“I've reached the legal grey zone. | But in court I'll make it easy for myself. | Report me to the police and I'll open a bottle of champagne. | It's all covered by artistic freedom.”
In this verse, rapper Danger Dan takes a satirical look at the fundamental right to artistic expression. Is there really a grey zone for artists to live in? Antonia Bruneder analyses this issue from a musicological and legal perspective. She discusses the limits of freedom of expression and artistic freedom using the example of gangsta rap, which often contains racist, misogynistic, violence-glorifying and homophobic lyrics. Musicians, however, do not fear the legal consequences of their expression: on the contrary, they consciously use the justice system as an element of their performance.
Antonia Bruneder, a “researcher in demand” at the University of Graz