This paper is about the phenomenon of Irish rap in general and about the rapper Jun Tzu in particular. His song The Bridge is being analysed in this work. Questions are: In which way is Irish hiphop music representative and what is it representative for?
Irish Rap. This term alone might take the reader a while to fully grasp ‒ and hopefully not much longer to acknowledge. Indeed, the worldwide phenomenon of rap, the musical and vocal element of the hip-hop culture, also has inspired artists on the green isle. As Mitchell states: “Hip-hop and rap cannot be viewed simply as an expression of African American culture; it has become a vehicle for global youth affiliations and a tool for reworking local identity all over the world.” (Mitchell, 2001, pp. 1f) Out of a number of Irish artists, a rapper called Jun Tzu has gained popularity over the last years reflecting Northern Irish history in his lyrics.
Today, Irish rap music is known by a broader audience than ever before. The reason is the online video platform Youtube. Over the last years, it became appealing to a mainstream audience and changed marketing and presentation habits drastically. With over 100 hours of uploaded video material per minute and more than two billion video views per day, the video portal nowadays gives artists a platform to be heard and seen on, that has never before existed. Understandably, this has changed and – through faster distribution – accelerated cultural development when it comes to rap. Artists can react to other artists’ works faster than 15 years ago and musicians do not need to publish their music by releasing a CD via a company. The probably most important effect of all: as soon as one owns a computer or even smartphone with internet access, he has a potentially limitless audience for his releases. This gives a special chance especially to Irish rappers whose music would otherwise not be distributed by big music companies in Europe, because too few people would buy the music and the marketing would just not be profitable. A major profiteer of this development is the Irish rapper Jun Tzu, who became known to a broader audience via a BBC documentary he was featured in, that had been distributed via the video platform.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Irish Rapper Jun Tzu
3. The Representation of Northern Ireland in “The Bridge”
4.1. Literature and Media in the Song
4.2. Representation in the Lyrics (Literature)
4.2.1. “The Crossing” ‒ Report
4.2.2. Conclusion and Vision
4.3. Representation in Spoken Word (Media)
4.3.1. Accent
4.3.2. Voice Samples
5. Conclusion/Summary of Results
Objectives and Topics
This paper examines how the Irish hip-hop artist Jun Tzu utilizes literature—in the form of lyrics—and media—through musical performance and sound samples—to represent Northern Ireland, its history of conflict, and the possibilities for future reconciliation.
- Analysis of the intersection between rap music, literature, and media.
- Representation of Northern Irish identity and the "Troubles" in Jun Tzu's lyrics.
- The use of linguistic variation (accent) as a marker of local identity.
- The role of external media (film samples) in constructing a narrative of division and hope.
Excerpt from the Book
4.2.1. “The Crossing” ‒ Report
Jun Tzu describes the way he represents his life in Northern Ireland as the following:
Like so many others from Northern Ireland, I grew up in a family very much affected by the conflict, and I explain that thoroughly in my album without taking sides or showing bias. My album is very much about people rather than politics, and experiences rather than beliefs. (Lee Henry, 2014, ll. 73-76)
In many lines of his song, the rapper acts similar to a reporter. He is telling the listeners of what he has seen on the other side of the wall. With his report, Jun Tzu gives information of his experience in Northern Ireland directly to the listener. He thereby creates an image of Northern Ireland containing all that he describes in his first two stanzas:
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: This chapter introduces the rise of Irish rap and the artist Jun Tzu, setting the stage for an analysis of how hip-hop serves as a tool for reworking local identity.
2. Irish Rapper Jun Tzu: This section provides a biographical overview of Jun Tzu, focusing on his background in Belfast, his experience as a misfit, and his transition into a spoken-word poet.
3. The Representation of Northern Ireland in “The Bridge”: This chapter analyzes the song "The Bridge" as a protest against the societal segregation and the "Troubles," viewing the peace walls as a manifestation of historical conflict.
4.1. Literature and Media in the Song: This chapter defines the theoretical framework, establishing how rap lyrics function as literature and how recorded audio elements function as media.
4.2. Representation in the Lyrics (Literature): This section explores how Jun Tzu’s lyrics construct a narrative of the conflict and his personal crossing of the physical and mental borders in Belfast.
4.2.1. “The Crossing” ‒ Report: This subsection details how the artist adopts the persona of a reporter to provide an unbiased account of life on both sides of the peace wall.
4.2.2. Conclusion and Vision: This subsection discusses the song's shift from describing the division to offering a vision of hope, where the younger generation can render the "bridge" and its borders obsolete.
4.3. Representation in Spoken Word (Media): This section shifts the focus to the non-lyrical elements of the song, arguing that accent and sound play a crucial role in the representational power of the track.
4.3.1. Accent: This subsection demonstrates how Jun Tzu uses his Irish accent to signal community membership and authenticity in the Northern Irish context.
4.3.2. Voice Samples: This subsection analyzes the use of audio samples from documentaries and films, showing how they provide external testimony that reinforces the song's political message.
5. Conclusion/Summary of Results: This chapter synthesizes the main findings, concluding that Jun Tzu successfully uses a multi-modal approach to portray Northern Ireland as a place of past suffering but future potential.
Keywords
Irish Rap, Jun Tzu, Northern Ireland, The Troubles, Peace Walls, Hip-Hop Culture, Identity, Literature, Media, Spoken Word, Representation, Belfast, Cultural Movement, Protest, Reconciliation
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this paper?
The paper explores how Irish rapper Jun Tzu uses his music, lyrics, and media elements to represent the social and political landscape of Northern Ireland.
What are the central themes discussed?
The central themes include the legacy of the Northern Irish "Troubles," the role of segregation (peace walls), identity formation, and the power of hip-hop as a medium for social commentary.
What is the primary research goal?
The goal is to determine how Jun Tzu creates a specific impression of Northern Ireland through a blend of literary storytelling and media-based sound techniques.
Which scientific methodology is applied?
The author uses media-scientific analysis, literary analysis of rap lyrics, and linguistic observation of phonetic anomalies (accents) to interpret the artist's work.
What does the main body of the work cover?
The main body breaks down the artist's background, performs a close reading of the song "The Bridge," and examines how linguistic features and audio samples contribute to the song's message.
Which keywords best characterize the work?
Key terms include Irish Rap, The Troubles, Identity, Peace Walls, and Cultural Representation.
How does the author define the "literary" aspect of the rap lyrics?
The author argues that because rap is a mixture of prose and poetry, it functions as literature, especially when analyzed in its written form.
Why are voice samples considered significant in the analysis?
Voice samples, such as those from the movie "Mickybo and Me," are seen as "media" objects that provide emotional context and external verification for the rapper's claims about the division between communities.
- Quote paper
- Erik Lutz (Author), 2016, The Representation of Ireland in Literature and Media of Hip-hop Artist Jun Tzu. An Analysis of the Song "The Bridge", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/335446
