in shaping, for better or worse, the major events of our time;” ��B. Study “the noble traditions, histories and narratives that speak to important struggles by women, blacks, minorities and other subordinate groups that need to be heard so that such groups can lay claim to their own voices as part of a process of both affirmation and inquiry.” ��-Carmel Borg, Joseph A. Buttigieg, Peter Mayo on Henry Giroux’s vision of critical pedagogy. ��

Study “the noble traditions, histories and narratives that speak to important struggles by women, blacks, minorities and other subordinate groups that need to be heard so that such groups can lay claim to their own voices as part of a process of both affirmation and inquiry.”

Why Hip-Hop?

1. Authenticity of the narrative
1. Who makes hip-hop?
2. Disagreement on viewpoints
2. Deep, multi-faceted history
• African Bardic tradition
• Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965
• (West) African Art Influence
3. Wide range of topics/issues addressed
• Race
• Gender
• Police Brutality
• Income Inequality
• Language
4. Relevance to lived experiences/student interest

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How do we structure this learning and dialogue?

• Displace yourself as the locus of control
• Utilize co-teaching
• Set ground rules for the classroom- as a classroom
• Listen to the students

How do we create this curriculum?

This type of music curriculum is subject to your own creativity.

However, throughout the remainder of the session, we will highlight lessons from my classroom that you can potentially use as well as share resources at the end.

Lyrical Content

“Speech is My Hammer”: Race and Social Inequality

• Race is an extremely common topic in hip-hop music
• Typically discuss the realities of life as a minority in America
• The authenticity of this narrative paired with the expressive lyrics creates a nearly uncomparable educative opportunity
• Selected lyrics from Inspectah Deck’s verse on “C.R.E.A.M. (Cash Rules Everything Around Me)” by The Wu-Tang Clan:

“It’s been twenty-two long hard years of still strugglin’/�Survival got me buggin, But I’m alive on arrival/�A man with a dream with plans to make C.R.E.A.M. / �Which failed when I went to jail at the age of 15/ �A young buck sellin’ drugs and such who never had much/�Trying to get a clutch at what I could not, could not/ Living in the world no different from a cell/

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What understandings can be drawn from this verse?

Potential Points of Discussion:

• The struggle of poverty
• The allure of wealth
• The result of an attempt at an escape from poverty
• The reality of life as person of a minority culture/race living in poverty

“It’s been twenty-two long hard years of still strugglin’/�Survival got me buggin, But I’m alive on arrival/�A man with a dream with plans to make C.R.E.A.M. / �Which failed when I went to jail at the age of 15/ �A young buck sellin’ drugs and such who never had much/�Trying to get a clutch at what I could not, could not/ Living in the world no different from a cell/

“Speech is My Hammer”: Race and Social Inequality

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• What does this offer?
• Authenticity/Potency of the narrative
• Student engagement
• High level of musicianship
• Critical lyrical content

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“Speech is My Hammer”: Race and Social Inequality

“When I get signed, homie I'mma act a fool

Hit the dance floor, strobe lights in the room

I'mma buy a brand new Caddy on fours

Trunk the hood up, two times, deuce four

Platinum on everything, platinum on wedding ring��Married to the game,

When I get signed homie I'mma buy a strap

Straight from the CIA, set it on my lap

Take a few M-16s to the hood

Pass 'em all out on the block, what's good?

I'mma put the Compton swap meet by the White House

Republican, run up, get socked out

Hit the press with a Cuban link on my neck

Uneducated but I got a million dollar check, like that”

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Straight from the CIA, set it on my lap

Take a few M-16s to the hood

Pass 'em all out on the block, what's good?

I'mma put the Compton swap meet by the White House

Republican, run up, get socked out

How do we interpret these lyrics and where does our chosen approach take us? ��Is this encouraging violence?

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Or is there a different meaning that a critical interpretation would recognize?

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Straight from the CIA, set it on my lap

Take a few M-16s to the hood

Pass 'em all out on the block, what's good?

I'mma put the Compton swap meet by the White House

Republican, run up, get socked out

Interpretations Our Class Raised:

• “Ideological” M-16s
• The invisibility of minorities

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Straight from the CIA, set it on my lap

Take a few M-16s to the hood

Pass 'em all out on the block, what's good?

I'mma put the Compton swap meet by the White House

Republican, run up, get socked out

“Speech is My Hammer”: Police and Incarceration

• “Sound of Da Police”: KRS-ONE

“There could never really be justice on stolen land/

Are you really for peace and equality/

Or when my car is hooked up, you know you wanna follow me/

Your laws are minimal/

‘Cause you won’t even think about lookin’ at the real criminal/

This has got to cease/”

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What potential points of critical discussion does this open up?

“There could never really be justice on stolen land/

Are you really for peace and equality/

Or when my car is hooked up, you know you wanna follow me/

Your laws are minimal/

‘Cause you won’t even think about lookin’ at the real criminal/

This has got to cease/”

• The original obtainment of American land/states
• Racial profiling
• Ethics of Laws
• “Real Criminal”

Music Videos

Depictions of the Real and Desired: Hip-Hop Music Videos

• Portrayals of material excess in hip-hop music videos
• What can this tell us? Why is it included in some hip-hop videos?
• Portrayals of the artist’s community in hip-hop music videos
• What does this tell us? What critical learning can be derived from this?
• Critical learning opportunities
• Open-ended critical analysis/discussion
• Hip-hop music videos as an art form
• Kendrick Lamar’s “Alright”

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Hip-Hop and Gender

Hip-Hop and Gender

• Hip-hop offers an opportunity for further understanding and discussing the depiction of women in hip-hop and through this- society as a whole
• Hip-hop also offers a great source for young women’s empowerment and inquiry into their lived experiences
• Tricia Rose points out that in hip-hop women (particularly women of color) are often spoken of or portrayed in misogynistic, degrading terms
• What critical understandings could we gain from this? Is the issue hip-hop itself or something else?
• Understanding and acknowledging women’s contributions
• MC Lyte
• Lauryn Hill
• Nitty Scott, MC
• Snow Tha Product

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Hip-Hop as Social Activism

Hip-Hop as Social Activism

• Hip-hop offers an example and outlet for creative, productive social activism
• Some examples of critically-oriented artists:
• Black Opera
• Mos Def
• KRS-ONE
• Blackalicious
• Wu-Tang Clan
• Kendrick Lamar
• Critically-oriented hip-hop projects:
• Mos Def and Talib Kweli
• Black Star
• Hip-Hop for Respect
• Student Projects/Potential for Composition

What does this curriculum foster?

What Does This Curriculum Foster?

• Students with potentially heightened critical understandings
• A deep engagement with various musical traditions and genres
• Recognition and inquiry of personal cultural background in the classroom
• Potentially increased concept of self worth in the classroom/school environment
• Recognition that their history/culture is relevant, important and valuable
• A rich understanding of the role of an artist in society
• Positions students in opportunities to form self-developed critical understandings on important issues and take direct, productive, democratic action
• When used in a music classroom, endless opportunities for musical skill development are available
• Potential projects: hip-hop composition, music videos, various music technology elements such as audio engineering and beatmaking, even traditional material such as theory and rhythm reading

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Potential Critical Understandings Through Hip-hop:

Potential Musical Understandings Through Hip-hop:

Race, gender, social inequality, lived experiences of members of minority communities, income inequality, the role of an artist, democratic engagement and more

Composition, music production, note reading, rhythm, traditional/non-traditional instrument performance, and more

Additional Resources

• Listening:
• Kendrick Lamar-To Pimp a Butterfly
• N.W.A.- Straight Outta Compton
• Mos Def- Black on Both Sides
• Reading:
• Paulo Freire- Pedagogy of the Oppressed
• Tricia Rose- Black Noise
• Gregory Dimitriadis- Performing Identity/Performing Culture: Hip-hop as Text, Pedagogy, and Lived Practice
• Lesson planning and more resources:
• www.hiphopmusiced.com
• Hip-hop Music Ed facebook page
• Please also feel free to contact me at noahkarvelis@gmail.com

References

Byrne, D. (2012). How Music Works. San Francisco: McSweeney's.

Dimitriadis, G. (2009). Performing Identity/performing Culture: Hip-hop as Text, Pedagogy, and

Lived Practice . Peter Lang .

Hall, S., Gilroy, P., & Grosberg, L. (2000). Without Guarantees: Honoring Stuart Hall. London:

Verso.

Kruse, Adam J. (2016). Featherless Dinosaurs and the Hip-Hop Simulacrum: Reconsidering Hip-Hop’s Appropriateness for the

Classroom. Music Educator’s Journal. 102 (4). 13-21.

Kruse, Adam J. (2016). Toward Hip-hop Pedagogies for Music Education The International Journal of Music Education. 34 (2). 247-260.

Ladson-Billings, G. (1995). Toward a Theory of Culturally Responsive Pedagogy. American

Educational Research Journal, 465-491.

Rose, T. (1994). Black Noise. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England.

Rose, T. (2008). Hip-hop Wars. New York: Basic Civitas Books .

Schloss, J. G. (2009). Foundation: B-boys, B-girls and Hip-hop Culture in New York. New York:

Oxford University.

Weitzer, R., Kurbin C.E. (2009). Misogony in Rap Music: A Content Analysis of

Prevalence and Meanings. Men and Masculinities. 12 (1). 3-29.

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