Linguistics of Rap, and the Effect on the Youth

By Andrew Calder

Introduction

• Rap music is huge all around the world today.

• Has a big influence on the youth.

• The linguistics of rap and the way that rappers change words and phrases has always been something that interested me.

• I’m going to talk to you about…– My research questions– The seven articles I used in my literature review– A discussion of my thinking process– Ultimately my conclusion

Research Questions

• Main question: What is the grammatical make up of rap music and how does it effect the youth?

• Sub questions:

– What are some places that rap is starting to be popular, where has it been popular for awhile, and how does rap effect the way people speak there?

– Is the influence of rap is good, bad, or indifferent to the way children learn literacy and verbal skills in school?

Literature Review

• Marcyliena Morgan (2009)– what hip hop music was all about, and how it is actually

a language in itself – African American English (AAE)

• Christopher Jones (2011)– rise of hip-hop music in Quebec, Canada and how it is

changing the language

• Tanya Djavadzadeh (2010)– the history and development of rap music in the city of

Houston, Texas

Literature Review

• Mary Christianakis (2011)– uses the tools from the hybridity theory to study how urban

fifth graders made language hybrids using rap and poetry to participate in classroom literacy.

– Yearlong study with 2 conclusions:• “standard-based and canon-driven writing models maintained literacy

and language borders through antihybrid practices based in antipopular ideologies.” (Christianakis 2011)

• “negotiate and challenge linguistic and ideological constraints that hemmed in classroom literacy.” (Christianakis 2011)

• William Olivo (2001) – the clear non-standard spelling in the raps, which were used

intentionally for various reasons. – African American Vernacular English (AAVE)

Literature Review

• Cynthia Januszka (2010)– many educators belief that rap music can be used to get

through to these kids, and help their literacy and improve stuff like their vocabularies.

– study they do looks at the effects of using a culturally responsive reading strategy on the fluency, decoding, and comprehension skills of African American students.

• Darin Howe (2011)– denial that many people have of African American

Vernacular English (AAVE) – The two main parts of the negation system he looks at

are “ain’t and negative concord.” (Howe)

Discussion

• Grammar of rap

• Wide variety of styles and differing levels of popularity in certain areas

• Effect on the children in school

Conclusion

• Linguistics and grammar of rap do not follow standard English intentionally for the reasons discussed previously.

• There is different styles and levels of popularity all over the world, and it effects how people talk there in those areas.

• Rap does have some effect on school aged children.

References• Christianakis, M. (2011). Hybrid texts: Fifth graders, rap music, and

writing. Urban Education, 46(5)• Djavadzadeh, Tanya. (2010) Houston Rap Music- Changes, influences,

Southside. Journal of the American Studies Association of Texas, Nov2010, Vol. 41, p11-16, 6p

• Howe, Darin. "Negation in African American Vernacular English*." Web. 5 Nov. 2011.

• Januszka, C. M.The effects of using rap music on the fluency skills of 2nd grade African American students. Dissertation Abstracts International, A: The Humanities and Social Sciences

• Jones, Christopher M. (2011) Hip-Hop Quebec: Self and Synthesis. Popular Music & Society, May2011, Vol. 34 Issue 2, p177-202, 26p

• Morgan, Marcyliena. ""Nothin' but a G Thang": Grammar and Language Ideology in Hip Hop Identity." Making Sense of Language: Readings in Culture and Communication. New York [u.a.: Oxford UP, 2009. Print.

• Olivo, W. (2001). Phat lines: Spelling conventions in rap music. Written Language and Literacy, 4(1), 67-67-85.