Date of Award

2020

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Zabriskie, Queen

Area of Concentration

Sociology and Performance Studies

Abstract

In this project I consider what role cultural intermediation plays in the development of local sensibilities. I investigated the latent messages in New Orleans Bounce rap through a mixed methods approach of a content analysis and grounded theory. Using a playlist curated specifically for this project by a well-known Bounce DJ in New Orleans, I conducted interviews with him to substantiate my findings from the data analysis and provide a more holistic view of Bounce rap. By applying a mixed methods approach to a traditional content analysis, I triangulated interviews, journal notes, and lyrical data to make sense of messages communicated through New Orleans Bounce rap and how they were internalized by a local community of listeners. Three themes emerged from the data triangulation: “Spirit, Place, and Naming”. These three themes best encompassed the social, emotional, musical, and personal aspects of the musical and cultural sharing networks I was interested in. By evaluating my data findings through these three lenses, I understood more clearly how local art forms can present potential opportunities for consumers to make sense of their cultural and personal relationships to each other, their city, and the music. I found that Bounce artists and listeners both individually and through group means are actors who disseminate power and support; furthermore, the live performances, lyrics, and physical locations in New Orleans are all spots where community and belonging can be explored and practiced. The perspectives gleamed from my research revealed that the strong networks of support within the Bounce community allow listeners and artists to subvert traditional means of gatekeeping and use their cultural capital as a means of disseminating power and support to one another.

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