I started listening to rap or hip hop earnestly when I was seventeen. But I couldn’t explain this sudden change in opinion. Before, I would reject any and every rapper and song. I was a devout listener of rock music. There were a number of things that distressed me about the rap genre. Firstly, I couldn’t get over the contradictory nature of it, rappers would rap about themselves in misogynistic, egotistical verses on one song and then rap about the importance of family, community and equality on the next song in the same album. On Nas’ 2002 release “God Son”, he glorifies drug lords like Nicky Barnes on the song “Get down”, then later on in the album, there is the song “I can”, where Nas tries to inspire children to be “An architect, doctor, maybe an actress” and not to use “heroin, cocaine, sniffin up drugs all in her nose... “ . It seems like they are just trying to pander to every one like a marketing ploy developed by their record companies. Then, there is the infamous use of the word nigger, which has become ubiquitous in the genre, dating to about the creation of N.W.A.. So did I just abandon my ideals and submit to the popular genre like a sell out or had I been convinced by something else? Is there more to this genre than money?
One thing that I’ve realized I enjoy about rap music is its poetic nature, which is something a lot of people seem to neglect when talking about the genre. It seems obvious once you become aware of the poetic instruments used. Rappers use rhyming schemes (obviously), tone, rhythm patterns (or flow), imagery. Beyond this, the majority of rap music abandons strict, linear narratives or songs that carry one unified message. Instead, rappers choose to voice opinions, feelings and depict situations of poverty (in the projects) or of wealth (in the heights), which is obviously inspired by the desire to express oneself as in Lyric poetry. The genre embraces digression; the rapper tries to touch on several topics in the same verse, a lot of the time without correlation between the topics. For example, in Kanye West’s “Two Words”, it seems quite obscure what point Mos def is trying to make:
Two words, United States, no love, no brakes
Low brow, high stakes, crack smoke, black folks
Big Macs, fat folks, ecstasy capsules
Presidential scandals, everybody MOVE
Two words, Mos Def, K West, hot shit
Calm down, get back, ghetto people, got this
Game ball, lock shit, dump off, cock shit
We won't stop shit, everybody MOVE
Kanye West, “Two Words”)
However, this neglect of “structure” does not stem from ignorance rather it is part of a want for feeling. It’s as if he is impatiently trying to voice a million ideas, it invokes feeling and creates vast diorama detailed intricately.
Moreover, a rapper is only as good as his ability to freestyle, thus the rapper creates a poetic flow that is improvised and inspired by the moment much like the works of surrealist poets like Andre Breton with the cadavre exquis. This poetic influence might be linked to African American culture that stems from a long history of Oral tradition, history and narratives passed down through spoken word.
Returning to the word nigger because one cannot avoid it when debating about Rap music. It can be difficult to understand what rappers wish to achieve by using it relentlessly. I felt, like many others, ambivalent to the word being thrown around, considering the connotations relating to the slavery era, at times it seems rather disrespectful and insensitive towards those who suffered, those who were bound by chains and the word nigger. However, the word was being used in African-American culture as far back as the 1970’s before the conception of hip hop in the late seventies to early eighties. Richard Prior used it controversially in his stand up. The word is used between African Americans:
“In many African-American neighborhoods, nigga is simply the most common term used to refer to any male, of any race or ethnicity. Increasingly, the term has been applied to any person, male or female.”
(Arthur K. Spears, Diverse Issues in Higher Education, 2006)
Therefore there is a confusion of cause and effect between society and art. Some critics (Get a name, scholar or columnist) argue that rappers use it to reverse its effect. By using it incessantly they have, in a way, defused its original connotation and turned it into an instrument to inspire solidarity in African Americans. In spite of this reminder of the wonder of language there is still a problem: now there are two meanings to it and
therefore it has become dubious and double edged.
“For instance, a show on Black Entertainment Television, a cable network aimed at a black audience, described the word nigger as a “term of endearment.” “In the African American community, the word nigga (not nigger) brings out feelings of pride” (Davis)
Yet, there are numerous instances where people of other races use the word off the cuff and have been black listed by the African American community (Michael Richards, Ron Atkinson are some infamous examples). The word nigger continues to be a dangerous and ambivalent word but the dichotomy between the rapper’s (and African American culture in general) use of the word and the historical use emphasizes the complexity and importance of language as a means of communication and representation. Just as verbs when used excessively and in different situations become irregular, nouns like nigger can become “irregular”.
Rap music is heavily based on image and building a persona. In order to be recognized, the majority of rappers develop a reputation as a gangsta or pimp or coke dealer. Their reputation can have some truth to it like Jay-z who did actually sell drugs or it can be completely fabricated like Ice cube during his career with N.W.A or Clipse. This is done through lyrics first and foremost; you need to speak the language, you need to recite anecdotes about your past et cetera. But a rapper can’t leave his persona solely on the record; he needs to maintain it as well as he can throughout his personal life. Nowadays the genre is a battle of egos, you’re either allies or enemies, either you feature regularly on your buddy’s record or there’s a beef. The unusual thing is how easily this can change depending on what a particular rapper wants at that time. The best example is the game, who after teaming up with G-unit after his first album is now adamantly antagonistic with the Brooklyn outfit. This demonstrates the theatricality of the genre. It can demand a lot of tailoring your awn image and trying to destroy your opponent’s credibility Rappers seem to need a certain amount of street cred if their rags to riches narratives are going to be taken seriously. You might need to have spent some time in prison, have been shot, have sold drugs or just had a lamentable childhood. However entertaining this theatre rap might be, it is important to consider the effect this can have on the culture. In certain mentalities, rappers are the representatives of the African-American population and black people in general. Thus, there are horrible stereotypes cast over a whole group. Now, I’m not saying I agree with the rapper’s view on the world, I’m simply trying to expose the dichotomy between the rapper himself and his persona. Of course, this can be related to the age old idea of celebrity in general, and the creation of an alternate persona exists in other genres (Bowie, Dylan et cetera) but rap seems to be more dependent on this image.
However, there are several rappers who transcend the need to create a rebel character like a tribe called quest, fat lip and the Pharcyde. They rap as themselves, transparent and because of this they are labeled “intellectual” or unusual when in reality they are closer to the initial values of hip hop as a form of expression. They deal with social problems directly from a wider perspective. Fat lip turns the arrogant, self loving character on its head in “What up Fat Lip?”: “Over the years it seems I’m getting dumber […] Yeah, I’m a brotha but sometimes I don’t feel black”. He exposes an interesting issue, what does it mean to feel black? What are the expectations? Obviously, I can’t delve into self conscious, aimed at socio-political rap without mentioning Public enemy. The duo explicitly confronted the issues that affected the African American community with great determination. Whereas most rappers, especially in the contemporary list, tend to rap about poverty and social conflict solely in relation to themselves, or they rap about it but simply as a ploy to appear concerned (Akon “Ghetto”). Chuck D and Flava Flav investigated the their culture amidst the melting pot of America (“It takes a nation of millions to hold us back”, “Fear of a Black Planet”), the discrimination against African Americans from the entertainment industry (“Burn Hollywood Burn”) and they wrote songs that incited African Americans to be more politically aware and active (“Fight the power”).
So what happened to people like Chuck D? Did he strive in vain or are all the problems solved now? Well, even though chuck d has stopped rapping and there has been some considerable social progress in America there are still people who continue to be informants, describing the inequalities that persist but also celebrating the challenges that have been overcome. Some examples would be Q-tip, Panacea, Talib Kwali and even Kanye West to some extent. But the most vehement rappers trying to articulate their idea’s on politics (Dead prez) suffer from having their voices drowned out by the mainstream rap
The genre has changed in some ways. Beginning with the method, listening to sugarhill gang and run DMC and comparing it to Aesop Rock or Lil Wayne it is easy to see there is an important change in the lyrics themselves and rhyming. “Rapper’s delight” can seem a bit innocent and simple:
“i said a hip hop the hippie the hippie
to the hip hip hop, a you dont stop
the rock it to the bang bang boogie say up jumped the boogie
to the rhythm of the boogie, the beat”
Contemporary rap seems profane and extravagant in comparison. A lot of rap lyrics are provocative and crudely explicit. The there are artists like Aesop rock who use abstract and complex lyrics and rhyming patterns, who demonstrate a more direct influence to poetry, focusing on tempo and the sounds of words.
”pirouetting madly on a mirror full of baggies in the valley of the irritable aggie, any sincerity, miracles,or memory buried in the back-seat by the hazardous material was seriously gasping,here he is in action trying to patch up the attraction, figured he would win her back if he act in a common passion”
(Aesop Rock “Fumes”),
Aesop rock's lyrics are abstract and adhere to poetic methods like. rhythmic stream
See I wanna fuck, tell me whats up
Walk around the club with yo thumb in ya mouth
Put my dick in, take your thumb out[…]
I keep a hoe hot when I'm puttin' in work
Wanna skeet skeet you bout to get your feelin's hurt”
(Ying Yang twins,”Wait”)
Another objection commonly raised against rap music is its originality. The genre is continuously criticized for being dependant on sampling music (taking it from other sources and incorporating it into their songs). There is more to sampling than just theft, it is a creative process. Sure, there are rappers who merely hear a beat or a melody and exploit it. Tinchy Stryder’s “Tiny Dancer” is a good example as it takes advantage of the appeal and notoriety of Elton John and Bernie Taupin’s 1971 classic. Stryder’s version depends on the melody sung in the chorus and the whole song builds up to that moment, whereas the rest of the song is bland. A talented sampler will go beyond mere pick and mix, they will adapt the music and create a synergy between the original music and the sample. A tribe called quest’s “Can I kick it?” is renowned by peers as being a great sample. They use the bassline from Lou Reed’s “walk on the wild side”, but they use it in a way that makes it their own. Instead of the bass being the rhythm for the subdued tranquility of Reed’s song, it is backed by a resounding beat transporting it and integrating it into the vision of A tribe called quest. Furthermore, hip hop is not the only domain where sampling takes place and people seem to forget that: sculpture, poetry, the novel, painting and theatre just to name a few. Shakepeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” has been adapted and sampled incessantly for hundreds of years but that doesn’t stop anyone from picking up the play and presenting their personal interpretation and representation.
The genre has changed. Rappers have changed and the genre reaches a much bigger audience. Rap marks an important breach of American music culture, a rise in black artists in a predominately white domain, so where jazz and blues was labeled as “Negro music” and cast out to Europe, Rap is arguably an American genre.But as any part of the entertainment industry, rap music is fueled by the pursuit of wealth and fame. It is simply inherent, and to refuse to abide by the popular conventions, artists like A tribe called Quest, Panacea, Fat lip et cetera sacrifice the opportunity to become mega famous and mega rich. . The genre evolves, but one must ask; Is it a good evolution? Does the fact that it’s more popular correlate to a commercialization of the music? As Jay-z once said “I’m not a businessman, I am a business, man.”Even if I have failed to convince you of hip hop’s merit, I have attempted to demonstrate the complexity and depth that this genre comprehends, engulfing so many different sounds and narratives. I have begun to unpack the important connections this music has in society, not just America, but everywhere. The utility the genre has to voice the opinions of minorities and how it can be misused and manipulated and how the genre went from being this voice of a minority to becoming one of the most popular genres to date, listened by everyone, created by people of different social backgrounds.
