Edinburgh Napier University

  Hip-hop is a global culture, where local representation is a core tenet of its ideological framework. Therefore, it provides opportunities to observe how a global cultural structure is interpreted, realigned and expressed in local cultural forms. This article uses rap lyric analysis to consider the complex relationship between the local and global in relation to cultural articulation and authenticity. Through a study of the poetics of Scottish hip-hop, a series of patterns and connections appear relating to interpretation, negotiation and hybridisation of local and global culture, presenting a demonstration of how the local, global and individual intersect to ‘devise unique ways of communicating thoughts, emotions and everyday realities’ (Alim, 2003: 62).