Patriots and Pedagogues: Cultural Institutions and the Performative Politics of Minority German Hip-Hop

Authors

  • Kate Zambon University of Pennsylvania
  • Didem Uca University of Pennsylvania

Keywords:

citizenship, migration, popular culture, hip-hop, music, pedagogy, national identity, transnationalism, cultural policy

Abstract

This article examines the politics of immigrant and minority German hip-hop from its emergence until today as well as its role within the cultural policies of the state. Hip-hop in Germany has both provided scripts for political and social contestation and acted as a means for the state to manage potentially “unruly” youth. Whereas early politically oriented hip-hop was divided between minoritarian ethnic and civic national forms of affiliation, in the past decade it has increasingly embraced German national symbolism from diverse political positions. We analyze these developments in the work of three contemporary artists and examine how their cultural production operates within national and transnational pedagogical contexts.

Author Biographies

Kate Zambon, University of Pennsylvania

Ph.D. Candidate

Didem Uca, University of Pennsylvania

Ph.D. Student

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Published

2016-01-29

Issue

Section

Articles