Abstract
Since 2019, there have been public concerns in the Netherlands about the growing popularity of drill rap, a subgenre of gangsta rap known for its hyperbolic communication of violence in music videos and other social media uploads. Drawing on a netnographic study on Dutch drill in the city of Rotterdam, we illustrate how the drillers in our study use social media and rap music videos on YouTube and Instagram to insult, challenge, threaten and try to expose their rivals (or ‘opps’). Moreover, we provide an overview of the different types of beefs and provocations we came across in our research, with a focus on the online-offline dynamics in these conflicts. Our results show that the communication of violence is especially visible in a broader online drill rap culture. However, despite the frequent violent posts and provocative online content, the number of actual offline violent incidents as a result of these online expressions was limited. Much of the violence expressed by the Rotterdam drillers on social media can be seen as performative and geared more towards the communication of a violent and dangerous image, rather than an actual willingness to commit physical violence.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | The Routledge International Handbook of Online Deviance |
Publisher | Routledge (Taylor & Francis Group) |
Chapter | 27 |
Pages | 485-502 |
Number of pages | 18 |
Edition | 1st edition |
ISBN (Electronic) | 9781040099360 |
ISBN (Print) | 9781032234472 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 16 Sept 2024 |
Research programs
- SAI 2005-04 MSS