The Soundtrack of Our Lives

By Christian Kiefer

In teaching undergraduate college courses focused on American popular culture, I have been increasingly aware of the importance of hip-hop, not only as a genre of music but as cultural force. Almost all of my students know and understand and love hip-hop. Hip-hop can be seen in their fashions, in their language and, of course in their appreciation of the all-important beat. In fact, it doesn’t seem to matter if my students are born and raised in America or arrived here within months to attend school: They all show the tell-tale influences of hip-hop culture.

“Hip-hop is one of the primary youth subcultures through which today’s young people perceive the world and model aspects of their identities,” notes Halifu Osumare, assistant professor in UC Davis’ African American and African Studies Program. “Given hip-hop’s permeation of all aspects of U.S. society, its impact has been substantial.”

Indeed, hip-hop has grown from its distinctly African American, urban origins, to become part of a global culture, a point noted by Riché Richardson, associate professor of English at UC Davis. “It has had global dispersals and has manifested itself across racial and ethnic categories.

“We should recognize its truly revolutionary and subversive qualities, but at the same time, remain aware of the dangers of collapsing youth under this banner in the present era,” Richardson added.

“It was predicted to be a fad that would not last long, but it has proven to be a persistent and growing part of American pop culture,” noted Osumare. “Hip-hop is the soundtrack of our lives these days, and continues to grow. Each year there are new doctoral dissertations written on aspects of the culture, as well as scholarly books published on the subject frequently. It is here to stay like blues culture and jazz culture before it. We need to understand its depth beyond the media hype and often misrepresentation.”

Professors Osumare and Richardson are both preparing book-length volumes about aspects of hip-hop culture.

Related stories:

Making Hip-Hop History

A Brief Sampling of Beats and Breaks

Christian Kiefer is a graduate student in English at UC Davis and a musician and freelance music writer. More information can be found at www.christiankiefer.com.