Pinn, Anthony B., ed. New York: New York University
Press, 2003. 192 pp., $18.00 (USD). ISBN:
1-8147-6699-4.
[1] Rap music is an art form wherein individuals or groups
tell stories that relate to their life experiences. Noise
and Spirit, a collection of essays by various authors examining
various religious and spiritual aspects of rap, appropriately
reflects this. Its contributors investigate how rappers
relate to religion and spirituality, as well as how the art
form is influenced thereby. Noise and Spirit is
a significant contribution to the discussion of rap and religion.
[2] This work is not ground-breaking; the reader will see earlier,
seminal works on the subject referred to by the volume’s
contributors, particularly the work of Michael Eric Dyson. However,
editor Anthony Pinn emphasizes in the introduction how this
volume differs from others. According to Pinn, the book
contributes two fresh elements to the existing discussion on
rap and religion. First, Noise and Spirit addresses
a greater variety of religious traditions represented by rappers
than previously addressed. Pinn stresses that many of
the previous efforts have covered only a very narrow perspective
that makes more general reference to mainstream religions such
as Christianity or Islam. Second, Spirit examines the
relationship of rap to non-mainstream religious traditions
(like Rastafarianism) and ideologies (like humanism) that aren’t
traditionally considered religious or “spiritual,” emphasizing
that such non-traditional forms also influence on rap music.
[3] The volume’s contributors provide historical and
contextual background, exploring views of life and its struggles
from the perspective of the given religious tradition or community,
and then identifying these views in songs recorded by various
rap artists. However, this demonstration reveals that
no rapper operates entirely within a given religious structure. As
is common with many of us, rappers work with religion and spirituality
in a fluid way, applying their own perspectives and interpretations. Not
surprisingly, the volume’s contributors also address
how rap can be used as a spiritual practice.
[4] Noise and Spirit demonstrates that rap has
been, and is today, one way that African Americans have dealt
with and constructively communicated the challenges and difficulties
of being a racial minority. To be sure, the majority
of established rappers in the United States are African American. In
addition, while there may be rappers who are not African American,
it is clear that rap was born primarily out of earlier African
American musical traditions, such as slave spirituals and the
Blues. In fact, Pinn addresses rap’s historical
antecedents in his introduction. But perhaps Pinn could
have included some discussion of how rappers with other ethnicities
and backgrounds have adapted this originally African American
art form. Such an exploration may have served to demonstrate
how diverse and flexible rap really is.
[5] In the end, Noise and Spirit is not just about rap
and its relationship to religion or spirituality. It’s
about where musical traditions come from, and why. At
times the book is thick with academic jargon, making it challenging
to process. However, the challenge is well worth the
effort; it is valuable to understand that musical traditions
are often the result of historical events and struggles experienced
by a group of people, and that these musical traditions develop
as a way of coping with such events. This is one key
to interpreting rap, and is a benefit for those of us who listen
to it and seek to understand its poetic nature.
Rudy Regehr
Winnipeg, Manitoba
rregehr@mts.net
