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This course studies the histories of musical cultures and industries in Africa during an age of advancing communications networks and the seemingly ever-increasing democratization of technology. It analyzes cultural trends, such as the development of High Life and Afropop, in the context of anti-colonial and anti-apartheid movements. It also explores how processes like the evolution of global hip-hop culture and the rise of the internet helped fortify bridges between historically oppressed peoples within and across national and continental boundaries. We will get to know individual people and will recognize those people, as well as regional sounds like HipLife and Bongo Flava, as central agents in African and global history. With the concept of ubuntu as our guide, we will deepen our conscious participation in global pop. Three hours per week.Four semester hours. (H, GN.)
Note: Students who have completed HIST-367 may not register for HIST-351.