Can't Stop Won't Stop (Young Adult Edition): A Hip-Hop History

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. What images or ideas come to mind when you see the term “hip-hop”? What do you know about hip-hop culture and how it developed? Are you aware of any political movements connected to hip-hop?

Teaching Suggestion: Some students may be very familiar with hip-hop culture and its origins while others may have little understanding or interest. It may be beneficial to introduce hip-hop as both a musical genre and a youth culture; prompt students who may not be interested in hip-hop to consider what they know or enjoy about other musical genres and cultures, then apply similar points of analysis to hip-hop culture. If you choose to provide these links before asking the question, students will have a basic understanding on the origination of hip-hop.

• “The Birth of Hip Hop” tells the story of how hip-hop originated in a 3-minute video by Black History in Two Minutes or So; the video connects to the theme The Evolution of Hip-Hop Culture.  
• “Hip-Hop: A Culture of Vision and Voice” from the Kennedy Center describes hip-hop culture by breaking it down into basic elements and discussing how each element contributed to the creation of the culture. 

Short Activity

Can’t Stop Won’t Stop suggests ways in which hip-hop can be seen as its own unique culture. In groups of 2-4 students, hold a discussion about how cultures form; then complete this activity.

• What does the word “culture” mean? What factors contribute to the formation of new cultures, and how might this apply to hip-hop? How would you describe hip-hop culture?
• Create a list of elements that contribute to the formation of cultures.
• Share your group’s ideas with the class.
• Note the similarities and differences between each group’s ideas about culture in a brief, journal-style reflection paragraph.

Teaching Suggestion: Students might access and read the below links before engaging in this activity (please note the content warning for the second resource). Doing so will provide some grounding in hip-hop culture. Encourage students to keep the lists they write for this activity. When students read the book, they may find they were right regarding some assumptions and wrong about others, which might spur another discussion post-reading. You might consider repeating the activity for a direct comparison of students’ thoughts before and after reading.

• “The Elements of Culture,” a chapter from Introduction to Sociology: Understanding and Changing the Social World, provides a brief outline of what constitutes a “culture” which students can use to understand how and why hip-hop is described with that terminology. 
• Content warning: The lyrics in this resource contain profanity and references to drugs and alcohol. “Herc’s Message” from the album Super Bad by Terminator X and the Godfathers of Threatt, which features a number of important hip-hop voices, is the father of hip-hop’s message to the world and to hip-hop artists. This short song embodies much of what hip-hop culture represents. A recording can be found here.

Personal Connection Prompt

This prompt can be used for in-class discussion, exploratory free-writing, or reflection homework before reading the book.

Think about an art form or other activity or interest that helped you to find your voice. What is the art form or interest, and how does it influence you to express your ideas, emotions, and personhood?

Teaching Suggestion: Hip-hop has inspired millions of youths to speak up, to express themselves, and to tell their stories. It has given a voice to people who were once ignored and placed young people at the forefront of popular culture. Students can relate to this characteristic of hip-hop by thinking about an art form, activity, or interest that has helped them to find their own voice. This prompt relates to the theme The Voice of the Youth.

Differentiation Suggestion: Students who are visual learners can present a visual representation of their chosen art form, activity, or interest, such as a drawing, comic, or collage.