Your Opinions/Views on rap music

[shadowprophet]

And I suppose all those classic hits from jet set radio.
Is a good refrence to compare your baised opinion upon lol rotf

[ptr.exe]

Knowstrife, i see your point. I suppose that all genre's have 'typical' topics that often get covered. I think rap isnt creative as artists always seem to cover these topics in the same way. Also i hate the way that rap glorifies (sp?) guns and violence, do they not realise how much damage that's doing to people? how many people actually believe those lyrics? I respect rappers like tupac, and public enemy are good, they bought about change, they did something differant. But the majority of rappers who make it big are mongs like eminem, xzibit, 50 cent, who bring nothing new to an already old formula.

You say that all genres have this problem, look at rock and roll, from the pop influenced kinks, to the blues influenced Rolling Stones, to the mellow Strokes. The genre varies alot, it is easy to see an influence by another genre in rock, as it is easy to see an advancement in style. I do not see this with rap.

Shadowprophet, i just lost all respect for you. Eminem? WTF!!???

[Eric]

Okay i do believe shadowprophet when he is saying music is music. But to me there is no music god and right now basically everything sounds the same except they are bringing the 70's and 80's back. With rap i can totally understand why they are getting beated on for the tough lyrics,violence,violence on women, making women like play toys etc may i go on. Anyways rock does have its fair share aswell but Rap or hip hop like Whurricane pointed out the name change in the genre has the most music videos on tv and radio with violence.

When these videos and songs are released on tv and radio i believe its the artist or label that says this song is going to be a hit lets release it and its hip hop thats showing it off more. Rock artists seem to be more smart by releasing what they think is right to be shown on tv and they seem to know what is popular demand in music right now for children and that being rock. When i was in school it was all about hip hop not for me cause of the views of the music.

I do agree with people like Tupac making music more about peace though he did have lots on violence and gangs aswell. So now i do listen to basically everything but i listen to things that make sense and what i believe would actually make it in the industry and hip hop just doesnt seem to have the popularity like it did back in the 90's and 80's.

Eric

[DCDayDreamer]

Rap is all about using words as opposed to music to deliver a form of a cultural message, sadly, the novelty burnt out long ago and it's sad to see so many ripped backing tunes trying to keep it going....

Add a 'C' to the beginning of the genre title and you should get the overall result of creativity from the whole thing.

[shadowprophet]

Knowstrife, i see your point. I suppose that all genre's have 'typical' topics that often get covered. I think rap isnt creative as artists always seem to cover these topics in the same way. Also i hate the way that rap glorifies (sp?) guns and violence, do they not realise how much damage that's doing to people? how many people actually believe those lyrics? I respect rappers like tupac, and public enemy are good, they bought about change, they did something differant. But the majority of rappers who make it big are mongs like eminem, xzibit, 50 cent, who bring nothing new to an already old formula.

You say that all genres have this problem, look at rock and roll, from the pop influenced kinks, to the blues influenced Rolling Stones, to the mellow Strokes. The genre varies alot, it is easy to see an influence by another genre in rock, as it is easy to see an advancement in style. I do not see this with rap.

Shadowprophet, i just lost all respect for you. Eminem? WTF!!???

Its his brand of magic with words. Its just hes able to pull some things off with words that normal people just cant do, I mean ya gotta respect his skill.
Its not what he raps about either. Its just how he does it. Its amazing..

[kash]

That's an insult to every other artist/performer, rap artists are the least creative people of our time. Constantly they write lyrics about the same subjects, it never changes, those lyrics you quoted there are about gear, because that's never been rapped about before has it?

Those lyrics from your original post, about mortality, because that hasnt been covered has it? the entire genre is obsessed with death, ODing and shooting each other. That's just another example of a tired cliche in rap music. If they talked about anything other than how they're from the ghetto and life was hard, and women, and cars, and killing, and dead friends, then perhaps it would be justified to call it music, but they don't, so its not. It's all fake, PR execs must love rap, its so god damn easy to make impressionable youth precieve the 'artists' as good, they drink/kill/abuse narcotics, and all the fans love them for it.

I don't see how you can argue that its creative to cover the same topics again and again and again. That said all i find myself listening to now is Roots Manuva.

That just a generalization you're making. I could say metal is all about satan and cutting yourself. Obviously it's not, but many close minded people think along those lines. And for you to say they are the least creative people of our time is dead wrong. Their ability to manipulate words is amazing. And the metaphors they use are well done. For example, there is a rapper called Common and he has a song called "I Used to Love H.E.R." the whole song is a metaphor. It's a women taking the place of hip hop and he's rapping about how pure it was and how innocent this women was before she got corrupted etc. Peep these lyrics:

Verse One:

I met this girl, when I was ten years old
And what I loved most she had so much soul
She was old school, when I was just a shorty
Never knew throughout my life she would be there for me
ont he regular, not a church girl she was secular
Not about the money, no studs was mic checkin her
But I respected her, she hit me in the heart
A few New York $#@!z, had did her in the park
But she was there for me, and I was there for her
Pull out a chair for her, turn on the air for her
and just cool out, cool out and listen to her
Sittin on a bone, wishin that I could do her
Eventually if it was meant to be, then it would be
because we related, physically and mentally
And she was fun then, I'd be geeked when she'd come around
Slim was fresh yo, when she was underground
Original, pure untampered and down sister
Boy I tell ya, I miss her

Verse Two:

Now periodically I would see
ol girl at the clubs, and at the house parties
She didn't have a body but she started gettin thick quick
DId a couple of videos and became afrocentric
Out goes the weave, in goes the braids beads medallions
She was on that tip about, stoppin the violence
About my people she was teachin me
By not preachin to me but speakin to me
in a method that was leisurely, so easily I approached
She dug my rap, that's how we got close
But then she broke to the West coast, and that was cool
Cause around the same time, I went away to school
And I'm a man of expandin, so why should I stand in her way
She probably get her money in L.A.
And she did stud, she got big pub but what was foul
She said that the pro-black, was goin out of style
She said, afrocentricity, was of the past
So she got into R&B hip-house bass and jazz
Now black music is black music and it's all good
I wasn't salty, she was with the boys in the hood
Cause that was good for her, she was becomin well rounded
I thought it was dope how she was on that freestyle $#@!
Just havin fun, not worried about anyone
And you could tell, by how her titties hung

Verse Three:

I might've failed to mention that this chick was creative
But once the man got you well he altered her native
Told her if she got an image and a gimmick
that she could make money, and she did it like a dummy
Now I see her in commercials, she's universal
She used to only swing it with the inner-city circle
Now she be in the burbs lickin rock and dressin hip
And on some dumb $#@!, when she comes to the city
Talkin about poppin glocks servin rocks and hittin switches
Now she's a gangsta rollin with gangsta bitches
Always smokin blunts and gettin drunk
Tellin me sad stories, now she only ****s with the funk
Stressin how hardcore and real she is
She was really the realest, before she got into showbiz
I did her, not just to say that I did it
But I'm committed, but so many $#@!z hit it
That she's just not the same lettin all these groupies do her
I see $#@!z slammin her, and takin her to the sewer
But I'ma take her back hopin that the $#@! stop
Cause who I'm talkin bout y'all is hip-hop

you people are just basing rap off commercial bs and weak generalizations. Thats like me saying Punk is a bunch of bs nonsense girly vocals about chicks just because of bands like Good Charlotte, Simple Plan, & New Found Glory

[kash]

And that was a really stupid thing to say rap only glorifies guns, oding, and that kind of stuff. Certain artists do but that's not what rap is about. They talk about anything any other genre would, plus more.

More examples of exceptional lyricism:

"I rest my head on 115
But miracles only happen on 34th, so I guess life is mean
And death is the median
And pergatory is the mode that we settle in"

"But money don't grow on trees and ask thieving/ MC's who cut throats to rake leaves"

and these are things many people can relate to:

"We got, single moms that can't afford to feed children
World War 3 got planes flying into building's
Corrupt cops and robbers, thieves and politicians
They just keeping taking as the world keeps spinning
Just take a look around now
A long way from your MTV cribs with your full speaker surround sound
Get ready for countdown
Just to get some benefits, my girl lied to the people down town"

[krowstrife]

i had respect for Eminem somgs like "Stan" were deep, but withe songs like "ass like that" kinda puts a damper on what he has done


(i dont know if that is the title of the song but i assume you understand what i am saying)

[DCDayDreamer]

Eminem is purely a commercial product, record companies were desperate to get a white rapper to boost a failing genre, rip off someone else's music and throw some angry lyrics in there and you'll get attention. To guarantee record sales, throw a 'parental advisory' sticker on the cover of the CD and you'll boost any sales no matter what the CD content is.

There's nothing really exceptional about the lyrics in any rap track, if you could find some examples, you'd see that 90%+ of the rap subject matter was covered by the depression era blues and jug bands, the only difference is they did it much better back then.

[kash]

Eminem is purely a commercial product, record companies were desperate to get a white rapper to boost a failing genre, rip off someone else's music and throw some angry lyrics in there and you'll get attention. To guarantee record sales, throw a 'parental advisory' sticker on the cover of the CD and you'll boost any sales no matter what the CD content is.

There's nothing really exceptional about the lyrics in any rap track, if you could find some examples, you'd see that 90%+ of the rap subject matter was covered by the depression era blues and jug bands, the only difference is they did it much better back then.

You could say the same thing about any other musical genre and ok ill provide an example:

Knowin you the best part of life, do I have the right to take yours
Cause I created you, irresponsibly
Subconciously knowin the act I was a part of
The start of somethin, I'm not ready to bring into the world
Had myself believin I was sterile
I look into mother's stomach, wonder if you are a boy or a girl
Turnin this woman's womb into a tomb
But she and I agree, a seed we don't need
You would've been much more than a mouth to feed
But someone, I woulda fed this information I read
to someone, my life for you I woulda had to leave
Instead I lead you to death
I'm sorry for takin your first breath, first step, and first cry
But I wasn't prepared mentally nor financially
Havin a child shouldn't have to bring out the man in me
Plus I wanted you to be raised within a family
I don't wanna, go through the drama of havin a baby's momma
Weekend visits and buyin J's ain't gon' make me a father
For a while bearing a child is somethin I never wanted to do
For me to live forever I can only do that through you
Nerve I got to talk about them $#@!z with a gun
Must have really thought I was God to take the life of my son
I could have sacrificed goin out
To think my homies who did it I used to joke about, from now on
I'ma use self control instead of birth control
Cause $315 ain't worth your soul
$315 ain't worth your soul
$315 ain't worth it

did those blues singers talk about abortion?