Reviewed by Viraj Patel
While noting that dialogues about literacy can serve as a vehicle for developing critical consciousnessFreire (1996) noted, “the content of that dialogue can and should vary in accordance with historical conditions” (p. 65). In contemporary society, Hip Hop music and culture play a pivotal role in the identity development of young adults (Nguyen & Ferguson, 2019).Accordingly, educational research has examined how the critical literacy capacities of Hip Hop texts have helped high school students explore post- 9/11 racial tensions in the U.S. (Hill, 2006), helped adolescentBlack males disturb Eurocentric notions of masculinity (Love, 2013) and young Black females deconstruct notions of femininity (Kelly, 2016), increased high school students’ engagement and connection with ELA curricula (Belle, 2016), and assisted middle school students in reimagining the world and their place in it (Hall & Devirgilio, 2022). Such studies make a compelling case for the use of Hip Hop to engender students’ critical literacies and engage their world- building capacities. However, such studies do not explicitly outline pedagogical considerations such as lesson plans or teaching procedures for using HipHop texts. Teaching with Hip Hop in the 7–12 Grade Classroom by Lauren Leigh Kelly (2023) aims to bridge this gap. Specifically, Kelly identifies Critical Hip Hop Literacies as “approaches to reading and creation of Hip Hop texts and culture that analyze and challenge relation-ships of power and equity” (p. 7).