Date of Award
Spring 2021
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Historical & Political Studies; College of Arts & Sciences
First Advisor
Jennifer Riggan
Abstract
Rap and Hip hop has evolved tremendously since its inception. The collective genre has been catapulted to global influence, where in the United States it represents the largest genre based on market share. After reviewing the history of rap music there is a perceived relationship between hip hop and authenticity. To which the question arose of whether hip hop could maintain authenticity in a commercial sphere. To explore this relationship, after reviewing the literature on authenticity, a model of analysis created by Newman and Smith was used to explore 5years worth of data dealing with the Billboard top 100 list. The finds suggest that hip hop has varying degrees of authenticity, but typically authenticity on the higher end coincides with commercial reception as artists who are more authentic boost sales prospects for later works. This relationship is important to explore as it paints a picture for how authentic voices are able to be heard.
Recommended Citation
Allam, Amin, "Real Rap, Does Authenticity Even Matter in Hip Hop?" (2021). Capstone Showcase. 5.
https://scholarworks.arcadia.edu/showcase/2021/is/5
Included in
American Popular Culture Commons, Linguistic Anthropology Commons, Music Theory Commons, Social Influence and Political Communication Commons, Speech and Rhetorical Studies Commons
Real Rap, Does Authenticity Even Matter in Hip Hop?
Rap and Hip hop has evolved tremendously since its inception. The collective genre has been catapulted to global influence, where in the United States it represents the largest genre based on market share. After reviewing the history of rap music there is a perceived relationship between hip hop and authenticity. To which the question arose of whether hip hop could maintain authenticity in a commercial sphere. To explore this relationship, after reviewing the literature on authenticity, a model of analysis created by Newman and Smith was used to explore 5years worth of data dealing with the Billboard top 100 list. The finds suggest that hip hop has varying degrees of authenticity, but typically authenticity on the higher end coincides with commercial reception as artists who are more authentic boost sales prospects for later works. This relationship is important to explore as it paints a picture for how authentic voices are able to be heard.