Final Year Project: Report

Title: How the nuance of genre in a digital landscape can create opportunity for self-advocacy

Acknowledgements

Without outside inspiration and close influences, the project I embarked on wouldn’t have taken the direction of which it did.

Thank you to all the MC’s that have given me an outlet as an autistic individual.

My sister Philippa was key in encouraging me to make music that was authentic to myself. Conversations with UEL tutor Fola Phillips became a great catalyst with regards to the direction of the project and was significant in influencing me to take position as the performer on the project, if it weren’t for that I know my idea for the project wouldn’t have developed further beyond a traditional rage rap EP.

This wouldn’t have been possible without Gordon’s guidance as he had plenty of patience with me as I was finding my voice.

Abstract  

The prevalence of auto-tune before and during the dawn of the streaming era has caused unexpected changes in performance style within the many sub-genres of popular music that have been charting throughout the 21st century. When looking at the most dominant genre’s that have been relevant during this time, hip-hop has been one of the most blatant culprits of the drastic changing of what is considered high performance value from the mainstream consumers of music, with urban contemporary artists often resorting to becoming digitalised caricatures of themselves when they make music for the public domain.

Initially my proposal rationale was to explore how the rap/rock genre has evolved during the advent of ‘rage’ music and the culture that has been manifested from the rise of its popularity, through drafting a demo EP that can demonstrate how the culture has also blurred the post-modern interpretations of genre rap/rock specifically. Whilst the actual content of my final project does not deviate from exploring this genre specifically, being the main vocalist for the EP has encouraged me to explore how the nature of rage (or perhaps more appropriately ‘punk rap’) can be used thoroughly as a tool for self-advocacy by voices that typically go unheard.

I aimed to go about this by composing ‘autistic reality raps’ in a way that stays authentic to unique rap/rock sub-genre’s such as ‘rage’, ‘nu-metal’ as well as certain aspects of ‘drill’ regarding the sonic aesthetics of the music I was making. Within this report, I will be explaining how people like me can connect with these sub-genres as autistic individuals and how it could manifest as a potential outlet for autistic advocates in the future as unconventional trends in genre and performances become accepted within popular cultures.

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Introduction

During initial discussions surrounding the trajectory of my final year project after submitting my proposal, I knew I had my intentions set on creating a punk-rap EP, but I had not made any decisions regarding who would be performing on the project, but I knew I wanted to gain experience and expand my skillset in vocal recording for post-modern genre’s, as well as make a demonstration about how our understanding of genre has dissolved due to the technologies available to us in the 21st century.

When I explained my originally set intentions to UEL tutor Fola Phillip, she posed a crucial question about what would define a punk-rap album, stating that the word ‘Punk’ can be interpreted differently across the population when considering various age, gender, race, and other identity archetypes. This conundrum was also reflected in our own separate interpretations of what the word ‘Punk’ is synonymous with. As a young white male in my mid 20’s, I interpreted ‘Punk’ as a stylistic way of being, or rather an aesthetic defined by dark clothing and aggressively loud music. This was very different to Fola’s view on the semantics of the word, being an older woman who has been alive longer than I have she would have had more witness to the progression of ‘Punk’ culture than I have had. She would then go on to claim that by her standards the word ‘Punk’ is only an appropriation tool if the content being labelled so is not an act of rebellion and resistance to authority. This expanded further debate between us when I revealed to her that most of my influences for this project, gave very little to offer to the political/social climate within the context of their art (performers such as Playboi Carti, Lil Uzi, and Lil Yachty to name a few). The separation between our understanding of the word ‘Punk’ can even be seen in variations between the definitions offered by both Oxford and Cambridge dictionaries respectively.

This led me to open to Fola about the unique challenges that I face as an autistic individual, and how the compositional content of ‘rage’/’punk-rap’ offers me an expressive outlet to display my autistic traits and how that in turn provides encouragement for me to operate as my authentic self. This was when I decided that I would go beyond my original intentions and go as far as to be the main vocalist on the project, with the lyrical content being aimed towards breaking stigma’s (despite not necessarily being about breaking stigma’s) faced by neuroqueer individuals and advocating for autism awareness, acceptance, and inclusion. This project was written, composed, produced, mixed, performed and mastered by myself using my extensive skillset composition skills in FL and mixing skills in Ableton.

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Literature Review

Mackintosh, K. Reynolds, S (2021). 1 Neon Screams: How Drill, Trap and Bashment Made Music New Again. New edition. London, United Kingdom: Repeater Books

Fore-worded by Simon Reynolds, Neon Screams takes an intricate look at the variety of new urbanised genres that have become prevalent up to the 2020s. Neon Screams is a post-modern piece of literature that encourages and incentivises musical futurism. Using the embrace Auto-Tune in the late 2000s as the reference for his starting point, Mackintosh explores the last decade of the music landscape, giving praise to the innovation of modern genres that are still exploring the sonic capabilities. Mackintosh establishes a new pantheon of pioneers and innovators. Offering dizzying insights into the likes of Future, Young Thug, Migos and Vybz Kartel, Neon Screams is an essential document in helping audiences to understand how technological developments are being used to revive and recreate genre. Neon screams is an honest attempt to illustrate the limitless potential of future music under developing technological marvels. This book has helped me understand the rationality behind vocal decisions made by the current prevalent artists, who are dictating the vocal styles heard throughout urban contemporary music today, which has in turn helped me to emulate these vocal styles in a way that allows me to vocalise myself as an autistic alter-ego.

Dr Rogers, S (2022). 2 This Is What It Sounds Like: What the Music You Love Says About You, Penguin Audio

Drawing on her experiences as an engineer for the late ‘Prince’ as well as her knowledge as an academic professor of cognitive neuroscience, ‘This Is What It Sounds Like’ by Dr Susan Rogers is a book dedicated to explaining the thorough scientology of how individuals find their aesthetic preferences, with each chapter being dedicated to different characteristic aspects of musicality. Dr Susan Rogers also refers to charting musical history to give scientific evidence to her explanations, encouraging the reader to listen to a plethora of tracks so that they may explore the effects being described throughout the book. This book was instrumental in gaining understanding on how I identify with my preferred musical styles as well as how to use tools in order stay authentic to my own taste which, makes the music I am creating of ‘novelty’ to myself, a reoccurring theme throughout the book with a third chapter dedicated to it.

B. Bakan, M (2018). 3 Speaking for Ourselves: Conversations on Life, Music, and Autism. Illustrated edition. New York, NY Oxford University Press

Ethnomusicologist Michael B. Bakan documents conversations with a plethora of autistic youths with an incentive to gain their own personal accounts of their experiences with music. The obligation to do this stems from the insistent need for researchers to understand the relationship between autism and musicality, with little regards for their own verbalised perspectives on how they engage with and experience music. Michael’s active engagement with these individuals is used not to generalise autistic people and their experiences, but rather identify and disseminate how the way autistic people interact with music when compared to their neurotypical counterparts in a way that can give readers insight into the autistic human experience.

Methodology

My methodology diverted from what was originally entailed in my proposal, although I did stay true to my commitment to understanding the historical context behind the manifestation of the punk-rap hybrid and keeping that aesthetic throughout the EP, I hadn’t expected themes of self-advocacy to become a centric part of the project. When I finally decided to reinvent myself as a performing act, I decided to base my influences for the music on a select few performers that appealed to me individually and reference them in my own performances in a way that respectfully pays homage to the inspirations behind the direction of my project.

Reading material such as ‘Neon Screams’ was essential in gaining greater understandings around the digital domains influence on music, which would assist in informing me on how the digital intervention through makes music more accessible for people like me. Reading was also necessary with regards to how autistic people like me connect with music so that maybe reflected in the content I create, with much of my literature survey revolving around themes of identity with a specific focus on autistic identity.

Of course, my initial intentions of understanding the culture around rage music and the progression of genre during the digital age remained the same. I wanted to ensure that my music referred to these performers whilst also delivering the music in a style which was authentic to me and displays my thorough exploration of the many bodies of work that have evolved the types of sounds and performance types that are saturating popular music sub-genre’s today. After many thorough hours of listening for inspirations, my main influences for realising the delivery of my performances consisted of (but weren’t limited to) the likes of Lil Dicky, Playboi Carti, Baby Keem and D Double E.

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Impact

Whilst I avoided mentioning being on the autistic spectrum in my proposal document with a greater focus on my ethnical background, this was because at the time it had very little to do with my ideas for my final year project. It wasn’t until my first discussions with Fola Phillip that I realised that my understanding of my autism and how I operate with that was going to be a centric part of the project. Therefore, it made more sense during my rationale to write about the implications of being involved in hip-hop as a caucasian individual and how I can contribute to the evolvement of the genre respectfully without committing gentrification for solely my own benefit.

Another reason that I didn’t mention autism within my proposal is because I am often regarded as a high functioning autistic person, who has operated with relatively low support needs as an individual, being able to operate as a student and study independently. Autism doesn’t detriment my ability to function as an academic as much as having an attention deficit does, which is of course is part of my ADHD (attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder) symptoms. Many people throughout the autistic community would also consider me high ‘masking’, which entails the ability to present the illusion that I am neurotypical without giving too many blatant signals that would suggest otherwise. ‘Masking’ is the terminology commonly used within the autistic community to describe how we conform/comply to the peer pressure of navigating a neurotypical world that isn’t really made for our accommodation. Although the act of ‘masking’ is seen as a convenient mode for autistic people to operate within for the regular person, it can have long term health consequences for the autistic individuals in question due to having to hide their authentic selves which in turn limits the quality of their connections, leaving them often feel unseen, unheard and not reciprocated in the ways of which they need to be.

When using my voice to describe autism, it’s important that I stay true to my experience and the ethical research that has been done online. Progressions in the understanding of autism through research over the last century has some notoriety for being unethical, with a lot of potentially dangerous findings being made from them. For example, the DSM IV (The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 1994)4 contained the official diagnosis for ‘Asperger’s syndrome’ as an internationally recognised diagnostic, despite the namesake being used after a Nazi collaborator who conducted unethical experiments on children and often knowingly sent them to their deaths. The name also signified autism as a negative connotation since autistic traits were undesirable within the intentions of the Nazi regime. Since the release of the DSM V the term Asperger’s syndrome no longer has international recognition, however many medical professionals still hold on to the use of the term.

Whilst there has been a long history of unethical research into autism, there are also autism research institutes around today that do more to stigmatise the conversation surrounding autism than to help autistic families adapt and embrace their way of being. Many people may have heard of the organisation ‘Autism Speaks’ but may not be aware of the conflict that their policy’s created between them and the autism right movement. Until 20165 the mission statement for Autism speaks included seeking a “cure” for autism, and the symbolism of the blue puzzle piece continues to be criticised for its attempts of infantilisation of autistic people by suggesting they are like puzzle pieces that need to fit in. In rejection of the blue-puzzle piece, progressive autism advocates prefer to use the infinity symbol, which is usually coloured in gold or red, to suggest that autistic individuals are in fact ‘whole’ and don’t need ‘fixing’ as much as they need support. The use of the colour red is therefore an open protest to the Autism Speaks organisation, with the phrase ‘Red instead’ gaining popularity within the autistic community, hence why I decided to use this as the name of the track that introduces my EP. The use of ‘Red’ is also synonymous with Playboi Carti’s third studio album ‘Whole lotta Red’ (2020)6 which is heavily regarded as his boldest attempt to assert himself as a rockstar within the public domain, which I saw as a great opportunity to pay homage to the inspirations behind the EP. The album title ‘Whole lotta Red’ would also be referenced within the title of my Demo EP as ‘Got out of bed’, to imply that my work is influenced by or even a parody of that project. ‘Got out of bed’ is the title used to tie themes of autistic burnout to the EP, bringing attention to the fact that autistic people often operate within a shorter capacity when compared to their neurotypical counterparts.

Whilst advocating for the open speech for autistic people through my own experiences, it’s crucial that I do not attempt to generalise all our experiences, as not all autistic people are the same or have the same experience, which is often a dangerous misconception that is carried by the neurotypical population. Furthermore, it’s also important to not suggest anything that can be used by organisations such as Autism Speaks to reinforce negative stereotypes that they attempt to cement surrounding the autism conundrum.

Findings

Vocalising myself as an autistic individual was initially too challenging of an endeavour for me to take with enthusiasm, however research and prior experiences with warmup routines as well as my developing understanding of the importance of comfort whilst recording, helped me to step out of my comfort zone and express myself openly and authentically.

Despite very early years in music therapy and even more in my late teens, I wasn’t quick to find my confidence with recording my vocals. Having an extensive Antares auto-tune package and experimenting with a variety of vocal chain setups was an essential part in remedying that doubt, and my decision to engineer my friends rap performance so that I could feel comfortable with the technical aspects of vocal and post-production processes was also key to helping me find my voice as somebody who has never performed their own music before. The functionality of Ableton Live allowed me to thoroughly achieve clean and wide mixes, whilst having my own mastering of compositional tools in FL studio helped me keep my arrangements refreshing and flexible.

It felt more authentic for me to avoid writing, opting instead to record the lyrics 1 by 1 (or in sets of 4 bars). I did this because it felt right as an AuADHD (Autistic-attention-deficit/hyperactivity-disorder) individual not to deal with the tedious process of writing and trusting myself instead to know what to say in the moment of recording the music, as writing the music separately to recording felt inauthentic in humanising the way we think and feel on a record.

I found that recording myself through a post fx chain was key to increasing my ability to deliver the performance I was looking to replicate for the EP I was looking to produce. The results of the project have made me very confident that the autistic people of future generations will have an both expressive and commercial outlet to advocate for themselves within the music industry.

Discussion

Much of the initial intention I had for my final year project was inspired by Kit MacIntosh’s ‘Neon Screams’, which goes through lengths to poetically personify the caricature nature of rap alter-ego’s that have been manifested during times of live vocal modulation, specifically in popular hip-hop sub-genre’s such as drill, trap, rage and bashment. He explains how this concept in turn demonstrates how the process of dissolving the human nature of the voice in our popular music has ultimately led to dissolving our original understandings of the genre’s that these performers claim to operate in, as the technology inevitably changes the type of performances that audiences see value in. Some notable case studies he mentions in his work include Vybz Kartel’s influence on dancehall, Future’s influence on Hip-Hop, and the way that Playboi Carti induces the act of ‘Rage’ within his music.

With many of these artists being United States based, I wasn’t holding out too long on the idea of finding the perfect performers for what I was searching for in East London, which was another reason I decided that being the main vocalist on this project would give me the best agency as networking effectively as an autistic person can be particularly difficult. I took it upon myself therefore, to gain an understanding of how to project myself as a pro-autistic alter ego of myself, who uses and interprets the metaphors in Kit Mackintosh’s writing to emulate the performance value that is carried out by effective vocal chaining and retuning. I also tried to reference existing tracks when both considering my instrumentals and the delivery of my vocals.

Due to my lack of confidence with recording whilst I’m performing, I made a significant deviation from the method I had originally entailed within my Gantt Chart which indicated me leaving vocal mixing to the latter stages of realising the aesthetics of my project. Setting up a vocal chain preset that gave me live playback of the mixer post-effect, was a significant part of reducing my anxiety surrounding my lack of experience engineering my own vocals. Whilst autistic individuals historically have provided immense value and output within the music industry, most autistic individuals will be involved as session musicians who are not required or encouraged to provide vocals. As voice modulation becomes more easily accessible in the digital domain, so does the ability for autistic individuals to mask and unmask their traits openly, so they can comfortably learn how to discover their voice since autistic people often find frustration communicating & advocating for their needs, which often require a healthy outlet for them that isn’t always accessible to those who may have mid to high support needs.

Unmasking7 within the autistic community is a phrase that describes the process of unlearning the pressures of hiding autistic traits to appear regular and fit in. Conforming/complying with the ways neurotypical people expect us to operate is often a short-term solution that can have grave consequences in the long run. It goes without saying therefore, that the act of unmasking is a liberating act which can also be seen as a rebellious act from a certain point of view. When autistic people proceed to mask for long periods of time, they can often end up feeling alienated once they come to terms with the effect that the trauma of masking has had on their livelihoods, as masking means limited authentic connection where autistic people rarely feel heard and seen for who they are, as opposed to the projection they display by masking to make neurotypicals feel comfortable around them at the cost of their own comfort. The process of unmasking can at first seem daunting to many autistic people but can be an improvement for quality of life and personal health in the long run. Although the nature of my advocacy in the music I make may be hard for many to digest, that often is the harsh nature of unmasking autistic traits, therefore I considered it a necessary to openly unmask on my ‘Punk-rap’ EP so that the music would openly challenge people’s comfort with autistic authentic expression.

In essence, by using the outlet of music to openly unmask autistic traits I am diverting from heteronormative behaviour, which can be seen as an open rebellion to the expected norms I am pressured to demonstrate as an autistic person. Although the nature of my advocacy in the music I make may be hard to digest for neurotypical people, it’s part of the rebellious nature of displeasing people that prevents me from using the label of ‘Punk-rap’ as a tool for an appropriation, as I deliver lyrical content openly rejecting social normative behaviours and embracing my identity as a neuroqueer person.

By openly protesting the way I am treated as an autistic person on a record to be put in the public domain, I am emulating the nature of ‘punk’ as an act of rebellion to the ‘standard’ or the ‘normative’. Not only am I doing justice to the rebellion aspect of punk as a protest, but I am also staying true to the compositional aspects that are associated with rage music which is also given the attribution of punk rap. Many of the characteristics of rage music can be seen as synonymous with autistic regulatory behaviour, which is why I chose this sub-genre specifically when trying to demonstrate the nuance of post-modern genre whilst advocating for autistic people.

The aspect of the nature of rage music I tried to capture the most within my performances was the chronic use of Ad-Libbing, which was the main outlet I used to unmask autistic traits. One of the common auditory traits that is often (not always) synonymous with autistic people is the Echolalia, which is a condition where an individual repeats words or phrases they heard from someone else (sometimes involuntary, more so in Tourette’s). Most neurotypical people cease to engage in repetitive speech patterns after their infancy, whereas autistic people may use repetition techniques to remember and learn information throughout their lives. Often people who experience or even struggle from Echolalia traits past infancy can have trouble communicating and may even be chastised for not having the capacity to engage in a completely coherent conversation.

Thankfully for autistic people, many neurotypical individuals have accepted the nature of ad-libbing for a long while within the landscape of rap music. Performing acts such as Migos have cemented the necessity for ad-libs within trap music and their associated sub-genre’s. Migos have even been documented in discussions about how their audiences would often choose to sing along with the percussive ad-lib content as opposed to the actual lyrical content that embody the verse/hook being performed. It’s acts like Migos that have been key in cementing my passion for the developing hip-hop trends through genres such as trap music.

Since rage music goes further to exaggerate the use of ad-libs through vocal modulation, autistic individuals may have a natural affinity for rage music due to the heavily repeating the use of vocal noises that are often meaningless and sometimes indistinguishable, which would bring great appeal to autistic individuals that make noises to regulate emotionally. When the sounds appeal to their echolalia, they may use them repetitively for the regulatory act of ‘stimming’, sounds of which nature are also often associated with the current climate of rage music, that may inherently have more value to autistic people as opposed to their neurotypical counterparts. ‘Stimming’8 is a common term used to describe the self-regulatory behaviours of autistic people, which are often used (consciously or unconsciously) as an emotional tool that is an integral part of autistic coping mechanisms. These ‘stimming’ behaviours can come in many forms, most typically actions such as flapping or waving of the arms are commonly associated with the act of stimming, but stimming can also occur through sound, with autistic individuals making seemingly random noises which are often deemed inappropriate to neurotypicals. The change in performance values seen in rage music driven by the likes of Playboi Carti and Future, can be instrumental in giving autistic people a potential platform for their voices to be normalised within music. With the assistance of technology available to me today, it was very revealing to me how much confident I felt in my music once I performed an ad-lib overdub through a customised vocal chain dedicated for an often signature aspect of rage music, as well as how comfortable I felt consciously ‘stimming’ during the live recording of my voice through a processed vocal effects chain.

Conclusion

I believe that the trajectory of genre within the digital era will ultimately enable neuroqueer individuals to have an outlet of expression and advocacy. The unexpected nature of the vast array of unique sub-genre’s becoming mainstream, seems to be positively affirming that the evolving performance values will be a beneficial new opportunity for autistic people and other neurodiverse individuals to self-advocate as well as have a healthy emotional outlet for themselves to unmask.

With my personal experience as an autistic person who had music therapy in my infancy but had difficulties with education thereafter, I have developed a greater sense of clarity around how I can teach autistic people like me and connect with them through music and nurture their talent throughout their developmental years. Recording myself in the studio using digital instruments such as Auto-tune as well as my exploration of ‘Speaking for ourselves’, has been an eye-opening venture which has left me feeling optimistic with regards to how autistic people can connect with music in the future.

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Many artists established in the early 00’s are also embracing the changes that have taken place over the past quarter of this century, with even the likes of Beyonce releasing discography inspired by realising the true popular American musical origins such as Disco (Renaissance, 2022)9 and Country (Cowboy Carter, 2024)10, demonstrating how African elders have influenced the direction of western musicality that often goes unrecognised. If there are social media outlets such as Tik Tok encourage the music industry to put emphasis on performance value, the crossovers and muddying of genre’s is a trend that seems inevitably cemented for the foreseeable future. The days of controversy following the collaborations such as the likes of run DMC and Aerosmith on ‘Walk this way’ are part of an era soon long forgotten.

As diversions from expectations become more regular from established artists, the more normalised experimentation will become across music. This will inherently open more space for autistic individuals to have musical impact as vocalist, providing that society progressively tries to integrate autistic people and are embracing of their unique contributions not just as writers and instrumentalists but also as vocalists.

The likes of Future, Vybz Kartel, and Playboi Carti have pioneered a digitalised delivery in the world of hip-hop, which encourages performers to become exaggerated caricatures of themselves that exist for the purpose of humanising their wild realities of their experiences to the public consumer. It’s through hiding behind these alter-egos that neuroqueer communities such as the autistic community can comfortably project and express their feelings which they’re often not encouraged to do, as well as be an effective therapeutic outlet for neurodivergent people who are struggling to find a voice to speak up for themselves as well as advocate for their rights.

Reference list

1. Mackintosh, Kit, and Simon Reynolds. Neon Screams: How Drill, Trap and Bashment Made Music New Again. New edition. London, United Kingdom: Repeater Books, 2021[Accessed 25 April 2024]

2. Dr Susan Rogers, This Is What It Sounds Like, 2023. Penguin. [Accessed 25 April 2024] https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/442453/this-is-what-it-sounds-like-by-ogas-dr-susan-rogers-and-ogi/9781529114010.

3. Bakan, Michael B., Mara Chasar, and Graeme Gibson. Speaking for Ourselves: Conversations on Life, Music, and Autism. Illustrated edition. New York, NY: OXFORD UNIV PR, 2018. [Accessed 30 April 2024]

4. Hosseini, Seyed Alireza, and Mohammed Molla. ‘Asperger Syndrome’. In StatPearls. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing, 2024. [Accessed 30 April 2024] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK557548/

5. Muzikar, Dbra. ‘Autism Speaks Revamps Its Mission Statement’. The Art of Autism (blog), 15 October 2016. [Accessed 30 April 2024] https://the-art-of-autism.com/autism-speaks-revamps-its-mission-statement/.

6. ‘Playboi Carti. (2020) Whole Lotta Red (Deluxe). Genius’. Accessed 2 May 2024. https://genius.com/albums/Playboi-carti/Whole-lotta-red-deluxe.

7. ‘Unmasking’. Autism Understood (blog), 5 June 2023. [Accessed 25 April 2024] https://autismunderstood.co.uk/struggling-as-an-autistic-person/unmasking/.

8. Mitchell, Kristin, WebMD Editorial Contributor, and Shelly Shepard. ‘What You Need to Know About Stimming and Autism’. WebMD. [Accessed 25 April 2024]. https://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/what-you-need-to-know-about-stimming-and-autism.

9. Columbia Records. (2022) ‘RENAISSANCE by Beyoncé’. Genius. [Accessed 25 April 2024]. https://genius.com/albums/Beyonce/Renaissance.

10. Columbia Records. (2024) ‘COWBOY CARTER by Beyoncé’. Genius. [Accessed 25 April 2024]. https://genius.com/albums/Beyonce/Cowboy-carter.