Dr. Halifu Osumare Spring QuarterAfrican American & African Studies 106 Wellman HallOffice: 2223 Hart Hall Office Hours: TTH 2:30 – 3:30Telephone: (530 752-6341 hosumare@ucdavis.edu

AAS 181. Hip-Hop in Urban America

Course Description

The thirty year old youth-oriented culture of hip-hop, which started as Bronx neighborhood jams,has become a multi-billion dollar business as well as a global “underground” network of (un)relatedyouth subcultures. The course explores, through scholarly essays, chapters, videos, websites, and musicrecordings, the four artistic elements of hip-hop---rap, deejaying, b-boying and b-girling (breakdance),and aerosol art (graffiti)---and their social and cultural contexts. These contexts include history, urbansociology, economics, and gender issues of hip-hop in the United States. Also, the subculture’s Africandiasporic connections, issues of “race” and authenticity, capitalism and commercialization, and theculture’s globalization are investigated.The “power moves” of the emcee’s rapped text and the b-boy’s dynamic athleticism reflect socialactions toward empowerment in marginalized black, Latino, and poor communities. Since hip-hop’scommercialization, these creative social actions have become a signifier for many American youth aswell as youth throughout the world. Hip-hop’s expressive individual creativity and collective groupaction work in tandem in ways that are both complicit with and subversive to structures of power, suchas record companies, the media, the fashion industry, Hollywood, and ultimately society andcapitalism itself. The multi-dimensions of hip-hop’s creative cultural “text” and its sociological contextare therefore investigated through methodologies of Cultural Studies, American Studies, AfricanDiaspora Studies, and sociology. The student can expect to gain a better understanding of hip-hop’sunique juncture at the beginning of the 21st century as a part of the continuum of black popular culturein American society.

Texts

Murray Foreman and Mark Anthony Neal, eds.,

That’s the Joint! The Hip-Hop Studies Reader

(New York:Routledge, 2004).Halifu Osumare,

The Africanist Aesthetic in Global Hip-Hop: Power Moves

(New York: PalgraveMacmillan, 2007)

Course Requirements:

Attendance

(no more than 3 absences for full percentage)

5 pointsParticipation in Class Discussion 5Oral Report on Weekly Reading 15Film Review Paper (3 pages) 20Midterm Essay (5 pages) 30or Participation in a Formal Oral DebateFinal Exam (Multiple Choice) 25

Learning Outcomes:

An understanding of the reciprocal relationship between American society and culture,B.

A thorough orientation to black popular culture,C.

An increased awareness of hip-hop youth culture as an important sign of the postmodern era,D.

An ability to analyze contemporary music videos and current socio-cultural popular eventsE.

An ability to discern and dissect media images and their influence upon us, andF.

An increased understanding of capitalism in relation to popular culture

Rules of Conduct:

(An atmosphere of respect and decorum is expected)

All cell phones have to be silenced before the beginning of classAll IPods must be put away

No reading email or surfing the Internet during class; computers can only be used to take notes

No sleeping in class---if you go to sleep, you will be asked to leave.No excessive talking to other students outside of discussion groups.

Assignment Descriptions

(guidelines provided for all assignments)

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All written assignments must be submitted in class on the due date; assignments willbe graded down 2 points per day for every day late.

•

The only exception is a written doctor’s excuse.

•

If you are sick and cannot attend school, you may email your assignment as anattachment on the day that it is due for full credit. Attendance:

Attendance is mandatory for all lecture/discussions. More than three absences and thestudent will loose one point for each absence over three out of the possible 5 points. Regular smallgroup discussions will be held in class, allowing the student to earn the other five points. Sick days arecounted as a part of your allowable three absences.

(5 pts.)

Discussion

Participation

Student’s oral participation is expected. Of course the ability tointelligently participate in class discussions is predicated on you reading the assigned material andtaking notes. Class discussion groups will be formed; volunteering to lead a discussion groupautomatically gives a student points toward the five points toward class participation.

(5 pts.)

Oral Report on Weekly Reading

Each student must sign up to give an oral presentation on one of the readings for the course. These are 5-minute presentations with 2-minute Q&A with class. Seeguidelines for exact format.

(15 pts.)

Film Review Paper

This is an analysis of a hip-hop film or documentary. A list of films will beprovided with a few on reserve in Hart Media Center. However, the student may suggest his/her ownfilm to review. The 3-page paper consists of the facts, issues covered in the film and the perspective of the filmmaker and your perspective on the film.

(20 pts.)

Midterm Essay

: This is the major assignment of the course that is a5-page research paper requiringoutside research of a theme on hip-hop culture given in the assignment guidelines. The student isexpected to structure the paper around vocabulary terms developed in the course to analyze thetheme. (30 pts.)

Oral Debate

Instead of the Midterm Essay, the student may choose to participate in an oral debate onone of the same themes. Each student must find another student in the course to work with to developan argument pro or con around a particular hip-hop issue given in the guidelines. Formal debatetechniques will be utilized including logical argument development, rebuttal, and conclusion.Vocabulary, outside research, and quotes from research to support one’s argument is expected.

(30 pts.)

Final Exam

the Final is a 50 question multiple-choice exam using scantron sheets. Each student must bring his/her own scantron sheet and a #2 pencil to the exam. There are no books or notes allowed.The exam must be taken on the day designated by the university. This exam covers all the coursecontent.

(25 pts.)

Course Time Line

Week 1

–

“Back in the Day”:

Hip-Hop History

That’s the Joint!

: Nelson George, “Hip-hop’s Founding Fathers Speak the Truth,” pp. 45-55.

That’s the Joint!

: Michael Eric Dyson, “The Culture of Hip-Hop,” pp. 61-68

Week 2 - “Back in the Day”: Hip-Hop History (continued)

That’s the Joint

!: Alan Light, “About a Salary or Reality? Rap’s Recurrent Conflict,” pp. 137-145

That’s the Joint

!: David Samuels, “The Rap on Rap: The “Black Music” that Isn’t Either.” pp. 147-153

Week 3 - The Four Elements: Hip-Hop and the Africanist Aesthetic

Power Moves

: “Hip-Hop Aesthetics Historically and Globally,” + “Dope Rhymes:

Nommo

& the Powerof the Word,” pp. 28-43. +

Guest Artist

Power Moves

: “Phat Beats: Flow and the Breaks as Critical Difference,” pp. 43-49.

FILM REVIEW PAPER DUE

Week 4 - The Four Elements: Hip-Hop Aesthetics (continued)

That’s the Joint

!: Michael Holman, “Breaking: the History,” pp. 31-39

Power Moves

: “Def Moves: Embodying the Rhythm Globally & The Intercultural Body,” pp. 49-60.

That’s the Joint

!: The Politics of Graffiti,” pp. 21-29

GUIDELINES FOR MIDTERM ESSAY AVAILABLE

Week 5 – Race, “Authenticity,” & the Predicament of Rap in Urban America

That’s the Joint

!: S. Craig Watkins, “Black Youth and the Ironies of Capitalism,” pp. 557-579.

That’s the Joint

!: Davarian L. Baldwin, “Black Empires, White Desires: The Spatial Politics of Identity inthe Age of Hip-Hop,” pp. 159-177.

Power Moves

: “Complicity & Resistance in the Hip-Hop Nation,” pp. 166-172

That’s the Joint

!: Eric K. Watts, “An Exploration of Spectacular Consumption: Gangsta Rap as CulturalCommodity,” pp. 594-611

BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR MIDTERM ESSAY DUE

(Debate: Hip-Hop Commercialism vs. Living Hip-Hop Culture)

Week 6 – Females & Gender Representations in Hip-Hop

That’s the Joint

!: Mark Anthony Neal, “I’ll Be Nina Simone Defecating on Your Microphone: Hip-Hopand Gender,”

pp. 247-49

That’s the Joint

!: Cheryl Keyes, “Empowering Self, Making Choices Black Female Identity via Rap MusicPerformance,” pp. 265-276

That’s the Joint

!: Joan Morgan, “Hip-Hop Feminist,” pp. 277-281.

That’s the Joint

!: Tricia Rose, “Never Trust a Big Butt and a Smile,” pp. 291-307

(Debate: Females, Males, & Gender Representations in Hip-Hop)

MIDTERM PAPER DUE

Week 7- Student Open Discussion: Pet

Issues, Favorite Raps, Videos, etc

.What do you see as the major issues in hip-hop today? What are your favorite music tracks (bring themin): This is the week for the class discussion to be4 generated by students. Ideas: How unified is hip-hop culture? How divisive?

What are the male-female issues plaguing the culture? Who are yourfavorite artists? Students can bring in CD’s and videos to illustrate music, dance and stylisticdifferences?

Week 8- The Message: Community& Alternative Organizing through Hip-Hop

That’s the Joint

!: Angela Ards, Organizing the Hip-Hop Generation, pp. 311-325

That’s the Joint

!: Bakari Kitwana, “The Challenge of Rap Music from Cultural Movement to PoliticalPower,” pp. 341-351

(Debate: Hip-Hop in Urban America: Gangsta vs. Conscious Rap; which has empowered theblack community the most?)