“I used to wanna be like Michael Jordan”. The strategic uses of personal references in hip-hop: a review

Hip-hop artists often reference famous persons in their songs. It appears that these references are mainly used for self-promotion: to boast about their skills, wealth, or cultural impact. In our study, we conduct a review of hip-hop songs to investigate the role of such references, focusing on Michael Jordan. Using MaxQDA we analyzed a representative sample of hip-hop songs mentioning Michael Jordan regarding: the thematic contexts of these references; their pragmatic purposes; and whether these references are accompanied by mentions of other persons. The insights gained from our analysis show that references in hip-hop predominantly serve as a vehicle for self-promotion. Moreover, we detail how this self-promotion works and identify additional objectives fulfilled by referencing Michael Jordan. From these findings, we draw broader conclusions about the role of personal references in hip-hop, about the effects of these references on Michael Jordan’s image, and about the intertextuality between hip-hop and basketball.