Influence of Nigerian hip-pop music on perceived moral values of rural youth in Kosofe local government area of Lagos state

Abstract

Music influences cultural and moral values, but recent trends in Nigerian popular music show an increase in explicit lyrics referencing drugs, sex, and violence. This shift may affect young listeners' morals, posing a threat to public discipline and social values. This study therefore investigated the influence of hip-hop music on the moral values of rural youth. Using multistage sampling procedure120 respondents were sampled for the study. Data were collected through structured questionnaires and were analysed using frequency, percentages, Chi-square and PPMC. The findings show that most respondents were male (55.0%), single (86.7%), Christians (70.8%) and more than half were students (52.5%) with secondary education (63.3%) and mean age of 20.3±5. Also, the majority were from monogamous family (73.3%) with mean household size of 5.8±3. The level of exposure to Hip pop music was high (53.3%) and the most preferred song was Davido Assurance (1.44). Preference of music was based on the beats. Attitude towards hip-hop music was favourable (53.3%). Interactions with friends ranked highest (1.60) as the source of the hip-hop music. The perceived moral value was low (56.7%). There was significant relationship between parents’ occupation, interaction with friends and perceived moral values (X²=8.615, p<0.05). Also, there existed a significant relationship between level of exposure of the youth toward hip-hop music and their perceived moral values (r = 0.202, p<0.05). The study concluded that the perceived moral values of youth in the study area was low. It is recommended that National Broadcasting Commission check and regulate lyrical contents and the broadcasting of any music in the country.