Le hip-hop

We had a great week in French 1! As part of our unit on rural and urban communities, we are taking a look at music and it's impact in the United States and Senegal. Next week, they will spend time exploring different artists and how their music describes society and culture in collaboration with Senegalese students.

Did you know the classic bluegrass instrument, the banjo, is a descendant of the a Senegalese instrument called a banjar, that came here with African slaves?

We read articles, watched video, and listened to music from a host of African and African American genres, including mbalax, the most popular genre in Senegal.

Students finished the week by examining the popularity of the American genres of rap and hip hop in Senegal and how they've been transformed to incorporate political and religious messages while remaining true to the American style and beats.

Some favorite Senegalese artists are:

Youssou NDour

Djily Baghdad

Pape Diouf

Our culminating activity will be to create a playlist of American music with brief summaries of each song's message. These will be shared with high school classrooms in Senegal! You can check out the whole unit here.

You can find our hyperdoc of resources here. What American artists share political messages through their lyrics? Can you help our class with their playlist?