ABSTRACT
Hip-hop became one of the most potent musical genres in Poland during the last three decades. During this period two narratives regarding hip-hop became prominent. The first is tied to blokersi, a group of frustrated young men who came of age during Poland’s transition to capitalism. The name refers to the blocks of flats or the housing projects that are generally considered as the cultural habitat of blokersi and the birthplace of Polish hip-hop. The second narrative involves the reception of hip-hop through the works of nineteenth-century poets, in particular those who became pivotal to the formation of national consciousness, positioning rappers as heirs to the Polish literary tradition. The goal of this chapter is to critically investigate the ideological dimensions of these two narratives. I will demonstrate that both narratives adopt a strictly domestic purview that circumvents the transnational context of hip-hop’s emergence and development in Poland. Consequently, these narratives are replete with blind spots and internal contradictions, signaling opportunities for the unmaking of national hegemony. I conclude by showing the critical purchase of repositioning Polish hip-hop within the context of global “affective economies,” as this will provide a more comprehensive and compelling account of Polish hip-hop’s distinct trajectory.
