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Youth, Alcohol and the Forging of Community

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Rap Music and the Youth in Malawi

Part of the book series: Pop Music, Culture and Identity ((PMCI))

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Abstract

This chapter stems from discussions on the abuse of alcohol by the youth in Malawi. An interesting development is how hip-hop music takes on the discourse surrounding abuse of alcohol by the youth. Specifically, this chapter examines the glorification of alcohol that is prevalent in the emerging genre of hip-hop music on the Malawian scene. Drawing from the notion of the public sphere popularised by theorist Jurgen Habermas, the chapter advances the central argument that the young musicians forge an identity around alcohol and drug abuse as an escape mode into a fantasy world that elides the realities of poverty and lack of opportunities in the African nation.

A different version of this chapter was first published in the Nordic Journal of African Studies (vol. 29, no. 3, 2020).

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Hennessy is a French cognac, often associated with the upper class. In recent years, however, it has come to be a status symbol among Black American rappers. Heineken is a Dutch lager, which is imported into Malawi from South Africa. As an imported beer, it too has gained a high status amongst the youth.

  2. 2.

    The popularity of this theme of not buying beer can be seen in the fact that in the early 2000s, another Malawian artist, Albert Khoza, released a song with the very same name. One may also connect this theme to the popular tradition of singing about alcohol, as in the mitungu songs of northern Malawi (Banda 2013).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Malawi, Zomba, Malawi

    Ken Lipenga Jr.

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  1. Ken Lipenga Jr.
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Correspondence to Ken Lipenga Jr. .

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Lipenga, K. (2023). Youth, Alcohol and the Forging of Community. In: Rap Music and the Youth in Malawi. Pop Music, Culture and Identity. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-15251-1_5

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