Use the following text for questions #1 and #2.
Jay-Z Explains Why Rap Should Be Considered Poetry
With the release of his latest book Decoded, Jay-Z hopes that readers will learn some
lessons from reading his lyrics. Jay-Z explains that there is more to rap than what is on the
surface. He believes that if listeners took the time to decipher rap lyrics, they would
“I hope readers take away from this book that rap, or hip hop, is poetry. It’s thought-
provoking; there’s thought behind it,” he said. “There’s great writing in rap as well. I mean, if you listen to some of the things Biggie wrote, if you take those lyrics and you pull them
away from the music and put ‘em up on the wall somewhere and someone had to look at
them, they would say, ‘This is genius! This is genius work!’ I want people to take that away.”
Jay-Z also says that listeners tend to make quick judgments about hip-hop. He hopes that
the book will change that.
“I want people to also take away the quick judgments. Listen to the song, listen to its
message. On the surface, a lot of rap songs seem just fun and party music, but there’s a
message behind the songs as well,” he continued.
Jay-Z believes that a lot of rap songs have intelligence and reason and logic behind them,
just like more traditional poems from around the world.
Hip-hop Is Alive and Well at Wellesley
Michael Jeffries is a Professor of American Studies at Wellesley College. This year, he is
teaching a class about hip hop music. His class on hip-hop is designed to do a couple of
things. First, Jeffries aims to give students a solid foundation in the history of hip-hop. He
believes that hip hop artists and rappers are misunderstood by people outside of the “hip
hop community. Students discuss the different hip hop trends that have emerged over the years, like DJing, graffiti writing, and b-boying (sometimes called break dancing).
The second major goal of the course is to use hip-hop lyrics to help students discuss
important issues in American culture. Students ask questions about race, gender, and
class. They argue about whether or not rap is poetry. "When we talk about hip hop, we
approach the material as scholars," Jeffries says. "The class changes every year, because
we’re learning from each other. We are inspired by the latest hip-hop happenings, and we
want to keep up with this important movement."