...the doctor ordered [Chorus:] I'm beginning to feel like a Rap God, Rap God All my people from the front to the back nod, back nod Now who thinks their arms are long enough to slap box, slap box? They said I rap like a robot, so call me rap-bot [Verse 1:] But for me to rap like a computer must be in my genes I got a laptop in my back pocket My pen'll go off when I half-cock it Got a fat knot from that rap profit Made a living and a killing off it Ever since Bill Clinton was still in office With Monica Lewinski feeling on his nutsack I'm an MC still as honest But as rude and as indecent as all hell Syllables, skill-a-holic (Kill 'em all with) This flippity, dippity-hippity hip-hop You don't really wanna get into a pissing match With this rappity-rap Packing a mack in the back of the Ac backpack rap, crap, yap-yap, yackety-yack and at the exact same time I attempt these lyrical acrobat stunts while I'm practicing that I'll still be able to break a motherfuckin' table Over the back of a couple of faggots and crack it in half Only realized it was ironic I was signed to Aftermath after the fact How could I not blow? All I do is drop "F" bombs Feel my wrath of attack Rappers are having a rough time period Here's a Maxi-Pad It's actually disastrously bad For the wack while I'm masterfully constructing this masterpiece yeah [Chorus:] 'Cause I'm beginning to feel like a Rap God, Rap God All my...
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...Hip-hop culture is everywhere. The culture, which encompasses rapping, deejaying, break-dancing and graffiti-writing, has become so popular that it has entered mainstream fashion and modern language. It doesn't stop there. The culture permeates everything from TV commercials to toys to video games. Currently, there is even a hip-hop exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum of Art. You name it, and hip hop is there representing. However, hip hop's most potent form is its rap music--embraced by urban Blacks and suburban Whites alike. It is raw self-expression that sometimes features profane lyrics, misogyny and violence. The music, along with rap videos that often present a disturbing mix of rap, hip-hop dance styles, fashion and language, leave many people asking: Is hip-hop culture harming our youth" "The hip-hop culture is just like electricity," civil rights leader the Rev. Al Sharpton told JET. "It can be used negatively or positively. The same electric current that lights up your house can also electrocute you. It is the misuse of hip-hop culture to attack our women and promote violence. We must encourage the proper use of hip-hop culture. We are all influenced by the hip-hop generation." Sharpton, who recently hosted a special summit on social responsibility in the hip-hop industry, labeled gangsta rappers "well-paid slaves." Advertisement "Don't let some record executive tell you that cursing out your mama is in style. Anytime...
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...kidnapping child brides, maintain a tight rein over their females through threats and intimidation. If, when another male is nearby, a hamadryas female strays even a few feet from her mate, he shoots her a threatening stare and raises his brows. She usually responds by rushing to his sideRap music has been a discussion of it's influence, for as long as I can remember; which was in the 1980's. The farthest incident, I can remember, of our society saying that Rap Music had a bad connotation on our children, was when Gangster Rapper Ice T came on the scene. I remember them saying that the song "Cop Killer" by Body Count was influencing people, not just children, to go out and kill cops. Ice T was the lead singer of Body Count Band and this song came out around 1987. I know the negative issues surrounding this song, got so bad, that the song was pulled off the shelves. But, I do believe that when children get a better, moral and economic start in life, they are less likely to be influenced by what others sing; whether Rap, Hard Rock or any music. I think that any child with a poor life start or poor self esteem can be influence to do something bad, if bombarded with it daily. From dressing provocatively to sagging their pants. And if sagging is not an eye sore, I do not know what is. But for the most part, we have begun to see some Rappers be more responsible and address issues concerning our children; like telling our children to get an education and to do the right thing. ”(p...
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...Peers 4/10/2012 English comp 2 Courtney Mustoe Does Rap music Misrepresent African Americans? There are many genera’s in today’s music world. Depending on who a person is, and what their emotions may be, there will always be a song or genera that one can relate to. Some music helps us relax, while others help us to get pumped up. Other music helps us study while some get us ready to party. Music can create closeness with a significant other while sometimes it can relate to our sorrows of a breakup. It can make us happy when we are sad, while in curtain circumstances make us sad when we are happy. Music can take over our thoughts and emotions that create a story we can relate to or a story we are unfamiliar with. It can take us down a street we have never been before. In some aspects this could be a problem. Some listeners might think all country singers are hicks from the south or mid west. Many might assume every punk rocker is a rebellious Goth. So if these presumptions can be made, what is there to stop people from letting a genera of music represent a certain race in our society today? In the past, music was limited by certain branches of music that could air on the radio and one genera in particular, rap, had to fight its way through the music industry to be heard. Its roots came from the hip-hop culture which includes rapping, graffiti, break dancing, DJing (audio mixing or scratching) ect. After rap was recognized, over the years, changes within the music...
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...to be the ideal caretaker of innocence and purity, but now women dress in revealing clothing and are preyed on by the indecent society. Proper mannerisms have vanished and young people have become straightforward and sometimes even rude. Respect for elders and wisdom has dwindled (The Revolution in Manners and Morals). What is the cause of this cultural shift? In Boston during 1684, a group of strict Puritan religious leaders wrote a letter to the community addressing the issue of dancing. Men could dance together and women could dance together, which was viewed as a natural expression of joy. Also children could dance with their parents’ permission. However if a male and female danced together it was seen as an inexcusable sin before God (An Arrow Against Profane and Promiscuous Dancing). Puritan religious leaders warned those who danced with the opposite gender and those who encouraged their children to dance with other children of the opposite gender would face extreme punishment. In a few centuries the significance of dance has transformed. Less than a century ago, after the time of the Puritans, countries in Africa began to dance with a dignified purpose. These bridled groups of people alchemized their...
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...Paper The genre of music called “Hip Hop,” originated back in the 1960’s with the help of a Jamaican native and Dj, named Kool Hurc aka, Clive Cambell. Since the evolution of hip hop, the style of music has become one of the main branches of an artistic culture that consists of b-boying (break dancing), graffiti, and MC-ing. All of which have tremendously influenced many aspiring artists, their physical images, the ever-changing sound of hip hop, and other elements that relate to the hip hop culture. A lot of people claim that hip hop and rap can only be about violence, aggression, sex, and money in order to sell or be popular. Another view on hip hop and rap is that it’s too violent, and inappropriate to audiences. That it’s not even music but just a bunch of crap, when in reality, it’s like poetry. The lyrics that artists write come from personal experiences, and perceptions of what they see in the world they live in. Hip hop and rap is more than just music. One of the primary sources I found is a review/article published in “The New York Times” called “The Uncluttered Hip-hop of De La Soul”, written by Peter Watrous, in which Watrous critiques the performance and the group De La Soul at a show. This review of Del La Soul is relevant to the history of hip hop course because it makes a point in which gives an argument for positive recognition of not only De La Soul, but other hip hop groups with similar style of music. These groups don’t write about sex, killing, and being...
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...Check, One-Two Suzanne Fields, the author of “Bad Raps: Music Rebels Revel in Their Thug Life” wrote her article on May 21, 2001 for insight on the news. In her article, Fields talks about how rap music has negative effects on our younger generation. She personally believes that the lyrics in these songs have a harsh effect on our youth and that it is the worst genre of music out right now. While reading, I found her opinion to be extremely biased and unfair. I also found myself disagreeing with almost every bad thing she stated about the rap genre since many other genres can have the same types of effects on younger people when they listen to them. Fields starts out her article by saying that rap music “expresses the worst kind of images” and is harmful to our younger generations. She thinks that the lyrics “employ vulgar street idioms” and are too harsh. She also states that she believes their lyrics come from “a world of broken families, absent fathers, illegitimate children and matriarchal dominance, often subsidized by welfare.” (Fields) Fields continues her argument against rap music by saying that the reason for the harsh lyrics is because language and experience of poetry and romance are absent from the lives of the rappers and their audiences. Fields personally does not know the true lives of the rappers, so she shouldn't be judging them just off of their lyrical content. Fields continues her article against rap music by using a couple facts about other singers,...
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...Rap Culture in Comparison to the Tone of Hughes and Brooks Today it is hard to get into a car and turn on the radio without hearing a song about money, sex, or fame. Modern day rap culture tries to force those three things on our population through their music and lyrics. They have changed many people’s perception of the perfect life through their tone, music, and lyrics. Many poems help express and can relate to the tone of the modern day rap culture. The tone in the poems, “Red Silk Stockings” by Langston Hughes, and “We Real Cool” by Gwendolyn Brooks, can be tied to the tone in rap culture and express many modern American values. Rap culture in the twenty first century has exponentially grown and in turn has influenced daily American live. Today, everyone is exposed to this new rap culture that is developing everywhere. Rap culture started in about the 1970’s in New York City (Sullivan). In those days rap was about everyday life and race but has greatly change since then. Rap songs these days are all about sex, money, drugs, women, cars, and practically any material thing. Many songs talk about how rich the rappers are and the extravagant ways they live. Most songs in rap culture have poor grammar and language. These songs are crude and talk about women only as sex. The view points of modern day rappers are extremely clouded because of what they talk about and how they live. The tone of the Hughes and Brooks poems help to show the tone and expression of modern day rap culture...
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..."preferred transcripts" suggested by music videos and Todd Boyd's conception of "hyperreal" cinematic imagery. FINAL PAPER INSTRUCTIONS: Your paper should also incorporate research that extends beyond the boundaries of materials on our syllabus. You should also be sure to construct an argument and offer a critique of assumptions surrounding your argument. The most successful papers will allow the "messiness" of researching popular culture to foreground contradictions implicit in your arguments. For example, if you want to argue that misogyny is less of a concern in 2006 than it was in 1995 because many of the gangsta rap groups responsible for "bitch-ho" rhetoric have disbanded, you would probably want to underscore the pervasive lack of feminist female representation in any hip hop idiom in 2002. In other words, less gangsta rap has not meant more positive heterosocial conditions for the production of hip hop. This is a research paper, and it will be graded according to standards of college-level humanities writing. Your paper must be typewritten, double-spaced, and thoroughly edited for spelling and grammar. Composition counts! For compositional guidelines, you might consult a guide for writing research papers in MLA style. Look here for citation...
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...Brandon Woody English 3604-201 Dr. Reginald Martin July 15, 2015 Future & Financial Illiteracy in Rap Hip-Hop has grown exponentially from its meager beginning in New York City, with influence globally resembling religion in the way it impacts the lives of its most fervent followers. Rap, Hip-Hop?s musical component, has provided outlets for artistry and entrepreneurship for individuals in the inner city who wouldn?t otherwise have one. Despite the positive effects that the musical genre has had on countless lives, it has fairly been criticized for its glorification of misogyny, violence, and drug use; unfortunately, tendency to promote fiscally reckless behavior is often ignored. A rather popular song on urban radio over the...
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...INTRODUCTION Culture of Hip-hop was born in 1970 and it keeps developing until today. Hip-hop basically has four kinds of forms which are DJing, Rapping, Graffiti, Break-dancing, and Beatboxing. However why music, in this case is Rapping, can build great influence to the listeners. Music is form of cultural expression that does not necessary experience race and other identity relationships. This aspect appeals to youth experiences because racial identities do not mean only simply one thing for them. Since identities of race are combination of multiple identities, such as national context, class, and even gender. This turns up in Hip-hop music which focuses on mixed identities to find local’s expression. Hip-hop music is no longer seen only as song to listen but has become a lifestyle to youth in modern era. They feel this music can represent them who are struggling to find meaning and identities in their society which most of them do, regardless of they are White, Black, Asian, etc. However, other kinds of Hip-hop culture like graffiti art and break dancing also have same influence like Hip-hop music. This condition makes business players who are outside of Hip-hop industry find opportunity to contract famous and successful Hip-hop music artist to commercialize their products. These companies use the mindset that has been built by the artist and indirectly put that image in the commodities which appeal to young consumers. The thesis of this paper is how Hip-hop cultures...
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...between marijuana use amongst teenagers and the popularity of West Coast Rap Music Introduction Marijuana has been around for hundreds of years and the use of marijuana has been becoming more and more popular especially among teenagers (Lee, 2012). Music has also been around for a very long period of time, in a vast aray of genres. What has changed in music however, is the references to drugs (specifically marijuana) especially in rap music. Marijuana references in rap music have increased by 27% percent from 1979 to 1997 (Herd, 2008). Since the main audience for rap music are teenagers, listening to this music can have a possible effect on teenager’s substance use. Marijuana refers to the leaves, flowers and stems from the Cannabis Sativa or Cannabis Indica plant. This plant contains the chemical delta-9-tetrahydrocannibol (THC). When using marijuana there are both short and long term effects on the brain. Short term effects include: altered senses, changes in mood, and impaired memory (Hall, 1998). A study done by Meier (2012) showed the long term effects of marijuana. This study showed that people who started smoking heavily as teenagers and continued use of marijuana lost an average of 8 IQ points between ages 13 and 38 (Meier, Caspi & Ambler, 2012) US West Coast rap music is rap music that is created in the West Coast of the United States of America, mainly referring to California. West Coast rap started in the 1970’s but didn’t become popular till the 1980’s and...
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...the former. Sentimental masculinity appeals more to female vanity and the need for affection. The sentimentalist is charismatic and charming full of sensual flirtation aimed at luring the superficial audience. Critical observation indicates that both forms of masculine sexuality are still present in the world of Hip Hop today. In a detailed overview on the same, this paper tackles the issue of hegemonic and sentimental masculinity as evidenced in the world of Hip Hop today and the pervasive trend of aggression and sexuality in popular culture. Sexuality in Popular Culture The issue of sexuality continues to dominate the world of popular music since the inception of hip hop culture in the late 1970s to date. In fact, observers note that rap music was then as it is now ‘an expression of hyper-masculinity’ as evidenced in violent music videos and strong worded song lyrics that seem to reaffirm the perceived superiority of the male gender. Writing in the wake of the birth of hip hop culture, Frith and McRobbie (1990: 374) noted an...
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...What would you do if I Rhymed out of Tune? One of the main channels where Americans speak out about race, violence and culture, is Hip-Hop music. This is a place where the music is dominated by black artists, yet most of its sales/profits are to whites in America. Is it because white people just like the beat and lyrics of the music, or are they trying to identify with a society they have never known? in spite of its popularity among white listeners, you don’t see the murder rate among young white males increasing because they identify with it. Some might argue that music could never inspire an individual to act in a certain way or someone to kill. However, some could also debate, if music can make you feel happiness or tranquil, then it might also motivate one to violence or invoke aspirations to kill. Byron Hurt, the Filmmaker of “Hip-Hop, Beyond beats and Rhymes,” talks about a “Box” that Hip-Hop puts men in with its lyrics and by the gangsters the music videos embody showing what a real man should desire to be, in his film. “In order to be in that box, men have to be strong, tough, have a lot of girls and money. Men have to be a player or pimp, they have to be in control and dominate other people, because if men are not those things, then they are called soft, weak, a pussy, chump or faggot, and nobody wants to be any of those things so they stay inside the box.” (Byron Hurt) Hip-Hop’s impractical ideas of manhood have become a box resembling a prison, the same...
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...“RAGE, r-r-r-r-rage, rage, r-r-r-r-rage, rage!” Le1f, a.k.a. Khalif Diouf, screams these words deliriously in the chorus of “Rage”, the second song on his debut album Riot Boi, as the cute electronic flourishes surrounding him suddenly turn to siren sounds, breaking glass, and brutal bass. It’s a line that Diouf likes to toe - Riot Boi’s instrumentals go from saccharine to scary, as does his delivery, which is wonderfully diverse. Riot Boi is quite the personal statement - although Le1f’s music is jarringly experimental and unapologetically queer, Diouf feels completely comfortable in the middle of it all, to the point where he can easily forget any debut album tropes and focus on making good music. Riot Boi is a self-assured debut album, so much so that Le1f doesn’t even have to try. Lead track “Hi” is an introduction to Le1f, one that accomplished all it needs to in less than two minutes. Le1f is a liberal, he addresses the important issues, and he’s “so Nubian”. The word ‘cunt’ is dropped, on this song as well as throughout the album - such a crass word is transformed into a statement of pride when coming from Le1f’s mouth. “Hi” is a definitive establishment of Le1f’s identity; because of it, Riot Boi can enter more exciting territory. And so it does - the aforementioned, Balam Acab-produced, Death Grips-sounding “Rage” is unpredictable and electric, like being in the middle of a thunderstorm. “Swirl” is a thumping club track, set on top of a simplistic sample and a riveting...
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