ABSTRACT
The power of Aesthetic Religion does not rest in the work itself, but in the possibilities created by it. Theopoetic humanism and theopoetic apophaticism are modes of becoming that fall under the umbrella of the main mode of becoming that is underground hip-hop as a Whiteheadian God and are far more than textual strategies. The preservation activity of underground hip-hop as a Whiteheadian God presents itself as the memory and re-presentation of hip-hop’s origins as possibilities for the future of its adherents and is the mission of the Temple. The Aesthetic Religion of underground hip-hop as constructed by practitioners and co-created by fans builds a mainframe in which its quasi-religious system is appealed to in hopes of providing holistic justice on the ground. Hip-hop’s beginnings have strong links to this concept. Afrika Baambaattaa’s desire to curb street gang violence by instituting a complex system of artistic competition that became hip-hop culture exemplifies this.
