When Hip Hop Unmasks Masculinity, Part 2

MASKulinity Podcast

In part 2 of our conversation with Dr. Joseph Ewoodzie and Tyler Bunzey, we open with Dr. Ewoodzie’s seminal book about hip hop, Break Beats in the Bronx: Rediscovering Hip-Hop’s Early Years

• He shares how hip hop’s musical structure helped him understand sociology thinkers and their theories.
• He shares how his interest in understanding belonging influences his hip-hop curriculum and how that led him to question the hip-hop history that existed prior to his book.
• How much has hip hop evolved?
  • How have MCs dealt with that evolution or lack thereof? Things were said in the past that could never be said today (homophobia and ignoring consent), and things are said today that would never have been said in the past (vulnerability).
  • But some things have only marginally changed, such as women still having more space for flexible sexuality than men do.
• Who are the gatekeepers in hip hop? It may not be who you think… Tyler Bunzey offers a theory and shares the best hip-hop culture analogy 9th Wonder made when he was studying under the acclaimed producer at Duke.
  • He shares his gripes about how the arts get left behind in terms of funding and the importance of exposing students to different perspectives and identities in the industry.
• Professor Bunzey provides more context on how consumers are also complicit in upholding MASKulinity in commercial hip hop.
• Hip-hop bracket anyone? The scholars share about the Hip-Hop and Urban Sociology course they coteach and how hip-hop provides an interesting lens through which to examine sociological issues. Like Samantha, you, too, may be sad that this class wasn’t around when you were in school.

Referenced on this episode:

• Mark Anthony Neal’s Looking for Leroy: Illegible Black Masculinities
• Tyler Bunzey’s Hip Hop Sublime theory
• Dr. Ewoodzie’s seminal book Break Beats in the Bronx
• Troy Smith’s thoughts on hip-hop knowledge; his archives

COMPANION PIECES:

• When Hip Hop Unmasks Masculinity, Part 1
• Tyler Bunzey on Beneath the MASK 🎭
• Sugar Hill Band? Capitalism and MASKulinity in Hip Hop
• MASKulinity is Making Some People a Lot of Money