In 1994, Tricia Rose published the award-winning "Black Noise: Rap Music and Black Culture in Contemporary America." Notable for its pioneering and critical engagement with the complex cultural traditions, structural relations, and political interventions embedded in the production and consumption of rap music, Black Noise remains a foundational text for the study of hip-hop and has defined what is now an entire field of study. To celebrate the 25th anniversary of "Black Noise," this roundtable considers its long-term influence in and beyond American Studies, its relevance to contemporary debates about black culture and racial inequality, and its usefulness as a model for interdisciplinarity and serious engagement with and analysis of black cultural production. In keeping with the conference theme of “Build As We Fight,” panelists will also reflect on the capacity of hip-hop and other black expressive forms to advance political critiques and envision alternative futures in this historical moment.
Chair
• Amanda Boston, New York University
Panelists
• Amanda Boston, New York University
• Aisha Durham, University of South Florida
• Tanisha Ford, University of Delaware
• Janell C. Hobson, SUNY at Albany
• Robin D. G. Kelley, University of California-Los Angeles
• Mark Anthony Neal, James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of African and African American Studies, Duke University
• Gwendolyn D Pough, Syracuse University
• Tricia Rose, Brown University
Annual Meeting of the American Studies Association
November 7, 2019
