Adam Banks is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Comparative Studies interested in bringing critical theory to bear on the intersection of hip-hop consumption and empire. Going beyond previous research which focused on hip-hop artists, Adam's research critically explores how dynamics of culture, class, race, and history place constraints upon and/or create possibilities for enactments of resistive agency for Black consumers of hip-hop in the U.S. While engaging in doctoral studies, Adam serves as Pastor of First Baptist Church in Springfield, OH. Adam has earned an M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary and a B.A. (Anthropology) from Washington University in St. Louis.