NPR Music's Sidney Madden and Rodney Carmichael
In September 2020, at the height of the pandemic and a tipping point of civil upheaval during quarantine, NPR Music launched the narrative-driven, 10-series podcast, Louder Than A Riot, which set out to untangle the intersection of hip hop and mass incarceration.
Focusing on “rhyme and punishment,” the show, created and hosted by self-identified hip hop lovers and veteran music journalists, Sidney Madden and Rodney Carmichael, examines a palpable wound unique to Black America, policing. The second season digs deeper into the nuanced layers of hip hop and its double consciousness, exploring the history of misogyny, homophobia and the dangers of “othering” already marginalized groups, through the lens of music.
The first episode of Season 2, Megan’s Rule: Being Exceptional Does Not Make You The Exception, kicks off a conversation through first-hand commentary from Madden, Carmichael and this episode’s Senior Producer, Gabriella Bulgarelli, who reported live from Tory Lanez’s assault trial where he was found guilty of shooting Megan Thee Stallion.
“Season 2 started in 2020, the same year Black women were touted for saving the election, the same year when Black women and Black femmes were the driving force of the Black Lives Matter movement,” says Madden, “we saw those ironies and hypocrisy playing out around this.”
Gabriella Bulgarelli reporting from Tory Lanez trail in Los Angeles
Through pre-trail reporting, close eyes on social media, podcasts and researched written profiles, the team presents a deeply researched case through the episode, bringing valuable perspectives to light – particularly one such disturbing allegation from Tory Lanez’s defense suggesting Megan The Stallion’s celebrity status would benefit from visibility around the shooting and trail, somehow propelling her career to new heights. Bulgarelli describes feeling “overwhelmed, concerned, challenged, enraged, and activated,” throughout the trail coverage.
The raw and complicated double standards that not only persist in an American courtroom for Black men and Black women play out through the structural confines of misogynoir, a term coined in 2010 by Moya Bailey who is interviewed in the first episode. Misogynoir refers to a specific type of Anti-Black misogyny experienced by Black women, creating an intersectional form of oppression transcending traditional versions of sexism and racism. The way misogynoir is baked into hip hop is quite alarming in the case full of musical, academic and cultural receipts the show lays out for listeners.
When asked who this show is for, the host’s perspectives compliment one another. “This season is for me and my friends who connect the [hip hop and culture] dots all day like nerds,” says Madden. “Hip hop podcasts tend to be predominately male and chat heavy and we are prioritizing deep narrative storytelling and deep enterprise with more women and gender expansive people – this social misogyny hurts all of us and we have to make it a communal conversation.”
Carmichael goes on to explain his specific target, “I want Black men to listen to this season. We know women aren’t going to be able to solve sexism – it’s also going to take the effort of the folks who have the power in the dynamic. #MeToo missed hip hop – how does that conversation happen in a culture where it's such a deeply integrated part of the culture and music and the objectification of women is celebrated and glorified?”
In Season 2, Louder Than A Riot, tells the stories of influential hip-hop figures, including Trina, Latto, Forbes 30 Under 30 Music alum Saucy Santana, Rico Nasty, journalist Kim Osorio and activist Tarana Burke with the intention of empowering societal shifts and signal boosting cultural conversations for progress.
Season 2 of Louder Than A Riot is produced by Gabriella Bulgarelli, Sam Leeds and Mano Sundaresan.
