‘Louder Than A Riot,’ Breaks Down History And Intersection Of Hip-Hop And Mass Incarceration

Rodney Carmichael and Sidney Madden, are the co-hosts of the new NPR Music podcast, “Louder Than A Riot.”

Courtesy of NPR

Killer Mike, T.I., and Bobby Shmurda are names regularly featured in the headlines.

However, a new NPR podcast aims to go beyond the sound bites by weaving together conversations with these artists and other experts to investigate the history of hip-hop and mass incarceration.

The podcast, “Louder Than A Riot,” breaks down the criminal justice system’s disproportionate impact on Black communities  — from the drug wars of the 1980s to now — while also exploring power dynamics within the music industry.

On Friday’s edition of “Closer Look,” Atlanta-based journalist and co-host of the podcast, Rodney Carmichael, and co-host Sidney Madden, sat down with Rose Scott for a conversation about the origin story of the new program.

Guests:

To hear the full conversation, click on the audio player above.