«Lo que ves es lo que soy»: El valor de «ser real» de la música rap

This article aims to contribute to the study of the socio-educational potential of Rap music by focusing specifically on the idea of “being real” or “keeping it real”, a characteristic of this musical style that has received little attention from an educational perspective. To reflect on this idea, we will rely on ethnographic material from four Rap artists’ life stories, from their adolescence to their youth, two women and two men who lived through violent situations. Analyzing their narratives, we will show how the idea of “keep it real” enables them to talk about their experiences, evaluate their circumstances, transform their discontent into politics, improve their self-perception and that of their backgrounds, and claim the diversity of narratives and identities as a value. That is why, in spite of the detriments and challenges presented by this feature of Rap music, we do also show its benefits for adolescents and youths as a way of communication and protection, and for that reason we claim it could be useful in socio-educational contexts.