Lupe Fiasco continues his campaign for faculty.
The Johns Hopkins University Peabody College has announced the launch of its first-ever bachelor’s degree program in hip-hop music, bringing the first undergraduate degree in hip-hop to the nation’s first conservatory. Lupe Fiasco joins the faculty of this prestigious university as a visiting artist.
According to the release, “The new program will combine the resources and strengths of Peabody’s industry-leading Music Engineering and Technology (MET) program with the Conservatory’s long history of innovation and excellence in performance training.”
Hip-hop classes will center on rapping, beatboxing, turntables and production skills, while also offering courses on cultural history and the evolution of hip-hop styles, techniques and techniques. The inaugural faculty is led by composer, producer, beatmaker, pianist and professor Wendell Patrick.
“With Wendell Patrick’s thoughtful leadership, growing interest in programs at the intersection of music and technology, and Peabody’s dedication to expanding the definition of arts training for the 21st century, this is a significant opportunity to bring Peabody “Peabody has been a leader at the intersection of arts and education for more than 150 years, and we are excited to partner with him. Those who advance this art form collaborate to nurture and support the talent of future generations of hip-hop artists, and do it in the city of Baltimore, which itself has long been a fertile ground for hip-hop.
“I am honored to join the prestigious Peabody Conservatory of Music and do what I love most, rap,” said Lupe. “I look forward to advancing the study and practice of rap and hip-hop to the upper echelons of higher education, with a program that will center around core performance training and provide courses on the cultural history and socio-political context that gave rise to hip-hop and hip-hop.” The popularity and influence of the genre.
Lupe is currently a visiting scholar and professor at MIT and a Henry Crown Fellow at the Aspen Institute.
