Taught by Simon Howard, assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Miami College of Arts and Sciences, the course Psyc and Flow: The Psychology of Hip-Hop (PSYC 474) will examine how hip-hop culture can answer questions about identity, resilience, motivation, discrimination, and social change.
“Hip-hop is one of the most influential cultural movements in the world, yet it’s rarely treated as a legitimate lens for understanding human behavior, especially in academic spaces,” Howard said. “This course is about showing how it can be.”
Drawing on research in social, developmental, and clinical psychology, students will analyze hip-hop lyrics, visuals, beats, and cultural moments to explore how music reflects and shapes psychological processes at both the individual and societal levels. The class will cover several movements and artists from contemporary, storytelling-focused rappers such as J. Cole, Nas, and Kendrick Lamar, to influential figures like Tupac Shakur, whose music often addressed systemic inequality and social change.
“I think hip-hop can be a gateway to psychology, especially when we think about topics related to psychology, such as identity, motivation, resilience, and social influence,” Howard said.
Music is an important part of Howard’s life outside of academia, and in his free time, he creates hip-hop music. One of his songs, “Throw Up the U,” is a Canes pride anthem that includes students in the music video.
The new course will feature guest contributors from the music industry, including Dardan Bela, co-owner of 1331 Recordz and a former writer for Atlantic Records who has worked with artists and producers such as French Montana, UnoTheActivist, and London on da Track. Howard is also working on securing additional guest speakers.
One of the most distinctive elements of the course is its creative capstone project. Instead of a traditional final exam, students will collaborate on a compilation album, writing and recording original music that incorporates psychological theories discussed throughout the semester. Audio engineer Aaron Hertz, who has collaborated with artists including Central Cee, Kodak Black, and Lil Pump, will assist with mixing and mastering the students’ capstone projects.
At the end of the semester, the class will host an album listening session where students present their songs and explain how their work connects to the psychological concepts explored in the course. Howard believes that creative projects like this one allow students to process knowledge more deeply than traditional exams alone.
“When you connect learning to something that’s culturally relevant, like music, it becomes much more meaningful,” he said. “Students are creating something personal and linking it to psychological theory. That kind of learning sticks.”
That creative perspective is central to Howard’s approach to teaching. One of the main reasons he wanted to become a professor was to incorporate creativity into the classroom, designing courses that are memorable.
“I have this opportunity to be creative, to be interactive, to be engaging,” he said. “I’m always thinking about how to create assignments that students will remember, that allow them to learn in ways that are not only rigorous, but also meaningful and creative.”
Ultimately, Howard hopes the course will encourage students to see hip-hop not only as entertainment, but also as a powerful cultural archive of the human experience.
“Music is so powerful in general. It’s about telling the story of human experience,” Howard explained. “And when you think about psychology, it’s also about understanding that experience. So, in many ways, this course is really about bridging science and academia with cultural expression.”
