- St. Olaf Libraries
- Research Guides
- WRIT 120: Hip Hop Culture and the Poetics of Place
- Streaming Audio/Visual Materials
WRIT 120: Hip Hop Culture and the Poetics of Place
Research and Instruction Librarian for Music & Fine Arts
Streaming Audio Databases
- Music Online This link opens in a new windowIncludes some popular and world music recordings, but does not include performances by Top 40/Billboard charting artists. Useful for recordings of music that influenced hip-hop, such as blues, early R&B, and reggae.
Streaming Video Databases
- Academic Video Online Premium (AVON) This link opens in a new windowA comprehensive streaming video collection includes independent films, documentaries, educational films, newsreels, theater and musical performances, and much more from across the disciplines.
Online Listening
- PandoraOnline radio and podcasts. Requires creation of a personal account (free or paid). Free accounts include ads. Includes stations specifically for hip-hop and rap.
- SpotifyOnline music and podcasts. Includes hip-hop specific playlists. Free accounts include ads.
- YouTubeOnline music and video service. Subscriptions required to skip ads. Includes official music videos from artists' channels.
Choosing an Ethical & Legal YouTube Video
Since YouTube permits users to upload almost anything they want, it is quite common to find music uploads that have not been sanctioned by the musicians or their management. This means the artists are not getting paid for their work when you view these videos.
Check that your YouTube video has been uploaded responsibly.
1. Check the owner of the channel -- ideally, it will be the artist's professional channel.
2. Check the licensing information by expanding the video details. Make sure that the song/performer/record company details are correct. Music licensing is very complicated, but look for groups like BMI (Broadcast Music International) or record labels like Sony to help verify that the video is licensed appropriately. (For established artists in popular music genres, this information is usually accurate -- unless you're dealing with covers of songs. Covers sometimes get attributed to the wrong artists.)
