Week 11- Hip-hop, Race and American Film

How has Hip-hop's aesthetic shaped American film? In what ways do we see race articulated through a Hip-hop aesthetic? As you explore the readings, audio and visual references, think about the ways in which Hip-hop has influenced the cinematic and storytelling styles. How do you see particular elements of Hip-hop translated into film? How does the race of a filmmaker impact his/her vision if at all? As you watch the films Do the Right Thing, 8 Mile and Hustle and Flow, think about the ways that diverse racial and ethnic groups use Hip-hop as a platform to tell stories.

Week 10- Spring Break

Week 9- Gender and Sexuality

This week, create a freestyle blog. You can write and/or post any sound or visual files that engage the complexity of gender and sexuality in Hip-hop form your perspective. Engage ideas of genes and sexuality in Hip-hop based on previous class discussions. We will have a mini-lecture on Wednesday to make up Monday's mid-term testing class period.

Week 8- No Sucka MCs, No Swagger Jackers: Hip-hop's Urban Griots

MC's in Hip-hop music are storytellers. Whether MCs write their rhymes or improvise them on the spot, they become living archives of history that connect the past to the present. As you blog on the key words GRIOT and BATTLE, think about the ways that Hip-hop MCs use their storytelling to describe lived and imagined experiences. How can you link the MC storytelling and freestyling in the Battle to stylistic elements such as braggadocio (today called 'swagger'),'call and response,' and sampling? How does the battle in MCing relate to artistic expression in the other elements of Hip-hop?