Howard University Launches Cardi B Course

Get ready for a semester of drama – the academic kind! Howard University is set to explore the multifaceted career of rap superstar Cardi B with a brand-new course this fall. In partnership with Warner Music, the university is launching “The Cardi B: Am I The Drama? The Art, Production, Marketing and Cultural Impact” course, delving into the artist’s significant influence.

Culture Meets Curriculum

Professor Jasmine Young, director of the Warner Music Blavatnik Center for Music Business at Howard, sees this course as a vital step in modern music education. “Students deserve a proactive, immersive learning environment where the lessons are current, culturally relevant, and rooted in real strategy—not just textbooks,” she told TheGrio. “Cardi B is the prototype for Music Business Success.”

This three-credit course promises an interdisciplinary approach, blending music, business, marketing, media, gender studies, production, and cultural theory, all centered around the Bronx rapper. The curriculum will specifically analyze the rollout of Cardi B’s highly anticipated second studio album, released in November 2025, examining the buzz around her music, personal life, and legal matters at the time.

A Hip Hop Feminist Lens

Co-taught by Dr. Msia Kibona Clark, Associate Professor of African Studies, and Prof. Pat Parks, Theatre Arts Administration Area Coordinator, the course will utilize a hip hop feminist perspective. Students will examine how Cardi B navigates power, pleasure, and public scrutiny within the global hip hop landscape.

“Cardi B’s career allows us to critically engage respectability politics, misogynoir, and the policing of Black womanhood, while also recognizing the forms of agency, strategy, and resistance embedded in her success,” explained Dr. Clark. The course aims to challenge students to rethink concepts of empowerment, authenticity, and visibility in contemporary culture.

Validating Hip Hop as Scholarship

The decision to center a course on a Black female rapper like Cardi B is significant. While other universities have offered courses on hip hop artists, Howard’s initiative further validates hip hop not just as a genre, but as a legitimate scholarly discipline and a powerful global economic force. Prof. Parks highlighted that students will learn to “build the machinery behind the work,” gaining skills in narrative development, production, and business strategy.

This isn’t just about studying an artist; it’s about understanding the intricate ecosystem of the music industry and the cultural forces that shape it. Registration for “The Cardi B: Am I The Drama?” is now open for Howard University students for the fall 2026 semester.