Women,Gender,Sexuality Studies 391G - S-BlackMusic,Gender &Sexuality

This course explores how black popular music cultures are shaped by performances and representations of gender and sexuality. The course will touch upon a number of themes including hip hop feminism, sex radicalism and camp, gender performativity and black masculinity. We will read music and film/video by artists such as Meshell Ndegeocello, Prince, Nicki Minaj, Bessie Smith and Beyonce as socio-historical texts that allow us access to an alternative source of knowledge supplementing the more theoretical. Students will be expected to build on their appreciation of black music to develop tools with which to critically engage with the expression, and with which to attend to the social, historical, performative and artistic complexes at play.

Distribution Requirement: Critical Race Feminisms