Overview

Black theology as a foundation for hip hop's political philosophy. This is an examination of the political orientations of hip hop, describing Black Theology and African American variants of Islam as the root of hip hop ideology. While a political philosophy is visible within hip hop, its historical source, influence on the music and artists and contemporary impact are rarely examined. A Rhyme Is A Terrible Thing To Waste examines the void between content and exposure of hip hop culture - a void clearly demonstrated by black radio's negative impact and its failure to spread hip hop's formidable political ideology. Further, Usher demonstrates that black media often presents deliberately nihilistic elements of hip hop, with a subsequent effect that the music's political philosophy is scarcely even presented to a wider audience. A Rhyme Is A Terrible Thing To Waste then becomes a study not only of the roots of the politics of hip hop, but an examination of the structure in which hip hop exists and by which it is controlled. The artists who produce political hip hop are discussed in depth before moving to an overview of the institutions that control access and exposure to their material.

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9781592213184

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Carlton A. Usher is president of a consultancy firm and a former teacher.

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