Melvin Williams

Personal Quote

"It is axiomatic that if we do not define ourselves for ourselves, we will be defined by others - for their use and to our detriment."
- Audre Lorde, Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches

Faculty Bio

An award-winning, communication scholar, Dr. Melvin L. Williams examines the intersections of race, gender, and sexuality in popular culture. Specifically, his research considers the political ramifications of popular culture to investigate how minority communities use its mediums to address disparaging media representations. Dr. Williams has published research in peer-reviewed, books and journals, including Celebrity Studies; Feminist Theory and Pop Culture; Howard Journal of Communications; Journal of Radio and Audio Media; Popular Culture Studies Journal; Race, Gender, and Class: The Journal; Spectrum: A Journal on Black Men, The Journal of Hip-Hop Studies; The Journal of Sports Media; and Women and Music: A Journal of Gender and Culture.

An Emmy-nominated series contributor, internationally recognized, cultural commentator and public writer, Dr. Williams has offered critical analyses of American politics, celebrity culture, Hip-Hop, and popular culture for media outlets such as ABC News Impact x Nightline, Associated Press, CBS News, CNN, Huffington Post, Lithuanian TV, NBCLX, NBC Universal, Newsweek, NPR, Tamron Hall Show, The Hill, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Tokyo Newspaper, USA Today, Vox, and Washington Blade. In 2022, Dr. Williams made history as the first Black and LGBTQ+ faculty member to earn tenure in the department of communication and media studies at Pace University.

Awards and Honors

• National Communication Association, 2020, African American Culture and Communication Division and Black Caucus Outstanding Journal Article Award
• Tennessee State University Young Alumni Network, 2019, Tennessee State University "40 Under Forty" 2019 Honoree
• Dr. Edward Alexander Bouchet Graduate Honor Society, 2014, Inductee

Graduate Certificate, Howard University, Washington, District of Columbia, 2015
Women's Studies

PhD, Howard University, Washington, District of Columbia, 2015
Communication, Culture, and Media Studies

Continuing Education Certificate, The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, 2013
Science of Sex and Gender

MS, Tennessee State University, Nashville, Tennessee, 2012
Educational Administration and Supervision

BS, Tennessee State University, Nashville, Tennessee, 2010
Psychology

Research Interest

African-American Representations in Popular Culture; Black Female Celebrity Representations in Feminist Media Culture; Black Masculinity Studies; Black Queer Studies; Celebrity Death Culture; Feminist Media Studies; Hip-Hop Feminist Politics; Minority Cultural Production on Social Media; Popular Culture; Queer Online Political Communication; Social Media and Social Change; Sport Communication; Streaming Cultural Studies

Past Courses

CMS 111: Introduction to Communication
CMS 213: Intercultural Communication
CMS 245: Commctn and Popular Culture
CMS 291: Sport Communication & Culture
CMS 292: Hip-Hop Feminism and the Media
CMS 393: Internship Program I
CMS 394: Internship Program II
COM 200: Public Speaking
COM 393: Internship Program l
COM 394: Internship Program II
COS 213: Intercultural Communication
COS 245: Commctn and Popular Culture
COS 296: Hip-Hop Feminism and the Media
COS 296: Topics: Sport Comm & Cltr
COS 311: Ethics, Morality & The Media
COS 393: Internship Program l
COS 394: Internship Program II
FSS 275: Race and Representation
UNV 101: First-Year Smnr Unvrsty Cmmnty

Publications

Analyzing feminism, hip-hop sexual scripting, and empowerment in Beyoncé’s discography
Williams, M. L. & Tyree, T. C. (2025). Popular Culture Studies Journal.

Acknowledging the Historical and Contemporary Impact of Black Radio
Tyree, T. C. & Williams, M. L. (2024). Vol 31/1 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/19376529.2024.2347793

Symposium Guest Editors’ Introduction: Acknowledging the Historical and Contemporary Impact of Black Radio
Tyree, T. C. & Williams, M. L. (2024). Journal of Radio and Audio Media.

“I Never Hesitated”: A Quare Analysis of Rap Non-binary Identity in Lil Uzi Vert’s 032c Interview
Williams, M. L. & Smith , C. (2024). Popular Culture Studies Journal. (Issue 12/1) , pages 24. https://www.mpcaaca.org/_files/ugd/aced74_e0945a42c61b44ce949d2987f3c0e002.pdf

Hip Hop’s White House Guest: Jack Harlow and White Rap Authenticating Strategies
Williams, M. L. & Huertas , M. (2023). Rebecca Lind, Ph.D. (Eds.), .

For the Dead Homie: Black Men Rappers, Homicide Survivorship Bereavement, and the Rap Tribute of Nipsey Hussle
Williams, M. L., Winley, J. K. & Causey, J. A. (2022). Journal of Hip-Hop Studies. Vol 8 (Issue 1)

Social Media's Commodified, Transgender Ambassador: Caitlyn Jenner, Celebrity Activism, and Social Media
Williams, M. L. (2022). Celebrity Studies. , pages 20.

TiVo
Williams, M. L. (2020). Debra Merskin (Eds.), Thousand Oaks, CA :Sage Publications, Inc.. https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/the-sage-international-encyclopedia-of-mass-media-and-society/book244632

"My Job is to Be a Bad Bitch!" Locating Women of Color in Postfeminist Media Culture on Love and Hip-Hop: Atlanta
Williams, M. L. (2016). "My Job is to Be a Bad Bitch!" Locating Women of Color in Postfeminist Media Culture on Love and Hip-Hop: Atlanta.Race, Gender, and Class Journal~~. . Vol 23 (Issue 3-4) , pages 68-88.

"The "Un-Quiet Queen:" An Analysis of Rapper Nicki Minaj in the Fame Comic Book
Williams, M. L. & Tyree, T. C. (2015). Adrienne Trier-Bieniek (Eds.), , The Netherlands:Sense Publishers. , pages 65-76.

My Hair is "Layed" like Cyberqueer: Video Blogging, Computer Cross-Dressing, and the Curious Case of Funky Dineva
Williams, M. L., Tyree, T. C. & Lewis, M. (2015). My Hair is "Layed" like Cyberqueer: Video Blogging, Computer Cross-Dressing, and the Curious Case of Funky Dineva.Spectrum: A Journal on Black Men~~. . Vol 3 (Issue 2) , pages 99-122.

Black Man Interrupted: The Impact of HBCU Brotherhood
Williams, M. L. (2014). Christopher D. Carthcart and Tia C. M. Tyree (Eds.), Bloomington, IN :Xlibris Publishing.

Presentations

Social Media's Commoditized Transgender Ambassador: Caitlyn Jenner, Twitter, and Transgender Digital Activism
Williams, M. L. (2021). Kimposium: The Sequel . Brunel University London ,

"Meditate, Don't Medicate: An Analysis of Addict Rap, Black Men's Social Issues, and J. Cole's K.O.D. Album"
Williams, M. L. (2019). National Communication Association Annual Convention. National Communication Association ,

Media Contributions

USA Today [Newspaper], March32022
https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/2022/03/03/celebrity-deaths-when-to-criticize-stay-silent/6940909001/

Remoting In [Internet], 2020
Media Interview for Dyson College of Arts and Sciences
Link: https://www.pace.edu/dyson/dyson-digital-digest/spring-2020/remoting-in

Eyebrow Slits and '#lesbianproblems' - How TikTok Became the Favored App of Young Gay Women [Internet], August22020
Cultural Commentary/Media Interview with Medium.
Link: https://medium.com/@kathleenrose1/eyebrow-slits-and-lesbianproblems-how-tiktok-became-the-favoured-app-of-young-gay-women-fbe123c79dea

Cannabis Might Be Trending Now. But for Many Black and Brown Americans, a Painful Past. [Internet], April202020
Cultural Commentary for Very Good Light
Link: https://verygoodlight.com/2020/04/20/cannabis-industry/

Black Men and Self-Care: What Are We Missing? [Internet], February272020
Media Interview with Very Good Light
Link: https://verygoodlight.com/2020/02/27/black-men-and-self-care/

LaVar Ball’s Master Class on Black Fatherhood and Agenda Building is Legit. [Internet], June182017
Cultural Commentary by The Huffington Post. Link: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/lavar-balls-a-master-class-on-black-fatherhood-and_us_59460907e4b0940f84fe2f60

Miley Cyrus Takes a Whack Out of Hip-Hop. [Internet], May312017
Cultural Commentary Published by The Huffington Post. Link: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/mileys-wrecking-ball-takes-a-whack-out-of-hip-hop_us_592c4e9fe4b0a7b7b469cc56

Professional Memberships

• North American Society for the Sociology of Sport
• Popular Culture Association - American Culture Association
• National Communication Association