80s Babies: How Members of Hip Hop’s Third Generation Understand and Participate in the Culture

Abstract

This study used in-depth interviews with members of Hip Hop culture nationwide currently entering adulthood; those between 21-30. Its purpose being to learn what they understand Hip Hop culture to be, what it means to them and their identity and how in contributes to assessment of its history, present and predictions about its future. The project yielded 25 interviews with participants sharing various, at times contradictory, views about what Hip Hop culture is, the current condition of the culture, and its future direction and the salience it has for their identities. This research extends the current literature on Hip Hop by suggesting that it has grown to be a multigenerational culture and furthermore, begins the process of understanding the dynamics of cultural understanding and transformation within Hip Hop while it is still a burgeoning culture.