Hip Hop Research Papers

As a fan of hip-hop, everyone knows the biggest unwritten rule as a rapper is to be the lone person writing the lyrics to your song. As hip-hop has grown since its creation, the lines have been blurred as the popularity of rap music is at an all-time high. Rap has officially become the most popular genre of music as rappers have dominated in both album sales, and the success of singles. More than ever we’re seeing songs like “Black Beatles”, “Bad and Boujee”, “Bodak Yellow”, and “Rockstar” atop of the Billboard charts. With artists like Drake being exposed with reference tracks, and Cardi B allegedly having someone writing her rhymes, is the era of solo writing coming to an end?

It seems like yesterday the Internet was set on fire after multiple reference tracks from Drake hit the web. Meek Mill regardless of how
We’ve seen over the history of hip-hop, acts like Dr. Dre, P Diddy, and Kanye West have their names linked to ghost writing. “Rappers Delight” was the first rap song to put hip-hop on the map, and that wasn’t even an original song. While Dre and Diddy have never been looked at as true rappers, Kanye is the interesting name that has always gotten a pass. Respected as both an artist and a rapper, Kanye has managed to find a balance on both sides of the force.

For many, the argument is “you can’t be in the greatest rapper conversation if you’ve had help”. CyHi the Prynce, a frequent collaborator with Kanye shared his opinion on ghost writing in one of his recent interviews. He basically stated when a rapper wins a Grammy, they’re expected to be the only person on stage during his or her speech. When another artist like Adele, Taylor Swift, and others win an award, 15 people follow them during their moment of glory. When competing against other genres in the mainstream, why should a rapper have to handicap their music just to prove their