The Roots of Rap

This project is intended to help students draw connections between the history of oppression (slavery) in the American south and contemporary issues that plague the African-American community today.  Students begin researching the oppressive nature of colonization and subjugation and then broaden that research to include modern day rap music and the issues therein.  The project culminates in an original rap, written and performed by the students, that mimics the style and content of a rap artist of their choice.  The rap’s content addresses both the contemporary issues of concern to their particular artist and information about where those issues originated as they pertain to a history of oppression.

This project was implemented in my African-American Literature course specifically because students often view slavery as distant past.  It is a common belief in America that slavery was so long ago that “black people should just get over it and move on,” demonstrating a lack of understanding of the far reaching effects of a whole people’s horrific introduction to this country.  This project falls toward the beginning of the semester in order to establish the relevance of African-American Literature early in the course, thereby enriching the students’ experience with the literature and theory that follow.  Through reading and studying quintessential slave theory, slave narratives, and general history of slavery in the American south, students extend their research to present day manifestations of the history they researched.

Challenges or Obstacles:

• The most significant challenge of implementing a project of this magnitude is managing the details throughout.
• The historical aspect of the project must be set up well in order for the project to be successful and for students to get out of it the maximum benefit.
• Organization and detailed planning are a must on the instructor’s end.
• Appropriate scaffolding should also be prioritized.

Benefits and Successes:

• Students who complete this project see that classroom work has important implications in the “real world.”  Rap music has a social and cultural message that is important to the artists; it’s not just entertainment. 
• My hope is that students will feel inspired to make changes in their own communities regarding institutional racism, marginalization, and the more insidious forms of subjugation. 
• A school project that incites positive cultural change is the best we can hope for in education, and this project has the potential to do that. 
• Many of my students over the years have gone on to lead initiatives in their colleges and universities that address issues related to racism because they gain an understanding of the scope of the problems and learn ways to communicate them to a broader audience.  An awareness of the roots of such problems is vital for a true understanding.

Additional Information:

Click here to see an example of the assignment sheet given to the students

Submitted by: Stephanie Nagelkirk, Indiana Academy for Science, Mathematics, and Humanities