Misogyny in the Lyrics of Selected Nigerian Hip-Hop Songs: A Stylistic Analysis

Abstract

Music is used to educate, inform and entertain the populace. But what is worrisome is that some brand of music like hip-hop has strayed into an open display of women objectification and contempt. As bad as these acts are, it has appeared to be the selling point for hip-hop artists as they continually get accolade and juicy rewards for songs which ordinarily should be censored. Using the stylistic approach, the paper examines the linguistic resources deployed in perpetrating misogyny in selected Nigerian hip-hop songs. It adopts the interpretive research design, and purposive sampling technique. In examining the selected hip-hop songs, it established that many popular Nigerian hip hop songs contain misogynistic expressions that objectify women as instruments for sexual aggrandizement, and thus inimical to the nurturing of a productive and just society. To curb the rate of misogyny in Nigerian Hip-Hop songs, there is the need for the regulatory agency on the entertainment industry in Nigeria to be more thorough and firm in the regulation of the contents of hip hop songs in Nigeria.