Towards a progressive critique of rap music

This thesis is a philosophical investigation of critiques underpinning the criminalisation and condemnation of rap music. Through this philosophical evaluation, I argue that there are severe limitations to existing critiques, and they are often underpinned by various injustices. My analysis examines critiques which claim that rap music has a problematic connection to violence. This alleged connection to violence is being used as a basis for the censorship and restrictions of predominantly young black males. The thesis also explores a feminist critique of rap music, which sees self-sexualising black women rappers as reinforcing racist stereotypes. Through this exploration, I will show that philosophy offers a fruitful toolkit for scrutinising popular and pervasive criticisms of rap in ways that advance the public and academic debates about rap music. This work is timely; black art is being scrutinised in unparalleled ways. This thesis is a philosophical starting point for pushing back against this scrutiny.