Droppin’ knowledge: An introduction to the Special Issue: ‘The Fifth Element in Hip Hop Culture’

The aim of this Special Double Issue of Global Hip Hop Studies ( GHHS ) is to present an expansive view of knowledge about, of and within global hip hop culture: in the music itself, in education and pedagogy, through the four elements, across inter-generational communities, and inside or outside the academy. In their introduction, editors Darren Chetty, Sina A. Nitzsche and Justin A. Williams discuss the origins of the term ‘knowledge’ as the fifth element of hip hop after DJing, graffiti, breaking and rapping, and the challenges around its varied meanings. The editors introduce the method for selecting material, as well as a breakdown of themes and topics covered, such as urban knowledge regimes in Brazil, occult knowledge and didactical strategies in Mongolian and American rap music, hip hop and dance pedagogies at French schools, Japanese and Indian universities as well as positionalities of educators in hip hop education settings around the globe. Reflecting on the editing process themselves, Chetty, Nitzsche and Williams address cases of censorship and potential dangers in printing certain forms of knowledge (e.g. Horton; Bienvenu) and scrutinize ways to tackle such gaps and silences academically. They also consider the journal editing process as a pedagogical experience, including the ethics and power imbalances of peer review. The introduction concludes with an overview of the different articles, reviews and interviews, and explains the context of the graffiti cover of the issue, which was provided by Cardiff-based artist Unity.