Podcasts by Louder Than A Riot

Louder Than A Riot

Hip-hop emerged from the voices of the unheard. But freedom doesn't ring the same for everyone. Inside all corners of the culture, Black women and queer folk have dealt with the same oppression the music was built to escape. Season 2 of Louder Than A Riot examines who hip-hop marginalizes, and how misogynoir — the specific racist misogyny against Black women — is embedded into the fabric of the culture that we love.

From Rico Nasty facing harassment from toxic fans, to Saucy Santana's unapologetically femme aesthetics in a queerphobic industry, to the assault case that put Megan Thee Stallion's image on trial, each episode of Louder Than A Riot unpacks the unspoken rules of rap that discriminate against a select few and have held the entire culture back.

Hosted by NPR Music's Sidney Madden and Rodney Carmichael, Louder Than A Riot confronts power from every angle – from the power the genre wields over its artists, to the power plays that its rulebreakers take in order to get heard. In the midst of a so-called Renaissance for women in rap, these stories reveal a rot at the core of the culture that reflects how voices, bodies, and rights are still policed in America.

Further podcasts by NPR

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Louder Than A Riot
Watch the queen conquer: MC Lyte, Quay Dash, the cast of 'Rap Sh!t' from 2023-06-01T09:00:48

In the first nine episodes of our season, Louder has tackled the unwritten rules of rap. For the finale, we dig into the root of all those rules: the scarcity mindset. It's the belief that...

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Louder Than A Riot
Like poppa, like son: Rodney Carmichael from 2023-05-25T09:00:25

For Louder host Rodney Carmichael, interrogating misogynoir in hip-hop means confronting some hard questions — as a man, and especially as a father. As Rodney thinks about raising the next...

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Louder Than A Riot
What doesn't kill you makes you a strong Black woman: Rico Nasty from 2023-05-18T09:00:21

Rico Nasty's music creates a haven for heavy emotions. And in a world that paints Black girls showing any emotion as too much, having a place to release anger and anxiety is essential. But...

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Louder Than A Riot
Stay in your lane, shawty: Saucy Santana from 2023-05-11T09:00:09

Saucy Santana is part of a new wave of queer artists pushing back against stale standards in hip-hop. Bolstered by the reach of short sound bites on TikTok, the "Material Girl" rapper is not shy ab...

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Louder Than A Riot
Real n****s go hard (pause, no homo): iLoveMakonnen from 2023-05-04T09:00:47

How has hip-hop affected perceptions of Black masculinity? We unpack that question through the story of iLoveMakonnen, a rapper who has navigated different realms of masculinity his entire life, an...

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Louder Than A Riot
If you see something, say nothing: Kim Osorio v. 'The Source' from 2023-04-27T09:00:05

In 2006, Kim Osorio, the editor-in-chief of The Source, sued the magazine and its owners for workplace sexual harassment. Nearly two decades later, hip-hop still has not had a true reckoni...

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Louder Than A Riot
A Note on Episode 5 from 2023-04-13T21:30:21

Louder was planning to drop a new episode this morning about a lawsuit alleging sexual harassment and workplace discrimination at The Source magazine in the early 2000s. But, because of ci...

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Louder Than A Riot
It ain't trickin' if you got it: Trina, Trick Daddy and Latto from 2023-04-06T09:00:08

How did the "bad bitch" replace the "ride or die chick" in hip-hop? In this episode we talk to the original baddest herself, Trina, about how her career flipped the script on dusty old stereotypes ...

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Louder Than A Riot
Beauty is in the eye of the male gaze: DreamDoll, Doechii and Baby Tate from 2023-03-30T09:00:22

The male gaze looms over everything, but hip-hop is its favorite entertainment. Those under its watchful eye feel objectified or shamed if they don't give it what it wants to see. In this episode, ...

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Louder Than A Riot
Baby girl, you're only funky as your last cut: MC Sha-Rock from 2023-03-23T09:00:14

Decades before hip-hop's current renaissance of women rappers, there was MC Sha-Rock. Despite her influence on future generations, her contribution to the craft of hip-hop is not widely known. In t...

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Louder Than A Riot
Megan's Rule: Being exceptional doesn't make you the exception from 2023-03-16T09:00:26

It felt like the December 2022 trial of Tory Lanez sparked a divide in hip-hop, but it just stoked the flames of a 50-year-long battle for Black women to be heard. In the first episode of our new s...

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Louder Than A Riot
Louder Than A Riot Returns Thursday, March 16 from 2023-03-09T10:00:47

Inside all corners of hip-hop, Black women and queer folk have dealt with the same oppression the music was built to escape. Season 2 of Louder Than A Riot examines who hip-hop ma...

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Louder Than A Riot
Lyrics Still On Trial: Young Thug and Gunna from 2022-05-20T10:00:11

Last week, two of Atlanta's biggest rappers Young Thug and Gunna were arrested under the RICO Act. The DA charged their crew YSL as a gang and the indictment read more like a lyrical analysis than ...

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Louder Than A Riot
Presenting: On Our Watch from 2021-06-01T23:00:02

What happens to police officers who use excessive force, tamper with evidence or sexually harass someone? In California, internal affairs investigations were kept secret from the public — until a r...

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Louder Than A Riot
21 Years and 1 Day: Mac Phipps (Exclusive) from 2021-03-12T05:01

After 21 years in prison, Mac Phipps has been recommended for clemency, which could mean early release. As we reported in our first season, Mac was convicted in 2001 of manslaughter, for a crime he...

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Louder Than A Riot
Making Revolution Irresistible from 2020-12-17T04:59:21

Yo Gotti grew up in Memphis just across the state line from Mississippi State Penitentiary (aka Parchman) — so this year, when he learned about the squalor its inmates were living in, he wanted to ...

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Louder Than A Riot
Captured By The Game: Nipsey Hussle from 2020-12-10T05:01

After LA rapper Nipsey Hussle was murdered in 2019, city officials praised him for his community advocacy. But NPR has learned that behind the scenes, some law enforcement officers branded Nipsey a...

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Louder Than A Riot
'Prison To Prison Pipeline': Isis Tha Saviour from 2020-12-03T05:01

Hip-hop loves a hero's come-up, but the culture often has a hard time seeing women as heroes. Two years ago, when Louder Than A Riot editor Chiquita Paschal discovered she had a sister — w...

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Louder Than A Riot
My Brother's Keeper: Bobby Shmurda (Pt 3) from 2020-11-19T05:01:19

Six years after his arrest, Bobby Shmurda's fans are still anxiously awaiting his return. The rapper ultimately stayed loyal to his crew in court, but the chokehold of conspiracy law also left him ...

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Louder Than A Riot
'Stay In The House': Bobby Shmurda (Pt 2) from 2020-11-12T05:12:14

Two young men grow up just blocks apart, each with aspirations to make it big. But while Bobby Shmurda sees his dreams come true, Bryan Antoine is killed by members of Bobby's crew. This is the sto...

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Louder Than A Riot
The Badder, The Better: Bobby Shmurda (Pt 1) from 2020-11-05T05:01

Just like his legendary disappearing hat, Brooklyn rapper Bobby Shmurda's career was on the rise in 2014. But so was the evidence in a murder case against his crew, GS9. In the first of three episo...

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Louder Than A Riot
The Day The Mixtape Died: DJ Drama from 2020-10-29T04:01:28

In the early 2000s, mixtapes transformed Tyree Simmons into DJ Drama and molded T.I., Lil Wayne and Jeezy into rap superstars. But in 2007, those same mixtapes landed Drama in jail with a bank acco...

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Louder Than A Riot
Outsmarting The Devil: Mac Phipps (Pt 3) from 2020-10-22T04:01:51

Exploitation of prisoners. Sexual assault allegations. A Supreme Court ruling that could hold the keys to freedom. In the third and final installment of Mac's story, we follow the ripples of Mac's ...

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Louder Than A Riot
Lyrics On Trial: Mac Phipps (Pt 2) from 2020-10-15T04:01

"A bullet in your brain." What right does the justice system have to decide whether a rapper's words are imagination or intent to kill? In this continuation of Mac Phipps' story, police pressure wi...

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Louder Than A Riot
The Camouflage Assassin: Mac Phipps (Pt 1) from 2020-10-08T04:16

When New Orleans rap phenom Mac Phipps signed with Master P's No Limit Records, he knew his dream of hip-hop stardom was within reach. But in February 2000, Mac was accused of murder and the dream ...

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Louder Than A Riot
The Conspiracy Against Hip-Hop from 2020-10-08T04:01

In this first episode, a mysterious conspiracy letter sends us on a journey to find out just how entangled hip-hop and mass incarceration have become over the last 40 years. We travel back in time ...

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Louder Than A Riot
Louder Than A Riot: Coming Thursday, October 8 from 2020-10-01T04:01:18

Bobby Shmurda. Nipsey Hussle. Mac Phipps. DJ Drama. What happens when hip-hop stars come into contact with the criminal justice system? In Louder Than A Riot, a new podcast from NPR Music,...

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Louder Than A Riot
Introducing: Louder Than A Riot from 2020-09-16T17:04:41

From NPR Music, Louder Than A Riot traces the interconnected rise of hip-hop and mass incarceration. Hosts Rodney Carmichael and Sidney Madden investigate the criminal justice system throu...

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