Amplifying the Voices of South Korean Youths as a Generational Minority Against Conventional Paths of Success Through Hip Hop Music: A Text Analysis of Lyrics

Abstract

This study examines how young South Korean rappers challenge conventional, age-standardized pathways to success by crafting alternative narratives through their hip hop music. By utilizing quantitative text analysis of 3,600 popular South Korean hip-hop songs, this study draws on critical race theory to conceptualize South Korean youth as a generational minority and applies the framework of substantiated self-promotion to investigate why these alternative expressions of success are embraced among South Korean youth. The findings reveal that popular Korean hip hop songs articulate alternative expressions of success-characterized by overt boasts of material wealth and individuality-that diverge from traditional societal trajectories in South Korea. Moreover, these narratives gain legitimacy when coupled with evidence of effort, talent, or familial responsibility. These findings suggest that, just as hip hop has historically functioned as a tool for empowering racial minorities, hip hop can provide a platform for younger or less dominant generations to challenge and potentially redefine the conventional measures of success imposed by previous or more dominant generations in South Korea.