Urban Myths and Rural Legends: An Alternate Take on the Regionalism of Hip Hop

Abstract

The practices of hip hop evolved during the mid-1970s in New York City’s dilapidated neighbourhoods and are almost exclusively represented through the fabric of inner-city life. However, over the past forty years hip hop has produced diverse regional-rural agendas within the core elements of the culture, reflected in its sound. By exploring hip hop culture in the West Country, UK, this article locates hip hop’s regional-rural origins to attest its productions evolve differently to that of metro-centric artists, coexisting as vehicles for negotiating socio-geographical acceptance and affirming a regional-rural identity. These alternate modes of practice enrichen the wider hip hop community by developing relationships with traditional regional culture and producing new narratives to challenge hip hop’s conventions.