In this paper. the Internet message board forum is proposed as an example of a community of practice (Eckert and McConnell-Ginet. 1992) in which contributors exhibit common linguistic conventions and forms of participation. The emergence of individual identities in interaction is examined in the genre-specific context of hip-hop Internet message boards. https://www.roneverhart.com/Skin-of-the-Flayed-One-Ethereal-West-Non-Ladder/