Through space and rhyme: How hip-hop uses Afrofuturism to take listeners on journeys of empowerment

By Roy Whitaker, Associate Professor of Africana Philosophy of Religions and American Religious Diversity, San Diego State University

It is perhaps only natural, as hip-hop celebrates its 50th anniversary, that people look to the genre’s future. But for some rappers, the future has always been part of the story.

Ever since August 1973, hip-hop artists have turned to Afrofuturism – a mix of science fiction, politics and liberating fantasy – to inform their lyrics and their look.

As a professor…

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