'The world will know us, everyone will know us': Young People, Rap and (Individual) Success in the Neoliberal Youth Club

Tue 7 June 2022

Wolfson College

Rap studies have long been discussed in relation to two discourses: keeping it real and making it. The former is more closely aligned with social commentary on negative social conditions and the ‘every night, everyday’ violence that particularly young men in this ethnographic study experience on the streets.

However, in the context of late capitalism and the neoliberal youth club, this talk will demonstrate that the power of young people’s stories is often negated by the prioritisation of the youth club’s own record label, partnerships with big corporate brands like Apple and a plethora of events that only further perpetuate competition and entrepreneurialism in order to 'make it'.

This talk will therefore foreground the perpetual tension between neoliberal logics of individual success and the collective fight for systemic change and social justice.



Baljit Kaur is a third-year doctoral researcher in Cultural Studies at the University of Sussex. Her research explores young people's engagement in music production at an east London youth club. In particular, her research focuses on music as a form of storytelling, with intersecting themes of capitalist, gendered, racial violence, and explores community resilience and resistance to experiences of victimisation. 



The talk will take place in the Gatsby Room (Chancellor's Centre) at Wolfson College and also on Zoom. For the in-person audience, drinks and snacks will be available from 17.45. If you would like to attend the Zoom webinar, please register your email for the link.

Cost: Free