An Exploration into the Objectification of Self in Female Hip-Hop Culture as a Form of Misogyny or Empowerment.

Doyinsola Faluyi

Abstract


This research paper explores whether the presentation of self in female hip- hop culture is a form of objectification or misogyny in the eyes of the viewer, using a Black feminist conceptual framework. While there is an existing body of research surrounding the objectification of women in mainstream media, less academic attention has been given to the objectification of Black women’s sexuality. This paper explores the performativity of Black female hip-hop artists to understand the effects upon audience perceptions of Black womanhood. This study argues the objectification of self in female hip-hop culture is misogynistic in relation to deeper societal and cultural issues faced by Black women historically - grounded in racism. This study contributes to gaining profound insight into what shapes and influences perceptions and expands our understanding of race and the ways in which racism is perpetuated in popular culture.

Full Text:

PDF

References


Alexander, E., 2014. Nicki Minaj offers her own version of feminism: 'If you got a big ol' butt shake it! Who cares?'; The singer asserts that Anaconda was actually very empowering [online]. United Kingdom: The Independent. Available from: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/nicki-minaj-offers-her-version-of-feminism-if-you-got-a-big-ol-butt-shake-it-who-cares-9951388.html [Accessed 5 March 2015].

Barker, C., 2012. Cultural Studies: Theory and Practice [online]. Sage Publications ltd: London.

Barker, C. and Galasinski, D., 2001. Cultural Studies and Discourse Analysis: A Dialogue on Language and Identity. London: Sage Publications.

Best, S. and Kellner, D., 1999. Enculturation. Rap, Black Age and Racial Difference

[online], 2 (2).

Blackledge, P., 2006. Reflections on the Marxist Theory of History [online]. Manchester

University Press: Manchester.

Braun, V. and Clarke, V., 2006. Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative

Research in Psychology [online], 3, 77-101.

Carby, H., 1982. White Women Listen! Black Feminism and the Boundaries of Sisterhood [online]. London: Hutchinson. Available from: https://we.riseup.net/assets/163126/versions/1/carby%20white%20woman%20listen.pdf [Accessed 4 March 2015].

Chang, J, 2014. Azelia Banks, Iggy Azalea and hip-hop’s appropriation problem [online]. The Guardian. Available from: http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/dec/24/iggy-azalea-azealia-banks-hip-hop-appropriation-problem [Accessed 11 May 2015].

Cheers, I., 2008. Who you calling a bitch? Black women’s complicity and production of mass media hip-hop misogyny [online]. UCL Centre for The Study of Women. Thinking Gender February 2008, UCLA Faculty Centre. UCL Centre for The Study of Women: UCLA. Available from: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/47g9s00n [Accessed 3 March

.

Collins, P., 2000. Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and The

Politics of Empowerment. 2nd Edition. London: Routledge.

Craft, C., 2010. Where my Girls at?: The Interpellation of Women in Gangsta Hip-Hop.

Thesis (MA). Georgia State University.

David, D., 2015. If It Ain’t About the Money: Does Hip-Hop Still Need Major Labels? [online]. United Kingdom: Complex Music. Available from: http://uk.complex.com/music/2015/01/hip-hop-major-labels-2015 [Accessed 16 March 2015].

Davis, A., 2013. Promotional Cultures. Cambridge: Polity Press.

Davis, D. and Coleman, H., 2001. The Intersection of Race, Class and Gender in Multicultural Counselling [online]. United States: Sage Publications. Available from: http://eds.b.ebscohost.com/eds/ebookviewer/ebook/ZTAwMHh3d19fNDc0MTAwX19BT g2?sid=8dc6f748-8f9f-41c9-9e7d d56a4d042819@sessionmgr110&vid=1&format=EB&rid=5 [Accessed 4 March 2015].

Denscombe, M., 2010. The Good Research Guide for small-scale social research projects. 4th Edition. New York: McGraw Hill Open University Press.

Durham, A., 2010. International Journal of Africana Studies. Hip Hop Feminist Media

Studies [online], 16 (1), 117-130.

Durham. A., Cooper, B. and Morris, S., 2013. Signs. The Stage Hip-Hop Feminism

Built: A New Directions Essay [online], 38 (3), 721-737.

Elan, P., 2012. It’s time to drop the bitch from hip-hop [online]. United Kingdom: The Guardian. Available from: http://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2012/sep/19/bitch-hip-hop [Accessed 3 March 2015].

Espin, O. 1996. Race, Racism and Sexuality in the life narrative of immigrant women. In Wilkinson, S., ed. Feminist Social Psychologies: International Perspectives. Buckingham: Open University Press, 87-105.

Frazier, E., 2013. Girls, Girls, Girls: Analysing Race and Sexuality Portrayal in Music

Videos. Thesis (MA). Stanford University.

Fredrickson, B.and Roberts, T., 1997. Psychology of Women. Objectification Theory:

Towards Understanding Women’s Lived Experiences and Mental Health Risks [online],

(2), 173-206.

G, G. and M, A., 2012. Black Women and Black Men in Hip-Hop Music. Misogyny, Violence and the Negotiation of (White-Owned) Space [online], 45 (1), 118-131.

Gentile, P., 2007. Popular Culture and Female Sexuality: Consuming the

‘Representations’ [online]. Canada: Carleton University.

Gilmore, D., 2001. Misogyny: The Male Malady [online]. University of Pennsylvania

Press: Philadelphia.

GOV.UK, 2014. The Data Protection Act [online]. GOV.UK. Available from:

https://www.gov.uk/data-protection/the-data-protection-act [Accessed 19 March 2015].

H, S. and Yancy, G., eds. 2006. Therapeutic Uses of Rap and Hip-Hop [online]. New

York: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group.

Hobson, J., 2005. Venus in the Dark: Blackness and Beauty in Popular Culture. New

York: Routledge.

Hooks, B., 1981. Ain’t I A Woman: Black Women and Feminism. London: Pluto Press. Hooks, B., 1997. Feminism: A Movement to End Sexist Oppression. In: S, J.and Kemp, S., eds. Feminisms [online]. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Hooks, B., 2000. Feminism is for Everybody: Passionate Politics. Cambridge: South

End Press.

Hooks, B., 2000. Feminist Theory: From Margin to Centre. Second Edition. United

Kingdom: Pluto Press.

Howard, N., 2014. I Am Not My Sister’s Keeper: Shifting Themes in Female Rap Videos (2005-2011). In: Goldman, A., Ford, V., Harris, A. and Howard, N., eds. Black Women and Popular Culture. United Kingdom: Lexington Books, 125-155.

Jameson, F., 1991. Postmodernism or, The Cultural Logic of Late Capitalism. United

States: Duke University Press Books.

Keyes, C., 2004. Rap Music and Street Consciousness [online]. United States: The

Board of Trustees.

Krolokke, C. and Sorensen, A., 2006. Gender Communication Theories and Analysis: From Silence to Performance [online]. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.

Kubrin, C.and W, R., 2009. Men and Masculinities. Misogyny in Rap Music: A Content

Analysis of Prevalence and Meanings [online], 12 (1), 3-29.

Lamb, S. and P, Z., 2011. Adolescent Girls’ Sexual Empowerment: Two Feminists

Explore The Concept [online], 66 (11-12) 703-712.

Layne, A. (2014). Now That’s a Bad Bitch!: The State of Women in Hip-Hop [online]. New York: The Hampton Institute. Available from: http://www.hamptoninstitution.org/women-in-hip-hop.html#.VPximfmsWuJ [Accessed 3 March 2015].

Leiss, W., Kline, S.and Jhally, S.,1997. Social Communications in Advertising. Second

Edition. London: Routledge.

Levy, A., 2006. Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture. New

York: Free Press.

Manca, L. and Manca, A., 1994. Gender Utopia in Advertising: A Critical Reader. Illinois: Procopian Press.

Metro Lyrics, 2015. Bitches Ain’t Shit Lyrics [online]. Metro Lyrics. Available from:

http://www.metrolyrics.com/bitches-aint-shit-lyrics-dr-dre.html [Accessed 16 March 2015].

Mulvey, L, 1989. Visual and Other Pleasures. Basingstoke: Macmillan.

Ndlouv, S., 2011. “Body†of evidence: Saartjie Baartman and the Archive. In: Chimpembere, N., ed. Representation and Black Womanhood: The Legacy of Sarah Baartman [online]. United States: Palgrave Macmillan, 17-31.

Oppliger, P., 2008. Girl’s gone skank: The sexualization of girls in American culture.

McFarland & Company: North Carolina.

Original People, 2013. Saartje “Sarah†Baartman (Hottentot Venus) [online]. Available from: http://originalpeople.org/saartjie-sarah-baartman-hottentot-venus/ [Accessed 11 May 2015].

Osiyale, M., 2013. Ladies First: female MCs in hip-hop from the past to present [online]. Urban Times. Available from: https://urbantimes.co/2013/10/ladies-first-female-mcs-in- hip-hop-from-the-past-to-the-present/ [Accessed 3 March 2015].

Perry, I., 1995. Feminist Voices in Hip-Hop: It’s My Thang and I’ll Swing It The Way That I Feel! Sexuality and Black Women Rappers. In Dines, G. and Humez, J., eds. Gender Race and Class in Media: A Text-Reader. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications,

-530.

Phillips, L., Morgan, K. and Stephens, D., 2005. The History of Hip-Hop. Oppositional Consciousness Within an Oppositional Realm: The Case of Feminism and Womanism in Hip-Hop [online], 90 (3) 253-277.

Quinn, E., 2000. “Who’s The Mack?â€: The Performativity and Politics of the Pim Figure

in Gangsta Rap. Journal of American Studies, 34 (1), 115-136.

Ranker, 2015. The Best Female Rappers [online]. Rankers. Available from:

http://www.ranker.com/list/female-rappers/whatevayoulike [Accessed 14 March 2015].

Rhodes, J., 1989. Strategies on Studying Women of Color in Mass Communication. In Creedon, P., ed. Women in Mass Communication: Challenging Gender Values.London: Sage Publications, 112-125.

Rhodes, J., 1989. Strategies on Studying Women of Colour in Mass Communication: Overview and Theoretical Framework. In: Creedon, P., ed. Women in Mass Communication: Challenging Gender Values. London: Sage Publications.

Rojek, C., 2002. Stuart Hall and Cultural Studies. Oxford: Polity.

Rollins, J., 1991. American Journal of Sociology. Reviewed Work: Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of Empowerment. by Patricia Hill Collins [online], 97 (3), 897-899.

Said, Edward., 1979. Orientalism. Vintage Books Edition: United States.

Szymanski, D. Moffitt, L.and Carr, E., 2011. Sexual Objectification of Women: Advances to Theory and Research [online], 39 (1) 6-38.

Thomas, D., 2006. A General Inductive Approach for Analysing Qualitative Evaluation

Data [online], 27 (2), 237-426.

Urban Dictionary, 2007. Term - bad bitch [online]. Available from:

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bad+bitch [Accessed 11 May 2015]. Walliman, N., 2011. Your Research Project: Designing and Planning Your Work. 3rd

Edition. London: Sage Publications.

Whelehan, I., 1995. Modern Feminist Thought: From the Second Wave to ‘Post-

Feminism’. New York: New York University Press.

White, T., 2013. Missy “Misdemeanour†Elliott and Nicki Minaj: Fashionistin’ Black Female Sexuality in Hip-Hop Culture-Girl Power or Overpowered? Journal of Black Studies [online], 44 (6), 607-626.

Wilkinson, S., 1996, ed. Feminist social psychologies: international perspectives.

United States: Open University Press.

Videos

Atlantic Records, 2009. Lil’ Kim – No Matter What They Say (video) [video, online]. YouTube. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcZoqpJ1PYs [Accessed

March 2015].

Atlantic Records, 2009. Trina – Da Baddest B**h (video version) [video, online]. YouTube. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABZDZY5aCLY [Accessed 19 March 2015].

VEVO, 2009. Foxy Brown – Hot Spot [video, online]. YouTube. Available from:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4wB7yne0gA [Accessed 19 March 2015].

VEVO, 2009. Ludacris – What’s your fantasy [video, online]. YouTube. Available from:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mq-Ru6kQhE4 [Accessed 15 March 2015].

VEVO, 2014. Nicki Minaj – Anaconda [video, online]. YouTube. Available from:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDZX4ooRsWs [Accessed 19 March 2015].

Images

Jezebel, 2014. Saartje Baartman: The Original Booty Queen [photograph]. United States: Jezebel. Available from: http://jezebel.com/saartje-baartman-the-original-booty- queen-1658569879 [Accessed 15 May 2015].

Amazon, 2015. Magi Stick Explicit [photograph] United States: Amazon. Available from:

http://www.amazon.com/Magic-Stick-Explicit/dp/B00123D3WQ [Accessed 15 May 2015].

Discogs, 2015. Da Brat: Sittin’ On Top of the World [photograph]. United States: Discogs. Available from: http://www.discogs.com/Da-Brat-Sittin-On-Top-Of-The- World/release/1156236 [Accessed 15 May 2015].

Mail Online, 2014. ‘Hannah Conda!’ Miley Cyrus spoofs Nicki Minaj’s controversial bootyful album art with superimposed image featuring throwback to her Disney days [photograph]. United Kingdom: Mail Online. Available from: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2721381/Miley-Cyrus-spoofs-Nicki-Minajs- controversial-bootyful-album-art-superimposed-image-featuring-throwback-Disney-days.html [Accessed 15 May 2015].

DJ Nasty Boy, 2013. Foxy Brown - Candy – (Promo CD Single) – 2001 [photograph]. DJ Nasty Boy. Available from: http://djnastyboy.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/foxy-brown- candy-promo-cd-single-2001.html [Accessed 15 May 2015].


Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


ISSN 2516-9157