Hip-hop is understood as a culture that includes many forms of expression: dance, rap music – including MCing and DJing – slam poetry, fashion, film, and graffiti art. Since its beginning in the Bronx in the 1970s, hip-hop has not only become such a ubiquitous cultural expression but also turned out to be a phenomenal cultural force that has influenced and managed to shape local, national, regional and global issues.

The "Poetics and Politics of Hip-Hop Cultures" symposium will feature discussions and presentations by leading hip-hop scholars around the world.