Remixing Battle Rap and Arabic Poetic Battling

This project examines particularities of Arabic battle rap in Lebanon. It discusses primarily the anchorage of battle rap in local and Arabic cultural traditions. To this end, interviews with rappers have been conducted. In conjunction with video recordings of battles, the rappers' statements comprise the core of the material used for this article. On that basis, references and similarities to written and oral cultural heritage are analyzed as well as language use. Altogether, this research shows links of Lebanese battle rap culture to global hip hop culture as well as to Lebanese and Arabic culture. Thus, Lebanese battle rap can be seen as a locally appropriated, “remixed”, cultural hybrid.