ABSTRACT
This chapter develops a theory of individual empowerment based in experiences of listening to rap and metal music. It introduces three psychological theories that can be used to investigate how individuals are affected in the listening process: approach/inhibition theory, which examines behaviour; the personal sense of power, which relates to affect and self-esteem; and the processes of mentalising and mirroring, which address interpretation and state of mind. Following an account of Allan Moore’s theory of the personic environment, five music analyses are provided to demonstrate the potential for empowering listening experiences in action. The chapter considers the relationship between the genres of rap and metal and ends with analysis of a track that combines them stylistically (although not exactly in the most common tradition of “rap metal”).
