Remix and Life Hack in Hip Hop: Towards a Critical Pedagogy of Music (Youth, Media, & Culture Series)

Many hiphoppas labour to sustain Hiphop Kulture in their communities far from the big stages, world tours, and hit singles enjoyed by a shockingly few American hiphoppas. The creative labour of these few mega stars is calculated in billions of dollars. But for most hiphoppas, their creative labour may never get expressed in economic terms. Instead it is expressed in social capital, the production of collective and individual subjectivities, the bonds of love that build and hold communities together, and the healing of broken hearts, broken homes, and broken neighborhoods in broken cities. Hiphop Kulture is NOT a music genre, it is MUCH more, and exploring how the sharing of aesthetic resources builds community, and how situated learning plays a necessary role in cultural sustainability draws out questions that may lead to a model of community located cultural education, and a starting point for a critical pedagogy of music. “I ain’t going to front, academics talking about hiphop scares me and often pisses me off. I’m protective about this culture like it’s my own baby because it’s meant so much to me and my close friends. In my less angry moments I do appreciate the fact that this culture still has so much to give to the rest of the world and that the next level is what we give back. Well, we need allies in this complex world to move things forward. As I’ve gotten to know Michael I consider him such an Ally and that his intent is firmly squared in empowering cats in the front lines. I also really dig the fact that he is committed to helping document the histories of those who laid the groundwork in the Edmonton scene. This is the respectful place to start. I look forward to bearing witness to Grass roots Hiphop reclaiming its voice and being at the forefront with academics supporting their community efforts.” – Stephen “Buddha” Leafloor, Founder of the Canadian Floor Masters, Founder of Blueprintforlife.ca, Ashoka Fellow, Social Worker and an aging bboy! “Dr. Michael B. MacDonald’s research into Hip Hop’s pedagogical ingenuity have not only led us to the grassroots of Hip Hop’s rich and vibrant global culture, but to the very Ethos of Hiphop. With bold examination, this exciting research stands at the forefront of contemporary post colonial Hiphop literature.” – Andre Hamilton aka Dre Pharoh, Executive Director Cipher5 Hiphop Academy, Temple of HipHop Canada TABLE OF CONTENTS 6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 8 INTRODUCTION: From Culture to the Production of Aesthetic Systems 10 WHY HIPHOP KULTURE? 11 SUBJECTIVITIES TRAPPED BY SYSTEMS OF GLOBAL CAPITAL 11 REMIX AND LIFE HACK 14 TOWARDS A CRITICAL PEDAGOGY OF MUSIC 16 NOTES 19 SECTION I: AESTHETIC SYSTEMS THEORY FOR A CRITICAL PEDAGOGY OF POPULAR MUSIC 20 CHAPTER 1: AESTHETIC SYSTEMS THEORY: Doing Hip Hop Research Together at Cipher5 21 INTRODUCTION 21 MULTI-DIMENSIONAL CARTOGRAPHY OF AESTHETIC SYSTEMS 25 DIALOGIC RESEARCH: CONTEXT 26 DIALOGIC EXCHANGE 28 Andre 28 Michael 30 Andre 31 Michael 32 Andre 32 CONCLUSIONS 33 NOTES 35 CHAPTER 2: AESTHETIC GOVERNMENTALITY & SUBJECTIVATION IN AESTHETICS SYSTEMS 36 POLITICS OF POPULAR MUSIC PEDAGOGY: EDUCATION FOR EMANCIPATION OR LIBERATION 36 THE FIRST RULE OF AESTHETIC FIGHT CLUB 40 AESTHETIC GOVERNMENTALITY AND AESTHETIC SUBJECTIVATION 42 AESTHETIC BIOPOWER IN YOUTH PRACTICES OF SUBJECTIVATION 43 CRITICAL PEDAGOGY OF POPULAR MUSIC THROUGH AESTHETIC SYSTEMS 45 Textual-Aural 46 Visual-Gestural 47 CONCLUSION 48 CHAPTER 3: CRITICAL PEDAGOGY OF AESTHETICS EDUCATION 49 AESTHETICS 50 A CULTURAL DEFINITION OF AESTHETICS 51 AESTHETIC EDUCATION AS ART APRECIATION 52 CULTURAL STUDIES OF SENSIBILITY AS CRITICAL PEDAGOGY 53 THREE TOPICS FOR A CRITICAL PEDAGOGY OF POPULAR MUSIC 54 NOTE 56 CHAPTER 4: CRITICAL PEDAGOGY OF LISTENING 57 PART ONE: FROM MUSIC EDUCATION TO A CRITICAL PEDAGOGY FOR POPULAR MUSIC 57 Music Appreciation 57 Music Appreciation in a Neoliberal Age 60 PART TWO: CRITICAL PEDAGOGIES FOR MUSIC EDUCATION 61 Critical Pedagogy 61 Towards Critical Listening 62 Overview of Foundations of Critical Listening 63 Critical Listening Codes and Democratic Engagement 64 PART THREE: CRITICAL SEMIOTICS OF LISTENING 65 Semiotics 65 Music Semiotics 66 Critical Semiotics 66 Adorno 67 Baudrillard 67 CRITICAL PEDAGOGY AND CONSCIOUSNESS RAISING 68 Critical Music Semiotics: Critical Listening 69 CRITICAL LISTENING APPLIED 70 CONCLUSION 71 SECTION II: CASE STUDIES IN HIPHOP KULTURE 72 CHAPTER 5: HIPHOP CITIZEN: Keepin’ It Local 73 THE 118 AV E. MEETINGS AND HIP HOP ECOLOGY 74 NEOLIBERALISM AND CULTURAL EROSION 76 TALKING COMMUNITY HIP HOP 77 LEARNING TOGETHER IN A CULTURE CIRCLE 78 CONSCIENTIZAÇÃO: APPLICATION AND FINDINGS OF THE CULTURE CIRCLE 78 THE CULTURE CIRCLE: TOWARDS CRITICAL CONSCIOUSNESS 79 The Culture Circle as a Situation 79 Awareness of “I am hip-hop, We are hip-hop” 80 LISTENING AND FLOWING RUBRICS 81 CONCLUSION: CREATING HEALTHY URBAN CULTURE ECOLOGIES 83 NOTES 84 CHAPTER 6: YEGH3: (Edmonton Hiphop History) as Project-Based Learning 86 FROM HIP HOP CITIZENS TO HIP HOP HISTORY 86 HIPHOP KULTURE IS ENGAGED ARTS PEDAGOGY 89 THE BLACK ARTS MOVEMENT 90 FROM ENGAGED ART PEDAGOGY TO PROJECT-BASED LEARNING 93 COMMUNITY KNOWLEDGE: PROJECT-BASED LEARNING 95 COMMUNITY KNOWLEDGE: MICROHISTORIES 96 YEGH3: STUDENT RESPONSES 96 CONCLUSIONS 99 NOTE 99 CHAPTER 7: YEGH3: Edmonton Hiphop Microhistories 100 CULTURAL AESTHETICS AND HIP HOP PEDAGOGY 101 YEGH3: EDMONTON HIP-HOP HISTORY 102 MICROHISTORIES 102 YEGH3 MICROHISTORIES: THE BEGINNINGS OF EDMONTON HIP-HOP 103 Curt Black/Mark Giles/Don Joyce/Teddy Pemberton 103 THE 80S HIP-HOP PIONEERS 105 DJ Dice 105 Andre Hamilton a.k.a Point Blank/Dedaliss 108 Maximum Definitive 109 Task Force 111 THE NEW SCHOOL 112 War Party 112 Rellik 117 Errol Henry 120 EDMONTON TODAY 121 Touch 121 Politic Live 122 DJ Gamegirl 125 Titilope Sonuga 126 NOTES 128 CHAPTER 8: CIPHER5 AS METHOD FOR A CULTURAL STUDIES OF SENSIBILITY 129 CULTURAL STUDIES OF SENSIBILITY 130 AESTHETIC SYSTEMS AND THE CULTURE CIRCLE 132 CIPHER5: HIP HOP CONSCIENTIZATION AND OVERSTANDING 134 AN EMANCIPATORY BOOK CLUB 134 CIPHER5: METHOD FOR RESEARCH AND TEACHING 136 CIPHER5 AS LEARNING MODEL IN STUDENT’S OWN WORDS 138 CONCLUSIONS 141 NOTE 142 REFERENCES 143 Front Matter....Pages i-xviii Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Aesthetic Systems Theory....Pages 1-17 Aesthetic Governmentality & Subjectivation in Aesthetics Systems....Pages 19-31 Critical Pedagogy of Aesthetics Education....Pages 33-40 Critical Pedagogy of Listening....Pages 41-55 Front Matter....Pages 57-57 Hiphop Citizen....Pages 59-71 Yegh3....Pages 73-86 Yegh3....Pages 87-115 Cipher5 as Method for a Cultural Studies of Sensibility....Pages 117-130 Back Matter....Pages 131-138