What’s up with all the hand gestures?
We’re talking about rap artists who will take to waving their hands in the air like they just don’t care while performing. As they’re powerfully thrusting their hands in downward motions, they either make karate chops or stick out various fingers all askew (and no, not the middle digit).
Rap stars also repeatedly make the “V” for “victory” sign, sometimes waggling their hands sideways instead of straight up.
Because rap is such an influential force, fans of the music have also taken to making the moves of their heroes. Scores of teenagers will talk with their hands flinging here and there, their thumbs tucked inside their palms like they’ve only got four fingers.
“It’s like a form of expression . . . like how singers move their heads when they sing,” said Chicago rap star Teefa, who, when she isn’t dropping knowledge on the stage, is spinning records for four hours starting at 10 p.m. Fridays for WGCI-FM 107.5.
Some people think the gestures are affiliated with gang culture, and Teefa, a rapper for about 10 years, said that although there are those who flash gang signs, many more are just “feeling the music.”
Teefa also noted that expressing oneself with hand motions is traditional in most cultures, including the black culture. Agreeing with her is Darrell Mottley Newton, an assistant professor of media and cultural studies at Salisbury University in Salisbury, Md.
“It’s a very positive representation of something that basically can’t be contained,” Newton said. “When a non-verbal sign is sent, there are multiple layers of information being sent, and that can be very, very liberating for a rap artist.”
Newton said those who practice rap-artist hand gesturing, no matter the age or race, form a relationship linked by the music they love.