FOREWORD 6

The Sixth Issue of Balkan Hip Hop Studies International Academic Journal is in our hands, featuring five research articles and three reviews — the largest number published in the three years of the journal’s existence.

The Sixth Issue opens with Suzi Teneva’s article, titled "Ethical Di­men­­sions in Hip Hop Lyrics. Lyrical Segments in Hip Hop as Source of Ethical Codes", in which the author examines the textual aspect of hip hop music, focusing particularly on socially themed lyrics that reflect ethical di­men­sions. This is followed by Dejan Metodijeski’s article "A Review of Autobiographies of Hip Hop Artists in the 21st Century – Examples from The USA and The Balkan Countries", in which the author provides a chro­no­logical analysis and tabular overview of autobiographies published over the past three decades in both the USA and the Balkans.

Slavcho Koviloski’s article "The Poetics of Street Theater" addresses performative arts characteristic to urban environments. The research draws on personal experiences with street performances in New York City, which include the distinctive features of street theater such as improvisational thea­ter, interactive theater, playback theater, alternative theater, hip hop thea­ter, and performative arts.

Julijana Papazova and Eleni Novakovska co-author the study paper "The Significance of the Youth Cultural Center–YCC In the Creation of Ur­ban Culture in Skopje", which for the first time ever investigates the relation­ship between music and its promotion in concrete concert spaces curated by YCC in Skopje. The analysis explores the importance of urban venues for concerts through discussions of identity, heritage, and memory.

The final article in the Papers section is by Aleksandar Koviloski, titled "Malcolm X and His Understanding on Freedom in Rasist America". The article examines the struggle against racial segregation and discrimi­na­tion in the USA during the 1960s, highlighting how activist Malcolm X challenged the "system" with radical stances, awakening the dormant spirit of the Black population in the United States.

For the first time, the Reviews section includes three reviews. Two are by Aleksandar Tasevski, who reflects on the launching of Balkan Hip Hop Studies issues 3 and 4 (2024) and on 2024 Gazi Baba Hip Hop Fest. The third review is by Slavcho Koviloski, who shares his perspective on a book by Raquel Z. Rivera dedicated to Puerto Rican hip hop community in New York.

With this issue, we mark the conclusion of the third year of the publication of Balkan Hip Hop Studies International Academic Journal.

The Editors