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The Sheffield culture guide written by in-the-know locals

Hip Hop & Higher Education is an international online conference, co-organised by Sheffield-based educators and artists. With a mixture of speaking and performing, this free event is open to anyone passionate about hip hop and/or interested in its role in universities.

The one-day event aims to:

  • Provide a space for people to exhibit and enjoy the critical, creative and communal elements of hip hop
  • Interrogate hip hop's exclusion from higher education, linking it to intersecting systems of oppression and discrimination
  • Explore the merits and possible dangers of incorporating hip hop into formal sites of higher education

The conference will involve a mixture of people from different personal and professional backgrounds, including hip hop artists themselves. It aims to engage with audiences that share this passion and interest, whether in their personal or professional lives. In accordance with the five pillars of hip hop, it will incorporate MCing, graffiti art, breakdancing, DJing and knowledge production in the form of presentations, performances and workshops.

Participants:
Otis Mensah, Nathan Geering, Dee Warburton, Manny Madriaga, NikNak, Jahi, Lady Sanity, Darren Chetty, Dr Monique Charles, and more.

Topics:
Connecting higher education with the hip hop community; Christian rap; challenging ableism through breakdancing and beatboxing; race and sexuality in Frantz Fanon and Tyler, The Creator; Black women in the music industry; and more.

Schedule coming soon.

Organised by Dr Alex Mason (University of Sheffield), Otis Mensah, Parise Charmichael-Murphy and Dr Stuart Green, funded by British Association for American Studies.

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