Messengers: A Content Analyses of the Billboard Rap Charts Number One Songs from 2000 to 2017 By Connor Mitchell Grantz Honors Thesis Department of Ethnic Studies Committee: Joanne Belknap, Ph.D., Ethnic Studies (Advisor) Nicholas Villanueva, Ph.D., Ethnic Studies Charla Agnoletti, M.E.d., Education University of Colorado Boulder October 30th, 2019 Abstract Rap music, which originated under hip hop, has become one of the most popular genres of music in the United States. From the beginnings of hip hop, the hip hop generation was named, and a movement started. There has been much research on both hip hop and rap music and the messages that this radical genre of music produced. While content analyses have been done in the past, it is necessary to continue to analyze this music, as it is incredibly prevalent and impactful in the United States. These analyses are important in terms of examining commercial success, mainstream accessibility, and the messages and themes that are present in one of the most popular genres of music. This thesis examines the content of the rap songs that reached number one on the Billboard rap chart, from the years 2000 to 2017, providing both a historical and contemporary view of this music that has reached the pinnacle of success among the genre of rap music since the turn of the century. The findings document demographics of the artists and themes that are present in the most popular rap songs; indicating consistency in messages across the sample, with popular rap songs having many references to deviant behavior, explicit word use, and negative references to women, while lacking in socially conscious themes and pro- women themes. However, rap songs have also provided some powerfully consciousness-raising about important social issues. Overall, the themes that “plague” rap music are present in the most popular rap songs, and this has been consistent with time in the United States. 2 Acknowledgements Dr. Belknap and My Committee There is no amount of words that I could use to convey how grateful I am toward you through this entire process. Even when this project seemed insurmountable, you were always there pushing me to do better and supporting me. I know it has not been easy on both ends, but I am forever grateful for you and the work that you do. No one has ever pushed me harder to achieve. And for that, sincerely, thank you Joanne. For my committee, I am so thankful that you all said “yes.” It means so much to me. Charla and Dr. Villanueva, thank you. My family No one has been more supportive than my family. Thank you to my mom, my dad, my brother, and my grandparents for always being there. You all saw me through this process and were always there telling me I could do it, and that you believed. Sometimes that is all I needed to feel better. Thank you, and I love you all more than you know. My friends Yet another group of people who showed their unwavering support, even at times when I probably sounded like I was crazy. Specifically, I want to thank Derek, Ben, Izzy, Leta, Makena, and Olivia. A special thanks to Makena and Olivia, for seeing me every week at our honors meetings too. All of you were there in times of need for me and always had my back. But to my friends in general that knew about this project, thank you for even caring enough to talk to me about it; even that was enough! Much love to all of you. CU Boulder Alumni Association Thank you all for the continual support and understanding as I grinded my way through this. Everyone was very supportive, and always understood when I needed to go. Thank you. 3 Table of Contents Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………….......2 Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………………………3 Table of Contents………………………………………………………………………………...4 Chapter 1: STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM AND THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVE Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………5 Theoretical Perspective; Critical Race Theory………………………………………………...7 The Current Study……………………………………………………………………………….9 Chapter 2: Literature Review Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………….10 Critical Hip Hop Studies……………………………………………………………………….10 Other Content Analyses………………………………………………………………………..14 Rap and Hip Hop as a Genre of Popular U.S. Music……………………………………...…18 Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………...…….24 Chapter 3: Methods Research Question…………………………………………………………………………..….26 Sample…………………………………………………………………………………………..26 Hypothesis………………………………………………………………………………………27 Variables………………………………………………………………………………………...27 Measurement Instruments……………………………………………………………………..29 Limitations………………………………………………………………………………………29 Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………30 Chapter 4: Findings Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………..31 Frequency of song per year and Number of performing artist……………………………...31 Demographics of primary artist and primary artist by number of songs (and race x gender)...32 Explicit Words…………………………………………………………………………….……..33 N-Word Use………………………………………………………………………………….….34 Deviant Behavior……………………………………………………………………………….34 References to Women…………………………………………………………………………..35 Socially Conscious References…………………………………………………………………37 Chapter 5: Discussion and Conclusion Significance and Implications………………………………………………………………….40 Future Directions……………………………………………………………………………….45 Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………46 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………………….48 Appendices Appendix A: Tables…………………………………………………………………...………..53 4 CHAPTER 1: STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM AND THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVE Introduction Hip hop is more than just a type of music; it is a movement (Rabaka, 2013). The hip hop movement is radical and has been gaining momentum since hip hop’s creation in the 1970’s and 80’s (Norfleet, 2015; Rabaka, 2013). As time has progressed, hip hop has become one of the most popular and consumed types of music across the entire world. At the same time, the music and movement faced significant public backlash. Hip hop is criticized for being misogynistic, homophobic, and even, at times, racist (Clay, 2007). Simultaneously, hip hop is also labeled progressive, conscious, and critical socially. Rap, a sub section of hip hop, has been criticized for decades, while being consumed in abundance. However, what messages are being portrayed in rap songs? And what are the messages of the most popular rap songs? Billboard is the company that documents and tracks of songs’ popularity. At the end of every week, Billboard crowns one song as number one, above all others. These songs are considered the most popular at the time, and thus are being consumed the most by general audiences. Billboard has kept track of chart records for years, since 1940 as a starting point, and has kept records of each song that reached number one; including current charts, and all the way back to the year 1940. For this thesis, I conducted a content analysis of the chart-topping rap songs from 2000 to 2017 to document the demographic characteristics of the artists and the messages in their lyrics. Is the content of rap lyrics the same as it was seventeen years ago or has it changed with the times? Also, what are the social implications of such popular songs and messages? 5 It is important to discuss hip hop from its origins, to best display how rap fits into hip hop, and show how they are not the same, though they are often times used synonymously. Hip hop originated in New York and has 5 elements (Norfleet, 2015). The elements are: DJing, Emceeing (what is now more commonly known as “rapping”, b-boying/b-girling (break dancing), graffiti, and knowledge (Norfleet, 2015). Current “hip hop” is almost used as another word for rap, but there are large differences between the two. Hip hop is the umbrella term, and rap fits within that. Rap has also just become one of the most popular branches of hip hop, but all the other elements are present within hip hop culture, and popular culture in general. The fifth element, knowledge, is widely important in both hip hop and rap as well. Rap has become a mainstream genre of music in the United States, despite rap’s various labeling. It has flourished and become one of the most popular types of music. Rap’s messages are often of violent, misogynistic, and homophobic basis (Clay, 2007). But not all rap is in that category and rap was not always that way; rap has evolved over time to become what it is today. The average consumer loves raps’ messages, as they fit within oppressive ideologies in the United States (Perry, 2004). However, some rap has combatted these stereotypes by speaking on socially conscious issues, such as police brutality, racism, oppression, mass incarceration, and so on. It is notable that such socially conscious issues which so strongly affect African Americans and oppressed people, is so eagerly consumed by white audiences. To understand the impact of rap, it is useful to focus on the most consumed and highly ranked songs and the characteristics of the artists who write and perform these songs and lyrics, to document the messages they are conveying to the consumers, and whether these messages are positive, negative, or somewhere in-between. In this study, the unit of analysis is the song lyrics, such as how many times explicit words are used, how often the n-word is used, how many total references there are to women 6 (and sub-sections for positive and negative references to women), and references to social consciousness. The analysis also includes each performer’s race and gender, the number of performers per song, and the popularity of the number one artists