This presentation explores American hip-hop’s interaction with immigration policies in the contemporary era marked by Donald Trump’s presidency. Hip-hop will be used as a cultural genre, providing the framework to examine some of the political voices of American Black people surrounding immigration. This presentation seeks to answer the question: How do hip-hop artists counter xenophobic rhetoric highlighted throughout Trump’s campaign and presidency? This topic is explored, first, through close readings of lyrics of songs that were released from 2015 to 2019 pertaining to immigration policies; second, through critical examinations of current social justice movements’ interactions with these songs; and, third, through analysis of the way American society at-large has responded to them. Close readings of lyrics from influential artists such as YG, Nipsey Hussle, Beyoncé Knowles and 21 Savage illustrate the collective Black position on immigration in the United States, demonstrating that regardless of whether one is a descendant of share croppers or a first-generation immigrant, the overall oppression of Black folks allows artists to empathize and identify injustices within sub-communities.
