Ballad of the Bullet: Gangs, Drill Music, and the Power of Online Infamy

by Forrest Stuart

How poor urban youth in Chicago use social media to profit from portrayals of gang violence, and the questions this raises about poverty, opportunities, and public voyeurism

Amid increasing hardship and limited employment options, poor urban youth are developing creative online strategies to make ends meet. Using such social media platforms as YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram, they’re capitalizing on the public’s fascination with the ghetto and gang violence. But with what consequences? Ballad of the Bullet follows the Corner Boys, a group of thirty or so young men on Chicago’s South Side who have hitched their dreams of success to the creation of “drill music” (slang for “shooting music”). Drillers disseminate this competitive genre of hyperviolent, hyperlocal, DIY-style gangsta rap digitally, hoping to amass millions of clicks, views, and followers―and a ticket out of poverty. But in this perverse system of benefits, where online popularity can convert into offline rewards, the risks can be too great.

Drawing on extensive fieldwork and countless interviews compiled from daily, close interactions with the Corner Boys, as well as time spent with their families, friends, music producers, and followers, Forrest Stuart looks at the lives and motivations of these young men. Stuart examines why drillers choose to embrace rather than distance themselves from negative stereotypes, using the web to assert their supposed superior criminality over rival gangs. While these virtual displays of ghetto authenticity―the saturation of social media with images of guns, drugs, and urban warfare―can lead to online notoriety and actual resources, including cash, housing, guns, sex, and, for a select few, upward mobility, drillers frequently end up behind bars, seriously injured, or dead.

Raising questions about online celebrity, public voyeurism, and the commodification of the ghetto, Ballad of the Bullet offers a singular look at what happens when the digital economy and urban poverty collide.

Genres: Sociology, School, Music, Nonfiction, Ethnography, Academic, Politics

288 pages, Hardcover

First published May 12, 2020

Reviews

[Lydia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good ethnography that I feel helps overturn so many misconceptions through its detailed and personal approach.

Namely, it is easy to criticize gangs and drill music, yet in part, it comes from the same desire for dignity and recognition that exists in "safer, economically stable neighborhoods" where "privileged residents are free to engage in rabid online self-promotion—posting pictures with their diplomas, videos of their European vacations, or status updates from their prestigious internships—without worrying that this content will ever threaten their lives."

[Benny Nicholson · Rating 5 out of 5]

drill music exists in this superposition where it feels impossible to talk about without recapitulating its violence through your own voyeurism. this book approaches this challenge with a gaze that is all at once scholarly and personal, critical and empathetic. it is a reminder of what ethnography can do at its best

[Niklas Laninge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fresh take! Impressive work, sociology and/or anthropology at its best ✊🏻🤘🏼🙌🏼.

[Amelia O’Halloran · Rating 4 out of 5]

I almost never rate non-fiction books, but this was just an incredible exposition of perception versus reality of crime through stories of violence-related music and music videos in Chicago. I read it as a response to the question of why perceptions of crime have increased even though actual crime rates have gone down in Chicago. Also appreciated the fascinating and generative analogies to Bourdieu’s “autodestructive homages” and Meyrowitz’s context collapse of media. Glad I read this!!!

[Della fuckboi · Rating 3 out of 5]

En bra etnografisk studie på gängkulturen i Chicago och dess påverkan av sociala medier. Stuart fångar alla de delar av platstagande, risktagande och intryckesstyrning för att förklara drillrapparnas vardag, och hur passerandet är den viktigaste överlevnadstekniken i gängkulturen.

En spännande bok som kan läsas som en skönlitterär bok och som inte kräver en djupare förståelse för kriminologiska teorier för att få en inblick i gängkultur på nätet.

[Malia Odekirk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was thorough, well researched, well argued, and incredibly important. I was impressed by the balance in data, analysis, and theoretical grounding, which felt appropriate to the content and delivery. Theoretical grounding was an important part of the book but never overshadowed the data that Stuart gathered in his observations in person and online. He really allowed the voices of his participants to shine through and illuminate the inconsistencies he analyzed as especially damaging to their futures. Most prominently, he argued powerfully that while drillers perpetuate narratives of violence and criminality online, much of this acts as a ruse to 1) uphold their image as drillers, 2) protect them from rival gangs through (usually empty) threats, and 3) commodify their experiences. This is especially important to understand when considering that they try to commodify their images as drillers to make a living because their circumstances make it so difficult otherwise. When these videos/songs are taken as Truth, it can further damage their opportunities to exit difficult circumstances. It also reifies societal expectations about gang violence while real data tells a different story.

[Anusha Datar · Rating 4 out of 5]

This work of ethnography explores the world of drill music in Chicago. Stuart mainly connects with and follows a particular group of boy (Corner Boys Entertainment). I appreciated his ability to be nonjudgemental in his writing without romanticizing or celebrating violence or poverty.

I went into this book knowing basically nothing about this topic except that I knew who Chief Keef was. I learned a lot about Chicago, youth culture, the ways that making money on the internet affects people/communities, drill music, and ethnography. The scope is pretty limited and I would have love to learn more about the community surrounding the individuals Stuart spends time with, but I understand that that was not his focus.

[Joel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for a sociology class, pulls the reader into a world that is unfamiliar, and paints a portrait of young black men who are often characterized as “hyper-violent” as individuals with lives and families. Provides a compelling argument for the concept that black and white teens use and benefit from social media in very different ways.

[szymborskalyte · Rating 5 out of 5]

Breathtakingly good. This will go down as a classic.

[Jeremiah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the most incredible, heartbreaking, well thought-out and researched books that I've read this year. Incredible!

[WizardAnon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this for school, but this was easily one of, if not the best, assigned reading I've ever had to do

[Liliana Sturman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Liked the unpretentious, but descriptive writing style and enjoyed learned about drill music and how it connects to broader topics in sociology

[Elsa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was great!! A very respectful account on all fronts; I learned a lot.

(Well-referenced and with good footnotes. Love me some good chunky footnotes.)

[Connor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audiobooked. The sociological description of a Chief Keef music video is hilarious.

[Corrina · Rating 4 out of 5]

interesting, insightful, done in a thoughtful way

[Ji · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fo Nem

[forest · Rating 4 out of 5]

ethnography on chicagoan drill rappers. great analysis. doesnt really cover the role of women in drill rap

[Piper Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible book that unpacks the reality of the influence of music on youth in Chicago & the reality of violence in our city. If you want to understand the Southside of Chicago, read this book.