Keepin’ it Real: Arabic Rap and the Re-Creation of Hip Hop’s Founding Myth Igor Johannsen Arab Spring Cultural Practice Cultural Heritage Popular Culture Hip Hop In the context of the so called Arab Spring, the role and function of "popular culture" generally, and hip hop specifically, have been scrutinized by a row of scholars and journalists. Connecting the respective cultural practices and products with the founding myth of hip hop as it materialized in the USA, Arabic rap is not only able to authenticate its products and performances, but it additionally sustains the relevance of social, political, and economic marginality for these respective cultural practices. This article explores a selection of decisive features of the founding myth of hip hop that are actualized through their representation in the Middle East and North Africa. Philipps-Universität Marburg Marburg Deutschhausstraße 9, 35037 Marburg 2017 2017-01-27 2018-01-31 Text article urn:nbn:de:hebis:04-0003-2017-179-63294 eng 2714728-9 7 1 https://journals.uni-marburg.de/0003/article/download/6329/6339 10.17192/meta.2017.7.6329 https://journals.uni-marburg.de/0003/2017/179/6329