There are 3 prompts. Each one should be a successful academic essay, from introduction to conclusion. Use the article to provide at least one quote from relevant text. Please give the outlines of each one before the essay. In the beginning of the quarter

REVIEW

Conflicting Paradigms on Gender and Sexuality in Rap Music: A Systematic Review

Denise Herd

Published online: 21 November 2014

� Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014

Abstract Rap music has major social and cultural significance for American and global youth audiences and, along with other media, is believed to play a central

role in shaping adolescents’ beliefs, attitudes and intentions related to sexuality.

However few studies concerned with health issues have explored the content of

lyrics regarding sex and gender, with most research in this area focused on the

effects of media portrayals on sexual behavior and problems. Much of the schol-

arship analyzing sexuality and gender issues in the media comes from disciplines

outside of health and the behavioral sciences, such as cultural studies. This paper

compares literature related to sexuality and gender in rap music from a variety of

perspectives such as feminism, cultural studies, and sociology as well as from health

and behavioral research in order to deepen understanding of the lyrical content that

may influence sexual attitudes and behavior. The review illustrates that conflicting

paradigms, for example of sexual agency or misogyny, emerge in this literature and

that few studies are both conceptually rich and empirically strong. Future research

should address this challenge as well as explore changes over time in how sexual

and gender relationships have been depicted in this musical genre.

Keywords Rap music � Sexuality � Gender relationships � Feminism � Masculinity

Introduction

This review focuses on the presentation of gender relationships and sexuality in rap

music lyrics. This is a compelling research issue because of the major cultural

significance of rap music for American and global youth audiences (Mizell 2003)

D. Herd (&) School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94707, USA

e-mail: [email protected]

123

Sexuality & Culture (2015) 19:577–589

DOI 10.1007/s12119-014-9259-9

and the critical role the media is believed to play in shaping adolescents’ beliefs,

attitudes and intentions related to sexuality (Aubrey and Frisby 2011; Martino et al.

2006; Primack et al. 2008; Peterson et al. 2007 Brown 2002; Brown et al. 2006).

Despite widely held perceptions that popular music influences sexual behavior,

little health related research has analyzed the content of lyrics regarding sex and

gender—most research in this area is concerned with the effects of media content on

norms and behavior related to sexual behavior and problems. Literature focused on

understanding how sexuality and gender relationships are portrayed in the media

often come from disciplines outside of health and the behavioral sciences, such as

cultural studies and the humanities. Few studies have incorporated these diverse

perspectives that could provide insight into the social and cultural role of media

portrayals of sexuality and gender portrayals as well as their impact on behavior and

social problems.

In addition, there is a wide methodological gulf in how these issues are analyzed

in different disciplines. Research from a cultural studies perspective is usually based

on in depth qualitative analysis of a limited number of selected texts or cases; while

public health and empirical work is often quantitative and based on a large number

of cases, but with little interpretive depth. As a result, there are substantial gaps in

the field regarding the social meaning of sexuality and gender in a genre known for

heterogeneous and complex depictions of gender and sexual issues.

The purpose of this review is to explore and compare literature related to

sexuality and gender in rap music from a multidisciplinary perspective which

crosses conceptual as well as methodological boundaries. This is an important task

with the goal of enriching perspectives on the content of images of sexuality and

gender in rap music to better inform how rap music constructs sexual and gender

related phenomenon as a baseline for more nuanced understanding of the

implications of media portrayals and sexual health.

The following analysis of the scholarly and research literature on sexuality and

gender relationships in rap music is based on exhaustive searches of the literature

from a variety of data bases that focus on research in social science, cultural studies

and the health fields. The key perspectives are derived from work within studies of

feminism and masculinity; folklore and media studies; sociological studies; and

public health.

Feminist Perspectives on Sexuality in Rap Music

An important thread of feminist theory argues that images of black women and

sexuality represent modern day resurrections of historically constructed derogatory

images. Evelyn Brooks Higginbothan (1993) and Patricia Hill Collins (2000) show

how European thought and the American political economy of slavery, race, and

labor relations helped control black female sexuality and fertility through creating

stereotypes of black women that deny black female equality and denigrate healthy

sexuality or femininity in black women. From this perspective, images of black

women have been shaped by the following principles: black women are unfeminine;

their sexuality is abhorrent (either hypersexual, asexual; or anti male and sexually

578 D. Herd

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punitive) their economic and social outlook is similarly deviant (they are predators

or lazy and dependent on public assistance and men). The resulting ‘‘controlling

images’’ of black women as stereotypical mammies, matriarchs, welfare recipients

and ‘‘hot mamas’’ are used to justify black women’s oppression and to normalize

racism, sexism, poverty and other forms of social inequality. Countering and

challenging these controlling images has long been a central focus of black feminist

thought.

These viewpoints have emerged in some social science analyses of sexual images

in rap music. Stephens and Phillips (2003) used this framework and argued that the

basic stereotypes applied to black women historically—e.g. the ‘‘Jezebel, Mammy,

Matriarch, and Welfare Mother’’—form the basis of the modern more sexually

explicit and demeaning portrayals of black women as ‘‘Freaks, Gold Diggers, Divas,

Dikes, and Baby Mamas’’ in rap music today. In fact they argue that despite the

availability of a diversity of images for black women, the substance of media

portrayals has changed little over the past century. Furthermore, these authors state

that Hip Hop is a male oriented cultural space in which controlling images of black

women are mediated through a patriarchal framework that ‘‘includes sexism and

both the physical and emotional abuse of women’’, p 37.

In contrast other theorists, primarily those focusing on female rappers (Roberts

1991; Troka 2002; Goodall 1994; Pough 2007; Rose 1990; Shelton 1997; Skeggs

1993; Phillips et al. 2005) have identified counter narratives in this music which do

several things: promote women’s right to assert their own desires for sexual

fulfillment and pleasure apart from meeting the needs of men or being controlled by

them (Roberts 1991; Goodall 1994; Rose 1990; Skeggs 1993); resist patterns of

sexual objectification (Rose 1990; Skeggs 1993): promote women’s independence

and economic prowess (Troka 2002; Oware 2007) provide critiques of male

dominance (Troka 2002), and sexual and domestic violence (Troka 2002; Oware

2007). Tricia Rose’s (1994) earlier work asserts that rap music is heterogeneous and

fluid rather than monolithic with respect to female images of sexuality and gender

relationships, and that men and women rappers have rapport and are in dialogue

together. One of her central arguments centers on the sexual empowerment of

women to not only hold the ultimate power to control male sexuality, but to also

enjoy sexual expression, play, and innuendo without the need for sanctioning

through romance and dating. In fact, Rose’s explanation of misogyny in men’s rap

lyrics focuses on men’s fears and anxieties regarding women’s ability to control

heterosexual sex. In addition, she described a broader range of empowering

activities through which female rappers expressed feminist agendas—e.g. support-

ing and protecting women; responding to the needs and perspectives of working and

lower class urban women; redefining stereotypes of derogatory female images to use

them as images of female agency and empowerment.

Other important strains of feminist theory in this tradition emphasize the role of

women rappers in defying broader structural forces such as sexism and racism that

oppress black women and men. For example Shelton (1997) agues that women

rappers subvert traditional roles and the focus on the nuclear family through

presenting unmarried women enjoying motherhood—images which undermine

images of the welfare mother and combat the Norplant era ideology. Skeggs (1993)

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asserts that women rappers ‘‘defiantly speak to the system of institutionalized and

hegemonic masculinity that places all women as objects through the representa-

tional processing of masculine fear and fantasy’’ p. 301. In her view women rappers

display assertive sexuality to liberate themselves from moralizing and victimizing

discourses promoted within the society as a whole. In fact Skeggs’ states that while

all music objectifies women, rap music is the only genre that responds to or protests

those views. Making similar points, Phillips (2005) identifies three strands that

define women’s oppositional voices in rap music—‘‘talking back to men in defense

of women and demanding respect for women; women’s empowerment, self-help

and solidarity; and defense of black men against the larger society’’ p. 261. Song

lyrics expressing these points include dialoguing (dissin) songs between black

women and men (e.g. Roxanne songs); songs critiquing domestic violence; and the

‘‘ride or die songs’’ showing black women’s loyalty to their men opposed to the

society or criminal justice system.

In sum, feminist analyses of black women’s roles and portrayals in rap music and

rap music videos are polarized with respect to critiques of hegemonic controlling

images identified in the Hill-Collins framework, in contrast to the frames of

resistance and empowerment emphasized by hip hop scholars and feminist writers

such as Rose (1994) in her earlier work. Emerson (2002) and Oware (2007) both

attempt to reconcile these conflicting viewpoints through empirical analyses of rap

music videos and music lyrics. Emersons’s qualitative analysis of 38 music videos

concludes that they reflect features of both perspectives—e.g. the ideological

controlling image of the hypersexual ‘‘jezebel’’ as well images of agency,

independence, strength, and autonomy. Emerson also points out that the videos

often feature reversals of the traditional focus on female bodies from the male gaze.

Instead he notes that the videos have in common ‘‘the construction of the male body,

and particularly the black male body, as the object of Black female pleasure’’,

p. 131. In addition he states that the videos show mutual sexual fulfillment with

women’s sexual pleasure predominating. Oware’s (2007) analysis of 44 popular

songs by women rappers showed that their songs differed from men’s in more

frequent references to empowering lyrics about women. However he emphasizes

that some of these lyrics undermine empowering messages by strong sexual themes

that ‘‘self-objectify and self-exploit, seemingly employing a male gaze’’, p. 790.

Images of Masculinity in Rap Music

For the most part, scholars agree that images of manhood in rap music are

hypersexual, misogynistic, and violent. However, these writers offer different

explanations to account for these portrayals. They include the importance of

historical controlling images (Hill-Collins); sociology of black life in the ghetto

with a major sub-theme of strained relationships between African American men

and women; media constructions of black male sexuality and the impact of

corporate influences on rap music.

A few scholars locate the origins of misogynistic rap music in larger structural

forces such as capitalism and patriarchy which are mediated through racism, elitism

580 D. Herd

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and sexism (Adams and Fuller 2006) or as part of the general valorization of

masculinity and cultural resistance to feminism (Weitzer and Kubrin 2009). For

example, Bell hooks (2006) states that the ‘‘sexist, misogynist, patriarchal ways of

thinking and behaving that are glorified in gangsta rap are a reflection of the

prevailing values in our society, values created and sustained by white-supremacist

capitalist patriarchy’’ (p. 135). In her view, hedonistic consumerism that richly

rewards young black men for lyrics promoting violence and misogyny is one avenue

through which these values are propagated. Hooks argues that this process mirrors

the essence of mainstream culture, which in her words ‘‘would not lead us to place

gangsta rap on the margins of what this nation is about but at the center. Rather than

seeing it as a subversion or disruption of the norm, we would need to see it as the

embodiment of the norm’’ (p. 137). From her perspective, members of white

mainstream culture are not concerned about misogyny and sexual violence

unleashed on black women and children, but only become uncomfortable when

young white consumers use it to rebel against bourgeois values.

Important themes in this literature trace the images of black male hypersexuality

and violence in rap music to the social construction of black sexuality during

slavery and post reconstruction segregation as part of the apparatus of institution-

alized racism (West 2001). Hill-Collins (2004) pivotal works describes the creation

of the stereotype of the ‘‘black buck’’ that embodied images of black men as ‘‘tamed

beasts’’—wild, violent, unintelligent and hypersexual beings used to justify

domination and labor exploitation under chattel slavery in the mid nineteenth

century (pages 56–57). After reconstruction, the image of the black man as a hyper

sexual rapist possessed by the insatiable desire for white women emerged in era of

wide spread lynching. These images helped fuel the campaigns for disfranchisement

and provided ideological support for extreme anti-black terrorism (Herd 1985).

Media and Folklore Images

Studies of contemporary media show how images of black masculinity are

constrained to conform to derogatory stereotypes emphasizing similar traits.

Turner’s work (2011) argued that in the analysis of TV shows, ‘‘we see the

perpetuation of the hypermasculine black buck and the objectified and overly

sexualized one-dimensional Black female who is reduced to ‘‘decorative eye candy’’

p. 187 (Emerson 2002, p. 123). From a similar perspective, Orbe’s (1998) analysis

of black male characters on MTV concludes that they are designed to show that

black men are inherently angry, potentially violent and sexually aggressive which in

his words ‘‘work toward the reification of a syntagmatic code: Black men are to be

feared’’, p. 42.

Another strain of research on images of masculinity in rap music describes the

role of culture and folklore. Kelley’s (1996) work emphasizes that as an art form rap

music incorporates mythical and folktale elements—with braggadocio ‘‘tall tales’’

figuring prominently. Kelly argues that some of the exaggerated sexual exploits and

put downs of women are less a reflection of real life and social relations than of

verbal dueling and one upmanship characterizing black performance and cultural

styles which pre-date rap music and in fact reach back into the early cultural

Gender and Sexuality in Rap Music 581

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traditions of African Americans. ‘‘Playing the dozens’’ is a good representation of

this genre.

Other writers trace recent stereotypes of 1970s black exploitation characters such

as Dolomite, the Mack and Superfly as well as athletes like Muhammed Ali or

Charles Barkley to images of the badman that originated in the fables of Stagolee

and Shine (Ogbar 2007; Perry 2004). These authors argue that the ‘‘badman’’ is

partly created by racism and classism, and is feared by whites and middleclass black

society for not conforming to established rules, norms, or laws of society. Perry

(2004) states that the badman ‘‘is a rebel to society, living on the margins of a black

community that at once regards him as a hero and a threat’’, p. 128) In his view,

drug dealers, hustlers, pimps, and players exercise badman behavior by emphasizing

sexual and physical prowess, and embracing misogyny and homophobia as part of

their character.

Corporate Influences

A number of scholars have directly or indirectly alluded to the influence of

corporate influences on black male images in rap music (Kitwana 2004; Lena 2006;

Weitzer and Kubrin 2009; Englis et al. 1993). They suggest that stereotypical

images of black males as angry, violent, and dangerous have been created and

manipulated to increase sales of songs and music videos. Weitzer and Kubrin (2009)

state that ‘‘Producers not only encourage artists to become ‘‘hardcore’’ but also

reject or marginalize artists who go against the grain’’, p. 6. Lena’s research

substantiates the impact of corporate ownership on music lyric content. Her findings

showed that when independent labels owned most of the charted singles, lyrics

focused on the local environment and hostility to corporate music production and

values. In contrast, dominant labels featured lyrics with a focus on ‘‘street’’

credibility and commercial success in the hustler as hero. She notes that Billboard

Magazine editors said that corporations invested in puerile rap ‘‘because [it] was

sleazier as a lure, easier as an enterprise, and more speedily remunerative at the end

of the day’’ (Anonymous 1996: 4).

Some researchers have also described the commercialization of rap music and

artists through campaigns using them to market alcoholic beverages, athletic shoes,

and athletic clothing (Blair 1993; Herd 2005). Herd’s study (2005) shows that the

integration of corporate structures between the music and alcohol industries was

accompanied by a major increase in alcohol depictions in rap music. With respect to

images of gender relationships and masculinity, some scholars have described the

increasing connections between hip hop and pornography (Kitwana 2002; Stephens

and Phillips, 2003; Neal 2006) that might encourage more explicit sexual depictions

in music videos. For example, Miller-Young (2007) argues that the masculinist,

hypersexualized and antiestablishment qualities of rap music videos have made

them extremely attractive to the pornography industry for developing a new genre of

hard core celebrity rap videos. As examples of the merge of hip hop with

pornography she mentions the release of Snoop Dogg’s Doggystyle and notes that

Tupac Shakur’s soft-core video ‘‘How Do You Want it’’ featured legendary porn

starts Heather Hunger, Angel Kelley, Jeanine Pepper and Nina Hartley (p. 271).

582 D. Herd

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Other writers propose a more nuanced view in which representations are

mutually shaped by the industry and artists that use stereotypes to self-promote and

create their own branding. For example, Balaji (2009) argues that while the media

has a strong ideological influence on how black male identity is constructed (e.g.

capitalizing on the ‘‘thug appeal’’ of black men in rap music boosts sales and

income in the music industry and justifies repressive social policies in black

communities), he also states that artists engage in a self-commodification process to

create their own unique brands and social following. He cites artist 50 cents

willingness to capitalize on existing stereotypes of black masculinity with his own

self-conception as an example of this process. Miller-Young’s (2007) work makes a

similar point with reference to the integration of images of black masculinity in rap

music and pornography. In her view hip hop pornography serves ideological and

pragmatic arenas of resistance for performers. She raises the possibility that hip hop

artists use the form to resist black bourgeois values and respectability as well as a

way to expand entrepreneurial opportunities.

Sociological Research

In contrast to the above perspectives, some scholars argue that images of black

masculinity in rap music are derived from actual norms and behavioral patterns

typifying social life in black communities. Armstrong’s (2001) work is a graphic

example of these views. He asserts that rap music promotes and reflects a ‘‘rape

culture’’ that ‘‘is a complex of beliefs supporting a continuum of threatened violence

against women that ranges from sexual remarks to rape itself’’ (p. 105). Armstrong

argues that gangsta rap is a real cultural statement about rappers and their lives and

refutes other structurally oriented explanations, e.g. that corporate structures have

influenced the rise of misogyny in rap music. Weitzer and Kubrin’s (2009) more

nuanced work takes a broader view of influences on misogyny in rap music which

encompasses larger social forces, norms about gender relations, the music industry

and local neighborhood conditions. However citing Bourgois (1995, 276, 275) these

authors focus on the prevalence of misogyny in rap music as a reflection of the

‘‘street code’’ of young males in disadvantaged communities which strip men of

traditional sources of dignity and promote values emphasizing a high level of male

promiscuity, the ‘‘celebration of the gigolo image’’, the value of ‘‘being an

economic parasite’’ on one’s girlfriends, and justifications for violence against

women, p. 9. Weitzer and Kubrin argued that these elements of the street code

parallel five misogynistic themes that they identified in their content analysis of rap

music lyrics: (a) derogatory naming and shaming of women, (b) sexual objecti-

fication of women, (c) distrust of women, (d) legitimation of violence against

women, and (e) celebration of prostitution and pimping.

Taking a slightly different approach, Collins (2005), stated that the growth of a

prison culture in the 1980s has influenced ideas about masculinity and gender

relationships in African American communities. In her view the incarceration of

large numbers of black men has lead to a cultural focus that valorizes thug life and

increases misogyny and homophobia in black youth. Kitwana (2002) argues that the

Gender and Sexuality in Rap Music 583

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misogynist descriptions of black women in music dominated by black men reflects

real tensions in gender relationships within African American communities.

Rose’s (2008) later work echoes similar themes—she asserts that within rap

music ‘‘Sexism is visible, vulgar, aggressive and popular’’ (p. 114), fueled by a

complex of factors including sexism in black communities that influences rappers’

attitudes and lyrics as well as the patriarchal values permeating the wider society.

Health/Behavioral Research

The content of sexual imagery in rap music has received very little attention in

health-related literature. For example, we were able to identify only two studies

focused on this topic in the public health literature. Primack et al. (2008) explored

the prevalence of ‘‘degrading and non-degrading’’ sexual images in different music

genres. Degrading sex was defined as sex with three different attributes: insatiable

sexual appetite—usually on the part of males, objectification—usually of females

and ‘‘sexual value placed solely on physical characteristics’’, p. 594. Findings of the

study showed that references to degrading sex were almost twice as common as

references to non-degrading sex and that these references were more prominent in

rap music than in other genres such as Country or Rhythm and Blues/Hip Hop.

Songs with degrading sex were also more likely to mention alcohol and drug use,

violence, and weapons compared to songs mentioning non-degrading sex. From a

similar perspective, Aubrey and Frisby (2011) showed that sexual objectification

was more prominent in R&B/hip hop and pop videos than in country music videos.

In contrast, there is a considerable body of health-related literature examining the

impact of music lyrics and music videos on adolescent sexual norms, attitudes and

behavior. First, some of this research asserts that negative portrayals of sexual and

gender relationships—e.g. objectification, degradation, or stereotypes—promotes

unhealthy sexual attitudes or behavior among youth. Aubrey et al. (2011) found that

watching music videos with highly objectified women artists predicted oppositional

sexual beliefs, acceptance of interpersonal violence and trends towards tolerance of

sexual harassment among male college students. Martino et al. 2006 and Primack

et al. 2008 both reported that youth listening to ‘‘degrading’’ sexual content were

more likely to start engaging in sexual intercourse or participate in higher levels of

sexual activity while youth exposed to non degrading sexual lyrics of music did not

show significant changes in their sexual behavior. Peterson et al. (2007) found that

adolescents who perceived more sexual stereotypes in rap music were more likely to

have more than one sexual partner, to engage in binge drinking, test positive for

marijuana and have a negative body image.

Second, some researchers (Pardun et al. 2005) have argued that amount rather

than type of exposure to sexual content is the more critical determinant of

adolescent sexual behavior and related intentions. For example, L’Engle et al.

(2006) found that youth with higher levels of exposure to sexual content in the

media are more like to have intentions to have sexual intercourse and to engage in

sex than other youth. In addition, Wingood’s (2003) study showed that greater

exposure to rap music vides was associated with having more sexual partners as

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well as having an STD and social problems such as school violence, being arrested

and using alcohol and drugs. Brown’s (2006) research found that white adolescents

aged 14–16 with the most media exposure were more than twice as likely to have

had sex than those with the least exposure. However after controlling for parent

attitudes and peer norms, this relationship did not hold for black youth. Kistler and

Lee’s (2009) study reported that watching MTV sexually oriented videos

significantly increased scores of approving premarital sex in adolescents. Lou

et al. (2012) also showed that use of the mass media and media messages influenced

sexually related knowledge and behaviors in unmarried Asian and young adult

respondents.

However, some literature has focused on explaining how media influence sexual

behavior beyond exposure effects. The media practice model (Brown 2002) assumes

that adolescents are not passive recipients of media messages, but that they have

agency and choice in selecting and interacting with media based on their own sense

of identity. The model assumes that the impact of the media on youth is shaped by

their personal attributes. As an example of this perspective, Brown et al. (2005)

reported that earlier maturing girls were more interested than girls maturing later in

viewing or listening to sexual media content. Earlier maturing girls were also more

likely to interpret media messages as approving of teens being sexually active.

L’Engle et al. (2006) also showed that teens interpretation as well as exposure to sex

in the media influenced their sexual behavior. Those teens that viewed the media as

being supportive of teen sexual behavior had a higher level of intentions to have

sexual intercourse and more sexual activity. In addition Ter Bogt et al. (2010)

argued that preferences, rather than exposure were associated with permissive

sexual attitudes and gender stereotypes. For both girls and boys, preferences for hip

hop and hard-house music were associated positively with gender stereotypes and

preference for classical music was negatively associated with gender stereotypes.

Taking these perspectives even further, Arnett (1995) argues that adolescents ability

to control media choices allows them to engage in a form of self-socialization based

on their own individual preferences and personalities in a way that is not possible

with broader socializing agents such as family, school, community and the legal

system.

Cognitively oriented theories such as Priming Theory and Social Cognitive

Theory emphasize the effect of media on sexuality through perception and learning

by shaping belief systems. In Priming Theory, Ter Bogt et al. (2010) theorizes that

stimuli in songs and music activate cognitive schemas and reinforce and strengthen

them through repetition. From this perspective, stereotypical depictions of gender

roles can promote/activate the development of conforming stereotypical belief

systems.

Finally, some research has applied sexual script theory—normative frameworks

for making sense of sexual behavior—to music influences on sexual behavior.

Stephens and Phillips (2003) state that African American pre adolescents belief

systems mirror the sexual scripts circulating in African American culture including

the Diva, Gold Digger, Freak, Dyke, Gangster Bitch, Sister Savior, Earth Mother,

and Baby Mama.

Gender and Sexuality in Rap Music 585

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Discussion and Conclusions

This review of portrayals of sexuality and gender relationships in rap music

identified a fairly wide range of approaches rooted in feminist theory, cultural

studies, sociology and behavioral science, some of which are at odds with each

other. For example, some strains of feminist theory have argued that portrayals of

women and gender relationships reflect the historical oppression associated with

slavery and domination, while others have focused on narratives of women’s

empowerment within the music. Analyses of the role of masculinity in rap music

have generally emphasized misogyny and violence often attributed to actual social

patterns within urban communities. On the other hand some critical studies have

examined the social and cultural construction of sexuality and gender in the music

and pointed to the influence of structural factors such as patriarchy and corporate

practices in shaping how gender relationships and sexual content are portrayed in

the music. Behavioral science researchers generally have had little to say about the

sexual and gender related content of rap music, but nonetheless conclude the content

is important because it influences sexual attitudes, behavior and intention.

The different conceptual approaches that have been applied to images of

sexuality and gender relationships in rap music are interesting and thought

provoking—however, for the most part they have not been informed by strong

empirical work. Rap music itself is richly varied and provides ample material to

illustrate a variety of specific conceptual frameworks. Existing research has mined

some of these images and linked them to important theoretical contexts but has not

provided substantial analysis of how gender and sexual relationships are depicted

within the genre as a whole.

On the other hand, empirical work on this topic is extremely limited and

generally lacks theoretical richness. The virtual absence of content studies in health

research and the simplistic dichotomous frames used to describe sexual portrayals

(e.g. as ‘‘degrading or non-degrading’’) illustrate this problem.

In addition, none of the literature discussed analyzes changes in portrayals of

sexuality and gender relationships over time in rap music. The genre is now

approximately 35 years old and has undergone a number of changes in corporate

ownership, audiences, and sub genre types. These kinds of changes would be

expected to influence lyrical content related to portrayals of gender relationships and

sexuality. For example, research on other social issues illustrates that images of

alcohol, illegal drugs, and violence have increased substantially over time in rap

music lyrics in response to corporate pressures and other societal factors (Herd

2005, 2008, 2009).

Given the importance of music as a social influence on the development of sexual

attitudes and gender norms among youth, it is important to understand more about

the content of the music. Existing studies indicate that the content is important, but

lack precision in identifying what aspects of gender and sexuality portrayals are

influential. Part of the problem may be that analyses of the content of lyrics in health

research are very limited in terms of understanding the varied landscape of sexual

portrayals and gender images in the music and their social meanings.

586 D. Herd

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As such, one of the critical questions for future research is to understand more

about the variety of gender and sexual relationships depicted in rap music. For

example the music includes lyrics about courtship and love; sexual gratification;

sexual violence; and sexual and economic exploitation among others. Some

researchers have hinted at this variety by dichotomizing sexual depictions as

‘‘degrading versus non-degrading’’. However, more analysis is needed to provide

insight into the nuances and contexts of different kinds of sexual relationships

portrayed as well as their prevalence in the music. This kind of analysis could

provide a basis for exploring how particular theoretical frameworks map onto

portrayals of gender relationships and sexuality in rap music.

Another compelling question is to understand whether these images have varied

significantly over time. As an illustration of this possibility, Rose’s (1990, 1994)

earlier work emphasized women’s sexual power and skill in confronting men’s

attempts to control and subordinate women in rap music; however her later work

(Rose 2008) points to the blatant and aggressive sexism characterizing popular

music in the genre. A related issue to explore is whether there have been shifts in the

social context of sexual behavior in rap music. For example, have their been

changes in the association with sexuality and social behavior such as romance,

glamorous lifestyles, drug and alcohol use, crime and violence over time? Future

research should focus on addressing these questions by providing in depth empirical

work informed by relevant theories.

Acknowledgments Funding for this research was provided by a University of California Faculty Research Grant.

Conflict of interest The author declares that the author has no conflict of interest.

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