Abstract
This chapter is concerned with young people’s voices in spoken word popular music projects. It is argued that for projects that engage young people with and through music, it is important to consider their voice in all its iterations, which includes young people’s artistic voice. Using the concept of voice, this chapter shows how projects need to be designed in a way that captures young people’s voices throughout the project and includes the non-verbal (i.e., musical) dimensions of their voices as forms of communication. Such inclusion necessitates the creation of intersubjective meaning through the negotiation of hierarchies, knowledges, expertise, and agency. As a result of the negotiation process, the role of the researcher can be redefined. By acknowledging the different epistemologies of the project participants, impact beyond the anticipated outcomes can be uncovered. Focusing on participation as an inclusive method, young people should be included in the planning, delivery, and evaluation of projects. Given a certain flexibility and space within projects, unintended outcomes can be identified through and responded to by the young people themselves. This way, impact becomes a phenomenological variable and allows for various forms of data and types of analysis to be used for the evaluation of projects.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Music for Inclusion and Healing in Schools and Beyond |
| Subtitle of host publication | Hip Hop, Techno, Grime, and more |
| Editors | Pete Dale, Pamela Burnard, Raphael Travis Jr. |
| Place of Publication | New York |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press |
| Chapter | 16 |
| Pages | 315-334 |
| Number of pages | 20 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9780197692707 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9780197692684, 9780197692677 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Dec-2023 |