Some of the most famous rappers have songs named, “F**k The Police”, “Crooked A** N***a”, and “Cop Killer.” (“Negative Influences Gangster Rap What Can Be Done About It”). These songs, like so many others, also talk about murder and disrespect of women. Lives have been lost and people have suffered, yet the gangster rap industry is still flourishing. Society has noticed the negative influence this music has had, yet they still continue to make it succeed through a number of record sales. Even though there is no way to solve this problem it’s still a benefit that parents do not let their children listen to the music and have them grow up hearing these types of…
To gaze into the lyrics of both Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur is like living in the ghettos of New York City where violence never stops. Both of these artists grew up seeing and living a life filled with violence. Gunshots and drive-byes, death and murder were a daily occurrence. Although the lyrics of both artists are simply telling their life stories and how hard it was to grow up in their “hoods” they contain vulgar, hateful, and sexual verses that send the wrong message to their listeners. Whether these listeners are teens or adults, white or black, they are continually sending notions of hatred and fear through their lyrics and actions. Ultimately, their lyrics, actions, and creation of the East coast West coast rivalry began promoting violence to whoever hears, listens, or watches them.…
It has almost become the norm, but it was difficult to read the posts, and peruse the pictures on social media of students gathering around a former convict and infamous drug dealer for a photo opp. The featured speaker is now famous for his name not for his past transgressions in the crack cocaine drug game that began in the early 1980’s. A well-known rap artist, whose real name is William Roberts II, had stolen Rick Ross’s government name to become famous in the rap game as “Freeway Rick Ross”. On the day of the assembly, only a handful of students had been invited to hear the featured speaker, the real Rick Ross recant his life story.…
Rap music effectively shows the conditions of the "hood" and helps to open the eyes of the listeners that life for everyone isn't easy and worry-free. In the song "Changes" by Tupac Shakur, the rapper illustrates an image of the common inner-city urban street. In his lyrics, Shakur describes a scene where white and blacks are enemies, and crack sellers are around every corner. Yet, even though these lyrics talk about the violence in the streets, it talks about needing to make a change within the society. Shakur raps "We need to make changes, Learn to see me as a brother instead of two distant strangers. And dats how it's supposed to be. How can the devil take a brother if he's close to me, uh, I love to go back to when we played as kids, but things change, and that's the way it is." In the previous lyrics Tupac is encouraging peace within the community. He is encouraging whites and blacks to see each other more as individuals rather than two different enemies, but in the end he says that is just the way the life is (filled with hatred). The ability that the rap and hip-hop genre has to expose how life really is in the ghetto not only can promote change, but it helps to show people of all socioeconomic backgrounds that life everywhere isn't truly kosher. Many of the rap lyrics composed by various artists focus on the neighborhoods that they live in, not generally depicting masculine views, but talking about how harsh urban life really…
Many artists today get their inspiration for their music from the culture they live in. Macklemore choses to create a…
Though many have protested that “gangsta rap” is to blame for its influence in the violence, female discrimination and violent behavior that take place throughout America, others argue that it is simply the other way around, implying that the artist is influenced by his own personal experience of being a part of and/or bearing witness to violence, drugs and crime that have taken place around him thus influencing him to express himself through lyric and rhyme becoming “gangsta rap”. This leaves us to question does gangsta rap music encourage violence or does violence influence what the artist raps about?…
To start at the roots of hip hop however you can clearly see that the message of the music was not to promote violence, but to help curb crime and show that it’s not glamorous. During the 1980’s you had artists like Grand Master Flash, and Public Enemy who preached black empowerment, and left imparting lessons that didn’t hinder but allow black culture to grow, as well as morale. This leads people to pondering nowadays, what happened to this once positive, intelligent music that defined a race and culture? You have 12 year old children listening to vulgar raps about sex, and prostitution, and for black kids in poor ghetto neighborhoods this fantasy driven music glamorizing crime, is seen as the sole “voice” for these children ultimately view that lifestyle as the true way they should be acting. It is as if hip hop music is still attempting to sell this image of the crime life, even when most of the artists have all the money in the world. Hip hop basically reversed the accomplishments of the black community, disguising itself as pertaining a…
Despite undercurrents of menace, the vast majority of hit rap songs have always concerned the same topics as hit rock or pop songs: dancing, getting wasted and getting laid.” And yet, the violence described in gangsta rap was seen by law enforcement as more dangerous, more in need of policing, not entirely unlike black urban communities in the 1980s themselves. However, if you were to read the lyric sheets to the top ten rock songs vs the top ten rap songs of the 90’s, it would be very difficult to argue that the rap lyrics weren’t substantially more violent and many times, outright instigating violence. Guns and Roses Sweet Child O Mine has yet to be cited as an influence in someone’s murder or…
In the 1980s, we saw many different genres of music emerge, genres such as Pop, Rock, and R&B. But a new genre emerged that sparked a lot of controversy: “Gangsta Rap” otherwise known as Hip Hop. Rappers/Rap groups such as NWA, Run DMC, Big Daddy Kane, and more changed the industry with catchy tunes and lyrics that talked about hard topics like slavery, violence, and police brutality. These lyrics sometimes caused major conflict, whether between races or with civilians and police. Hip Hop was very controversial in the 80s. “Gangsta rap” has caused a lot of controversy, many people protested this music in the late 80s and 90s due to the message within its lyrics and what those lyrics conveyed. Many accused “Gangsta Rap” for promoting things such as crime, killings, profanity, drugs, sex, racism, and more. But Gangsta rap doesn’t influence this type of lifestyle; it’s telling a story/conveying a message of the individuals who wrote the lyrics.…
Herd, D. (2009, Spring). Changing images of Violence in Rap music. Journal of Public Health, 30(4), 395-406 12p. EBSCOhost.…
Hip hop serves as a form of unity and a crutch for some. Kids tend to always be looking for an adult figure in their life. Some have many others have none, but just about all look up to those in media. Rappers are a part of a multi-billion dollar industry their reach stretches from clothing to cars. Rappers tend to be that adult figure in most urban communities. These kids look up to see their favourite music stars are like themselves. Popular rap star Kendrick Lamar grew up in Compton, one of Americas worst hoods. Now he is a huge star and has fame and fortune. The youth in situations like this see him as a form of inspiration. They aspire to be great like their favourite hip hop stars; they want to pull themselves out of the ghetto. This impact on youth is a great positive for the genre, and a great story for it to. For some the music that they can identify with the most is a way for other to connect. Much like people connect through sports or other interests, hip hop serves as the same tool. Friendships form through these social bonds provided by the music of this genre. With the formation of these friendships they often lead to positive results. For example Taylor and Taylor note that “Early hip hop has often been credited with helping to reduce inner-city gang violence by replacing physical violence with dance and artwork battles.”(qtd About Hip Hop Youth Subculture, 1) These outlets and groups help in reducing violence and instead promote creativity. Music of any genre is a form on entertainment. Rap is no different; these kids are escaping into the world of music. With these kids staying away from gangs and violence they are more likely to grow up to be functioning members of society. While the rap stars are not the sole reason for this they are definitely a part of the solution as opposed to the problem. There are many examples of rap artists helping the youth in a community whether its “Drake and P Reign playing…
The association of violence with alcohol also increased, but the relationship was not as pronounced as that with drugs, Explanations for the rise of gangster rap and violence in rap music have tended to focus on two basic themes. Representatives from the music and other media industries have argued that media violence is a reflection of actual social trends. Echoing this perspective, some scholars have focused on the structural conditions – oppressive economic and social conditions, the crack cocaine drug trade and ensuing drug war, and high levels of police brutality – within urban ghettos that promote violent themes in rap music. Within this framework, other writers have focused on the violent lifestyles of major rap artists as an explanation for the rising tide of violence in the…
Music Lyrics being NON-VIOLENT Rap music can be considered a style of art, and a way for the artists to express feelings through their words on paper. However, there are quite a few rap artists that get criticized for their lyrics. In my essay, I want to discuss why rappers use certain lyrics in their music and why people shouldn’t believe that it causes violence among the younger generations. People shouldn’t censor the music just because of violent, vulgar and abusive messages it promotes to the world. I believe in my own mind, that there is a reason for these types of lyrics that rap artists use and I will simply explain those reasons in this essay. Rap has been called one of the most important music forces to emerge in two decades. It’s pounding beats and staccato rhymes exploded on the streets of the urban America in the early 1980s and since have become the theme music and lyrical heart of the vibrant youth culture called hip-hop ( SIRS 1993). There are many different types of rap artist. There are some that talk about money, some talk about righteousness, and the list goes on and on. Every rap artist had their own way of expressing themselves. There are those that talk about sex, drugs, and violence who receive the negative attention( SIRS 1993). People, think this so- called gangster rap is a bad influence on children in the world and that it promotes violence and that it also is abusive to women. Delores Tucker, head of national congress of black women has been among those pressuring different record companies to stop distributing gangster rap music. There were other significant names that participated in this action. Names like Senate Majority leader Bob dole, and former education Secretary William J. Bennett(Surveys, pg. 1). There are some rap artists that have been openly criticized for their lyrics. Rappers like Lil Kim, Too Short, Snoop Doggy Dogg, and a member from “Too Live Crew,” named Luke Skywalker. These rap artists in the past have been…
America is most known to be the “nation of immigrant.” The nation that accepts foreigners and helps them pursue an American Dream. It helps you all together make someone out of yourself by providing opportunities to make that dream a reality. Although this may be true, the nation that gives you a label a label that makes you feel completely uncomfortable. Imagine you being called “illegal” out loud, and people just stare at you, how uncomfortable you would feel; every time you here the word illegal. Today, I will be talking about how The Library of Congress will no longer use the term “illegal” or “alien” to describe an undocumented immigrant.…
Since June 2007, iPhone has been dominating the cell phone world, and according to Forbes Magazine, Apple sold 5 million iPhone 5’s in its opening weekend.…