Wu-Tang for the Children: Swarming Elsewhere for Aesthetic (Re)Imaginings of Community, Theory, & Praxis

ABSTRACT The work in this article (re)traces the nuances embedded within the aesthetics of the Wu-Tang Clan to draw attention to two theoretical, Wu-based concepts: Shaolin and swarming. This article leans into fugivity and critical race theory (CRT) to demonstrate how hip-hop music can be a capacious avenue for theorizing alternate ways to disrupt hegemonic, oppressive, and racist educational structures and master narratives. In particular, we use two Wu-Tang tracks (e.g. “Can it be all so simple,” “Triumph”) to demonstrate how static approaches to hip-hop—specifically the Wu-Tang—reduce and flatten engagements with hip-hop music in educational contexts. Central to our argument is that the aesthetics of the Wu-Tang Clan are more than economically damaged narratives that tether various culture entities together: Wu-Tang is theory.