Abstract
How expedient is funk? Does funk need to be useful in order to be accepted as culture? Oftentimes, discourses that seek to present funk as a legitimate cultural practice mention its supposed usefulness. Two readings stand out. Funk serves to remove children and young people from the "world of crime" and it is also part of a lucrative creative economy. This article challenges these views without disregarding funk's usefulness. It argues that funk is not necessarily instrumental, but a way of generating existential capital deployed collectively and affectively. Therefore, besides contributing to the creation of cultural, economic and social capital used by individuals in their struggles and competitions within specific fields, funk is also mobilized through affective communities.
Keywords:
Existencial capital; Baile funk; Passinho; Affect; Recognition