Abstract
MC/rapper, public speaker, journalist, graphic novelist and founder of the Hip-hop Shakespeare Company, Akala (b. Kingslee James Daley, 1983) is one of the rappers at the forefront of the UK's thriving hip-hop scene. His lyrics and music demonstrate an awareness of history and, in particular, the British Empire's shameful past as global colonizers and profiteers of the slave trade. Focusing on his album The Thieves Banquet (2013), this article investigates Akala's engagement with postcolonial thinking and neocolonial critique through the use of Western classical music tropes and multi-accentuality to create hybrid counter-narratives reflective of twenty-first century global power relations.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Number of pages | 13 |
| Journal | Popular Music and Society |
| Volume | 40 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Early online date | 29 Sept 2016 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Feb 2017 |
Research Groups and Themes
- Centre for Black Humanities
Keywords
- Akala
- hip-hop
- postcolonialism
- rap
- popular music
- The Thieves Banquet
- UK hip-hop
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Dive into the research topics of 'Rapping Postcoloniality: Akala's 'The Thieves Banquet' and Neocolonial Critique'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Profiles
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Professor Justin A Williams
- Department of Music - Professor of Music
- Migration Mobilities Bristol
- Digital Cultures and Methods
Person: Academic , Member