Turning the Tables: Hip-Hop and Media, From Fringe to Global Phenomenon

FAIN: GE-278281-21

Paley Center for Media (New York, NY 10019-6104)
Andy Meyer (Project Director: September 2020 to April 2022)
Deirdre Hughes (Project Director: April 2022 to present)

Planning of an exhibition on the history and culture of hip-hop music and its relationship to the media.

The Paley Center for Media undertakes an exhibition that looks at the intersections of Hip-Hop and media: at how they interacted to fuel the explosive expansion of Hip-Hop culture over the decades, leading to seismic shifts in American culture. The exhibition will analyze Hip-Hop culture’s innovative uses of media formats such as television, radio, and social media platforms, as well as Hip-Hop’s role as a media platform in and of itself. As famously stated by artist Chuck D, “Rap music is the invisible TV station that Black people have never had.” Hip-Hop’s messages and contributions to society through the prism of media have not been fully analyzed or recognized by humanities scholars nor the American public. This project seeks to add to the body of critical work and acknowledgement of this movement, through a thoroughly engaging and accessible exhibition and accompanying resources.