Cambria Press is proud to be the first academic publisher to bring out a book on this topic related to rap music. Whether you love or hate rap, the fact is that rap music and its gangster rap variant are now far too important and influential in American life to be ignored by the general public and research communities alike.
The studies conducted thus far are one written from the disciplinary perspectives of communications, music ,and cultural studies, all of which provide an important narrative, but a gap remains–one that leaves the central claims and impacts naddressed.
It is in this context that renowned sociologist Professor Benjamin Bowser began studying hip hop and gangster rap precisely because the influence of this movement and music on African American adolescents HIV infection risk takers. At the same time, the frequent use of the N-word by gangster rappers has become a major unaddressed issue in civil rights that has also not been studied. Furthermore, an important reason to study these unaddressed issues is to not only better understand them but also to offer solutions to the problems they pose and to improve the quality of life of all involved.
Within the rapidly growing literature on hip hop and gangster rap, Gangster Rap and Its Social Cost stands out from the rest because it provides a number of unique contributions. First, based upon a community case study, the author asserts that gangster rap has empowered white racists and, as a consequence, has reduced the quality of life and civil rights of listeners and non-listeners alike.
Second, this book goes to great length to make a serious distinction between gangster rap and hip hop. Disentangling one from the other opens the door to a more focused and critical analysis of gangster rap and provides an outline of the unmet potential of rap in hip hop.
Third, national surveys are used as evidence in the debate about the size and characteristics of the rap and hip hop listener audiences. There are some surprises here that should reframe the controversy on who listens to and buys rap music.
Fourth, there is a first generation of psychological and social scientific research on rap music that is summarized through 2011.
Finally, the problems in gangster rap are not inevitable and we do not have to live with them. They can be effectively addressed without attacking the civil liberties of gangster rappers or their corporate sponsors.
Gangster Rap and Its Social Cost is must reading for young adults, parents, and students in sociology, psychology, ethnic studies, communication, music, community studies and public health.
If you ENJOY rap, you should read this book.
If you DISLIKE rap, you should read this book.
If you think that all rap is the same and affects only a certain demographic group, then you definitely need to read this book.
Watch the fascinating interview with Professor Bowser and learn about this sociocultural phenomenon!
Recommend this book to your library! Librarians can order the book directly from Cambria Press or they can order through their preferred academic book wholesaler (Cambria Press is on the approval list of premier wholesalers like YBP).
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