Lecture Series features Hip Hop Expert

Hip hop has emerged as a major part of American culture, and Texas Tech University is bringing an expert to challenge the current state of hip hop versus how the genre began.

Texas Tech’s African-American History Month Lecture Series presents “Hip Hop Wars” by Tricia Rose at 7 p.m. Thursday (Feb. 6) in the Allen Theatre.

“Having an African-American History Month lecture series allows Texas Tech University to bring prestigious speakers to campus while providing a platform for new conversations,” said M. Duane Nellis, Texas Tech president. “The distinguished lecture series is one example of Texas Tech’s commitment to diversity as a competitive, inclusive and national university.”

The lecture series is sponsored by the Office of the President, Office of the Provost, and the Division of Institutional Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement.  

Rose, a professor of Africana Studies at Brown University, is an author and social critic who is known for her book on the emergence of hip hop culture. Her first book, “Hip Hop - Black Noise: Rap Music and Black Culture in Contemporary America” was listed as one of the “Top Books of the Twentieth Century” by Black Issues in Higher Education.

“Hip Hop Wars” challenges the contemporary state of hip hop and discusses the possibility of going back to how hip hop originated.

“Tricia Rose is a preeminent hip hop scholar in the world and she will be discussing a topic that is very important in African-American culture and even American cultural history,” said Karlos Hill, director of the African-American History Month Lecture Series.

Rose received a bachelor of arts in sociology from Yale University and her doctorate degree from Brown University focusing on African Studies. She has taught at New York University, University of California at Santa Cruz, and currently is at Brown University.

The event is free and open to the public.