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Veil and Veneer of Intellectual Aesthetics: An Afrocentric Reading of Imani Perry’s Prophets of the Hood

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: kawilson{at}csulb.edu.

	Abstract

This article examines Imani Perry’s explanation of the African creation and development of hip hop music. Through the lens of critical theory, she argues in her book Prophets of the Hood that hip hop is primarily African American in its aesthetic values even though it has embraced and absorbed the views, values, and practices of the dominant ruling class and culture. The premise of her book is valid and Perry largely provides a useful text that affirms the African American creation, development, and contribution to hip hop music, but Perry’s text has problems that speak to the location of the intellectual framework she relies on for explanation—the critical race framework.

First published on November 18, 2008
Journal of Black Studies 2008, doi:10.1177/0021934708325735


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