Disproportionately consumed by by whites
How “authenticity” of mainstream hip hop is
despite being a predominately black genre
related to popularity, and how it effects
60% consumed by whites
counterculture hip hop
25% consumed by blacks
How does constructed “authenticity” effect
“inauthentic” artists
How race, gender, style, and message play
a part in the authenticity and popularity of a
song
Cultural commodification
Defining authenticity
Expression of blackness, low income
background, not selling out, expression
of masculinity, etc.
Survey
Sample of 52 respondents
13
open
and
close
ended
questions
Discourse Analysis
centering
around
authenticity
and
themes
8 Hot 97 artist interviews, 6 XXL Magazine
adults
18-30
articles, MTV, VIBE, Forbes, Washington
Post, and Rhapsody articles
Picked for racially diverse cast/ readership
and emphasis on the topics of authenticity,
race, commodification, and consumption
Survey
68% felt like mainstream hip hop was not an
accurate representation of the genre
Around 66% considered Lecrae’s song more
authentic
42% picked Lecrae, while 32% picked Big
Sean
Themes mirror signifiers of “authenticity”
commonly found in mainstream hip hop
sex, materialism, rags to riches, etc.
Discourse Analysis
Black artists cannot make songs about
particular subjects with being deemed
inauthentic
Authenticity is not valued in mainstream rap
Create their own “authenticity”
White artists and MCs with pop inspired
songs face more scrutiny
More culturally diverse music is upstaged
by more stereotypical music
What can be improved
Mainstream
hip hop
is intendedsample
to appeal
to
A larger more
representative
size
listeners
expectinganalysis
the stereotypical
blackmedia
man
More extensive
in other types
intended
to be consumed by white and black
More
depth
listeners familiar with negative racial
stereotypes
If the artists don’t fit the persona they are
less popular
Encourage negative racial stereotypes
Blocks true cultural representation
Questions
Albrecht, Michael. 2008. “Acting Naturally Unnaturally: The Performative Nature of
Authenticity in Contemporary Popular Music.” Text and Performance Quarterly 28 (4): 378-395.
DOI: 10.1080/10462930802351989.
Balaji, Murali. 2009. “Owning Black Masculinity: The Intersection of Cultural Commodification
and Self-Construction in Rap Music Videos.” Communication, Culture & Critique 2 (1):
21-38. DOI: 10:1111/j.1735-9137.2008.01027.x.
Balaji, Murali. 2012. “The Construction of ‘Street Credibility’ in Atlanta’s Hip-Hop Music
Scene: Analyzing the Role of Cultural Gatekeepers.” Critical Studies in Media Communications 29
(4): 313-330. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15295036.2012.665997.
Balaji, Murali. 2009. “Why Do Good Girls Have to Be Bad? The Cultural Industry’s production
of the Other and the Complexities of Agency.” Popular Communication 7 (4): 225-236.
DOI: 10.1080/15405700903224438
Fraley, Todd. 2009. “I Got Natural Skill . . .: Hip-Hop, Authenticity, and Whiteness.” The
Howard Journal of Communications 20: 37-54. DOI: 10.1080/10646170802664979.
Riesch, Jonathan. 2010. “Hip Hop Culture: History and Trajectory.” Department of History
Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
http://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1046&context=gs_rp.
Williams, Jonathan. 2007. “‘Tha Realness’: in Search of Hip-Hop Authenticity.” College
Undergraduate Research Electronic Journal. http://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/
viewcontent.cgi?article=1093&context=curej.