The influence of hip hop culture and music on African-American youth is profound and can be used as a tool to shape positive outcomes in education. Hip hop has been used effectively in the classroom to engage students and enhance their critical thinking (Gangloff-Bailey & Freeman, 2014). In addition, hip hop has been described as a socializer transmitting messages regarding how African-Americans ought to operate amidst societal systems in various contexts (Oliver, 2006). While the literature regarding racial socialization has focused on messages being given from parents, church, and school, there has been little examination of how hip hop music transmits messages to African-American youth and how these messages influence students' motivation in school. This survey study explored the relationships between hip-hop racial socialization messages, racial identity, and the motivational beliefs of 295 African-American undergraduates enrolled at a mid-Atlantic Historically Black University. The expectancy-value theory of achievement motivation (Eccles et al., 1983; Eccles & Wigfield, 2002; Wigfield, Tonks, & Klauda, 2009; Eccles, 2009) was used to guide this study, which examined how racial socialization messages in hip hop music were related to African-American college students' racial identity, expectations for success, and value for college. Students reported that they received racial socialization messages from hip hop music, on average, more than a few times and the messages were positively related to their academic expectancies and values. These relationships were not mediated by racial identity, however. In open-ended survey data, students' described how they relate to hip hop artists and how hip hop music educates and empowers them, which motivates them to succeed in school. Implications for theory and practice are discussed. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]