Barras de Oro: Rap, Capital, and Resistance in Contemporary Spain

Abstract

This thesis examines the relationship between rap, capital, and resistance in Spain from the early 2000s to present, a period marked by neoliberal precarity, economic crisis, and the rise of the digital economy. Through analyzing rap lyrics and interviews in dialogue with empirical and theoretical sources on the aforementioned topics, this work analyzes the role of various forms of capital in mediating Spanish rap’s potential for working-class resistance. The introduction presents a brief history of Spanish rap that situates the emergence and evolution of the scene in its political, social, economic, and technological contexts. Then, the first chapter considers rap lyrics as resistance to the neoliberal war against the poor, advancing a comparison between the rapper and the resistance fighter as well as discussing censorship as a counterattack intended to dampen the genre’s political potency. The second chapter examines the relationship between rap, social class, and cultural capital and discusses implications of the increasing demand for working-class cultural capital amongst Spanish youth, including the rise of pijo rappers. The third chapter considers ways in which the development of the internet music scene reconfigures the relationship between rap and capital generation, arguing that the internet creates opportunities for an alternative to the neoliberal labor market while also opening inroads for the further entrenchment of cognitive capitalism in Spanish rap culture. Finally, the fourth chapter analyzes the significance of the growing tendency for conspicuous spending in the Spanish rap scene and proposes ways in which waste and extravagance constitute resistance to the neoliberal management of lack. In all, this thesis contributes to a greater understanding of the complex interactions between Spanish rap, capital, and resistance both articulating ways in which rap enables working-class resistance as well as outlining new and emerging challenges that neoliberalism poses to Spanish rap’s emancipatory potential.