The Role of Hip Hop in Addressing Socio-Political Situations in India- A Perception Study.

Music has always occupied a central place in the imagination of Indians.Over the years, the audience started welcoming different genres of music.Hip Hop, a popular form of music which evolved itself from oppression has its share of audience in India.The freedom to "express" oneself without class barriers and conventions popularise this genre.In India, non-commercial Hip Hop has a serious take on social and political issues through strong lyrics.Hip Hop artists are addressing the issues that are more relevant to the times rather than blindly rapping about living in a place with gun fights and racism which imitates the scenario in the West.Issues of poverty, lack of employment, environmental problems, drugs, Kashmir, corporate influence, caste barriers, child care etcetera which are severe issues to be considered in India, are approached through Hip Hop which acts as protest music.This paper analyses the Role of Hip Hop in addressing the social and political issues in India.By analysing the lyrical content qualitatively and by using an online this paper examines how the audience perceives and respond to non-commercial Hip Hop which has socially and politically charged lyrics.