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The black bar mitzvah : Representations of Jews in US hip-hop lyrics

Ackfeldt, Anders LU and Magnusson, Erik (2022) In Nordisk Judaistik - Scandinavian Jewish Studies 33(1). p.37-54
Abstract (Swedish)
References to Jews and to matters included in Jewish discourse are commonplace in US popular culture in general and in US-produced hip-hop lyrics in particular. This article deals with the latter, and aims to analyse how Jews are represented there. It is suggested here that 1. these representations are rendered comprehensible by analysing them in the light of the term coined by Zygmunt Bauman: allosemitism, which denotes that Jews are ‘other’. This article further suggests that 2. the representations of Jews featured in the lyrics cannot be made comprehensible without looking into the historical relations between American Jews and African Americans. According to Jeffrey Melnick, this relation is characterised by ‘robust ambivalences’. This... (More)
References to Jews and to matters included in Jewish discourse are commonplace in US popular culture in general and in US-produced hip-hop lyrics in particular. This article deals with the latter, and aims to analyse how Jews are represented there. It is suggested here that 1. these representations are rendered comprehensible by analysing them in the light of the term coined by Zygmunt Bauman: allosemitism, which denotes that Jews are ‘other’. This article further suggests that 2. the representations of Jews featured in the lyrics cannot be made comprehensible without looking into the historical relations between American Jews and African Americans. According to Jeffrey Melnick, this relation is characterised by ‘robust ambivalences’. This article arrives at the conclusion that the representations of Jews draw on classical conspiratorial and economic antisemitic ideas that situate Jews within the realms of shadowy (economic and instrumental) power, but which at times can be understood as philosemitic, as Jews are represented as wealthy and influential role models. Hence the usage of the term allosemitism to analyse the empirics (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to specialist publication or newspaper
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Jewish studies, Hip-hop, Antisemitism, Allosemitism, Rap
in
Nordisk Judaistik - Scandinavian Jewish Studies
volume
33
issue
1
pages
37 - 54
publisher
Sällskapet för judaistisk forskning
ISSN
0348-1646
language
Swedish
LU publication?
yes
id
dbdce351-9053-4dae-b272-681bf6bd9121
alternative location
https://journal.fi/nj/article/view/115204
date added to LUP
2022-06-27 21:40:24
date last changed
2022-06-28 11:04:14
@misc{dbdce351-9053-4dae-b272-681bf6bd9121,
  abstract     = {{References to Jews and to matters included in Jewish discourse are commonplace in US popular culture in general and in US-produced hip-hop lyrics in particular. This article deals with the latter, and aims to analyse how Jews are represented there. It is suggested here that 1. these representations are rendered comprehensible by analysing them in the light of the term coined by Zygmunt Bauman: allosemitism, which denotes that Jews are ‘other’. This article further suggests that 2. the representations of Jews featured in the lyrics cannot be made comprehensible without looking into the historical relations between American Jews and African Americans. According to Jeffrey Melnick, this relation is characterised by ‘robust ambivalences’. This article arrives at the conclusion that the representations of Jews draw on classical conspiratorial and economic antisemitic ideas that situate Jews within the realms of shadowy (economic and instrumental) power, but which at times can be understood as philosemitic, as Jews are represented as wealthy and influential role models. Hence the usage of the term allosemitism to analyse the empirics}},
  author       = {{Ackfeldt, Anders and Magnusson, Erik}},
  issn         = {{0348-1646}},
  keywords     = {{Jewish studies; Hip-hop; Antisemitism; Allosemitism; Rap}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  month        = {{06}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{37--54}},
  publisher    = {{Sällskapet för judaistisk forskning}},
  series       = {{Nordisk Judaistik - Scandinavian Jewish Studies}},
  title        = {{The black bar mitzvah : Representations of Jews in US hip-hop lyrics}},
  url          = {{https://journal.fi/nj/article/view/115204}},
  volume       = {{33}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}