Is Hip Hop "Healthy" for African American Females?

In comparison to their racial/ethnic counterparts, African Americans (AA) experience higher rates of HIV/AIDS, multiple partnerships, unplanned pregnancies, non-voluntary intercourse, sexual abuse, and sexual debut at an earlier age. According to the 2005 National Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), AA female students in grades 9-12 were more likely to report having sexual intercourse before age 13 and having sexual intercourse with four or more persons during their life.

There is growing research on the relationship between hip-hop music, videos and adverse health outcomes. It is reported that youth listen to music for about two hours per day, on average, and that adolescent females listen to more music than males. Martino and colleagues reported that increased listening time to degrading sexual content was linked to increased sexual activity. According to some versions of social learning theory, listeners learn “scripts” or modeling behavior from the characters and themes in rap music videos. In their work, Stephens and Phillips identify many sexual scripts as having origins in slavery but still influential today. Still some researchers, music artists, and music producers argue that the lyrics of hip hop do not determine youth behavior but reflect the lifestyle and culture of those in the community.

In collaboration with The Black Caucus of Health Workers, the Black Young Professional's Public Health Network invites experienced researchers and music professionals to discuss the relationship of sexual scripts presented in hip-hop music and videos upon the risk behaviors and health outcomes of AA adolescent girls.