Popular Islamic music: local and global
This week:
The local and the global: Islam in western (global) musical genres
Thursday (12b)
Islamic punk (taqwacore) and African American Islamic hip hop
Due
Read Islam in the Mix: Lessons of the Five Percent, by anthropologist Ted Swedenburg (University of Arkansas) [Note: unfortunately many of his links are broken, but you can google to get the same or similar information]. Locate two examples of Islamic hip hop online. Explain how each conveys an Islamic orientation, based on lyrics or images or other features, and how they contrast. (You may locate examples from Swedenburg's article if you wish, or may broaden the search to hip hop worldwide.) 1 page total. Submit via eClass under (12b).
Some links related to Swedenburg's article
- Allah U Akbar, Brand Nubian. [1] 1992.
- It was written: The Message, Nas [2] 1996.
- Fu-Gee-La, The Fugees [3] 1996.
- gods earths and 85ers, Poor Righteous Teachers [4] 1996.
- In The Ghetto, Eric B. & Rakim [5] 1990.
- Party for Your Right to Fight, Public Enemy [6] 1988.
- Ain't No Mystery, Brand Nubian (with lyrics) [7] 1993.
- True Fresh MC, The Genius [8] 1990.
- On and on, Erykah Badu [9] 1997.
- Dog It, Digable Planets [10] 1994.
A broader sampling of Islamic hip hop (including Nation of Islam, NGE, and Sunni - along with nashid and Islamic pop generally) can be located here: Muslim Hip Hop
Ironically for some, Islam has opened a space for women especially those dissatisfied with the objectifications of mainstream hip hop culture. See especially:
Class
We'll finish watching Taqwacore and discuss it, then talk about Muslim hip hop, as time allows, and wrap that up on Tuesday. Don't forget to submit your draft papers on Tuesday - these can be incomplete, but should show some serious effort in writing and research.