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Full-Text Articles in African American Studies
Ford, Bernadette, Bronx African American History Project
Ford, Bernadette, Bronx African American History Project
Oral Histories
Inerviewee: Bernadette Jackson Ford
Interviewers: Dr. Mark Naison and Natasha Lightfoot
Date of interview July 28, 1006
Summarized by Alice Stryker
Bernadette begins the interview by talking about her parents coming to New York. Both grew up in Birmingham, Alabama and met when they were younger. Neither one of them said that they felt the sting of segregation, and were in New York when most of the civil rights activities were occurring in Birmingham. When they moved to New York, they moved to Harlem with her father’s cousins.
She is the oldest of three and was born in 1958. She …
Conzo, Joe Jr., Bronx African American History Project
Conzo, Joe Jr., Bronx African American History Project
Oral Histories
Interviewee: Joe Conzo, Jr.
Interviewer: Mark Naison, Maxine Gordon, Marvin Cabrerra
Interview on May 9, 2006
Summarized by Alice Stryker
Joe Conzo is the first hip-hop photographer and was born February 6, 1963. His grandmother Evelina Antonetty was a community activist. She moved from Puerto Rico to the Bronx and immediately got involved with politics in the 1950’s. She started the United Bronx Parents. His entire family, starting with his grandmother, stayed in the Motthaven area of the Bronx and all attended P.S 25. He grew up in the St. Mary’s Projects on 149th street. Music played a very …
"Don't Believe The Hype": The Construction And Export Of African American Images In Hip-Hop Culture., John Ike Sewell Jr.
"Don't Believe The Hype": The Construction And Export Of African American Images In Hip-Hop Culture., John Ike Sewell Jr.
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This study examines recurring motifs and personas in hip-hop.
Interviews with influential hip-hop scholars, writers and music industry personnel were conducted and analyzed using qualitative methods. Interview subjects were selected based on their insider knowledge as music critics, hip-hop scholars, ethnomusicologists, publicists, and music industry positions.
The vast majority of constructed imagery in hip-hop is based on a single persona, the gangsta. This qualitative analysis reveals why gangsta personas and motifs have become the de facto imagery of hip-hop. Gangsta imagery is repeatedly presented because it sells, it is the most readily-available role, and because of music industry pressures.
This …