Been Here: A Conversation with Mia X and Melissa A. Weber

In this engaging conversation, Melissa A. Weber, Curator, Hogan Jazz Archive, Tulane University Special Collections joins in conversation with Mia X, New Orleans native and Billboard charting emcee hailed as the “Mother of Southern Gangsta Rap,” focus on the evolution and influence of hip-hop and discuss the impact of trailblazing artistry in New Orleans in genres beyond jazz. We hope you enjoy, click the link below to watch the conversation in action!

This program is funded in part under a grant from the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Anyviews, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily representthose of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

About the Speakers

Mia X &

Melissa Weber

Almost thirty years of collaboration and solo work have given 7^th Ward native Mia X the well-deserved title of the Mother of Southern Gangsta Rap. The first female signee to the legendary No Limit Records, Mama Mia wears many hats – both figuratively and literally. When not working as a producer and emcee, X is an actor, mother, author, and renowned chef of Team Whip Dem Pots. She also is a professor of hip hop at Loyola University, where she preaches her lyrical and life wisdom to the next generation of New Orleans rappers.

As curator of the Hogan Jazz Archive of Tulane University Special Collections, Melissa A. Weber works to document and educate about the unique musical legacy and culture of New Orleans and the surrounding region via collections of rare and unique primary source materials. Her areas of research include 20th century Black popular music, and she has presented papers at academic conferences for the International Association for the Study of Popular Music; the Pop Conference; the National Council for Black Studies; the Society for Ethnomusicology, Southeast and Caribbean Chapter; and the Dayton Funk Symposium at the University of Dayton.

Additional Resources for “Been Here”

Compiled by Melissa A. Weber, Tulane University Special Collections, September 2020

Bibliography

*accessible via Howard-Tilton Memorial Library
**accessible via Tulane University Special Collections

Black Life in Old New Orleans – Keith Weldon Medley **

Black Noise: Rap Music and Black Culture in Contemporary America – Tricia Rose **

Bounce: Rap Music and Local Identity in New Orleans – Matt Miller *

Can’t Be Faded: Twenty Years in the New Orleans Brass Band Game – Stooges Brass Band and Kyle DeCoste

Can’t Stop Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation – Jeff Chang *

Congo Square: African Roots in New Orleans – Freddi Williams Evans *

Freedom’s Dance: Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs in New Orleans – Karen Celestan and Eric Waters *

The History of Gangster Rap: From Schoolly D to Kendrick Lamar, the Rise of a Great American Art Form – Soren Baker *

Polo Silk presents Pop That Thang!!! – Polo Silk

Things My Grandma Told Me, Things My Grandma Showed Me – Mia X

The Wild Tchoupitoulas (33 1/3 Series) – Bryan Wagner

Digital and Online Resources

The Black Music History Library
blackmusiclibrary.com

Hogan Jazz Archive and Tulane University Special Collections
jazz.tulane.edu
library.tulane.edu/about/directories/department/special-collections

NOLA Hip Hop and Bounce Archive
Presented in the Tulane University Digital Library through a partnership between the Amistad Research Center and Tulane University.
nolahiphoparchive.com

Universal Hip Hop Museum
uhhm.org

Click for a "Been Here" Musical Playlist