Hip-Hop and Spoken Word Therapy in Urban School Counseling

Abstract

This study involved a secondary analysis of data collected across the 2016–2017 academic year to determine the impact on students’ social and emotional well-being of a new hip-hop lyricism course implemented by a school counselor. The new course introduced hip-hop and spoken word therapy into a specially designed classroom curriculum to meet the emotional and stress-coping needs of youth, allowing for improvements in the development of coping skills, emotional self-awareness, and self-image.

An Ecological Examination of School Counseling Equity

“…School counseling practices have addressed social injustices through implementing bullying prevention, empowering students from traditionally marginalized groups, and fostering interracial friendships (Holcomb-McCoy, 2007). Levy (2019) argued that such programming is particularly well-suited for students who face many structural risk factors and are prone to stress related to racism and discrimination. For example, Levy's (2019) qualitative investigation of a counselor-led hip-hop and spoken word therapy at a South Bronx high school found it benefitted the emotional wellbeing of students.…”

“…Levy (2019) argued that such programming is particularly well-suited for students who face many structural risk factors and are prone to stress related to racism and discrimination. For example, Levy's (2019) qualitative investigation of a counselor-led hip-hop and spoken word therapy at a South Bronx high school found it benefitted the emotional wellbeing of students. In this way, counselors equip students with tools to navigate structures and organizations not built with them in mind.…”

“Real Recognize Real”: Hip‐Hop Spoken Word Therapy and Humanistic Practice

“…Specifically, HHSWT offers counselors a set of hip‐hop‐centered activities or tools that they can use in the counseling process to support youth in exploring difficult thoughts and feelings. These activities include the hip‐hop cypher , which is a highly codified yet unstructured rap or dance, for group process and sharing (Levy, Emdin, & Adjapong, ); creating emotionally themed mixtapes from a collection of songs (Levy, Cook, & Emdin, ); lyric writing as emotive journaling; and dyadic song collaboration as role play (Levy, ). Each of these HHSWT techniques offers a culturally salient process in which Black and Brown youth can disclose and process difficult thoughts and feelings with their counselor.…”

“…Given research that suggests youth feel more comfortable exploring thoughts and feelings through lyric writing than through traditional forms of talk therapy (Gonzalez & Hayes, ; Levy & Keum, ), and that they perceive counselors who use hip‐hop‐based interventions as relatable on a personal level (Kobin & Tyson, ), I call on counseling professionals to become comfortable using hip‐hop lyric writing interventions in session. Levy () found prompting youth to write and record emotionally themed hip‐hop songs in session created a platform to explore difficult thoughts and feelings and led to youth feeling a deeper connection with their roots.…”

“…I argue that the use of these practices by counselors enables clients to feel heard and valued as holding answers to their own concerns. By leaning on interventions that enable clients to use their cultural forms of healing and catharsis to guide the session, counselors support clients in bringing their genuine and whole selves into session (Levy, ). In this sense, hip‐hop's authenticity and irreducibility are aligned.…”