Edited by Brady Winkler
Imagine a nice and chill Saturday morning, where you are at home listening to rap music. You are feeling very happy and getting a nice rush like you could get up from your bed and go run a race. To me and some other people, rap music is more than just a few sounds, it is a call to reality.
While I recognize that there are some bad parts of rap music, such as the explicitness and the conflict it can start, I personally think that there is more good than bad. Rap music can be great to listen to for fun, during a workout, while talking to friends, or even as a background for a study session. Sometimes people – including me – can relate to the music and get a special kind of feeling that you can’t feel from anything else. For me, listening to rap music is my favorite hobby.
Conflict
While rap is an amazing genre of music, it can start heated conflicts. In fact, many rappers have feuds with each other. Right now, the most well known conflict is between Kendrick Lamar and Drake. In the mid 1990s, it sparked a battle between the East and West Coasts of America. It got so serious that a West Coast rapper – 2Pac – was shot five times and robbed in one day. Two years later, he was shot to death. Biggie Smalls (aka the Notorious B.I.G.) of the East Coast, was shot to death six months after 2Pac was killed. This is related to the fact that 2Pac and Biggie were notorious enemies. Thankfully, West Coast and East Coast rappers get along fine nowadays, but like I said, it can get very serious.
Explicity
Despite rap being an amazing genre of music, it contains very explicit verses. Some of my favorite songs include countless profane words, and very inappropriate content. In my opinion , if someone does not like explicit content in music, I think that is a valid reason to not listen to it, and I respect that. However, that doesn’t mean I have anything against it, and I know countless other people feel the same. Often, rappers swear because of anger. Sometimes, rappers write diss tracks about each other – sometimes even other famous people like President Trump – or something that they are unhappy about. I know swearing is really offensive to some people and may even seem intimidating, but all I am trying to say is that the reason rappers swear isn’t usually because they’re just trying to offend society.
Relatability
Sometimes listening to rap music can conduct feelings that nothing else can. Not everyone gets this type of feeling, but it applies to some people (I have discussed this with my mom, so I know it’s more than just me). Also, sometimes I can genuinely just relate to the lyrics, and they make me feel things I have never felt from anything else. For me, it isn’t necessarily just about feelings either. If I am feeling down, I listen to Juice Wrld’s sad music, warming my feelings. I sometimes listen to happy songs to cheer me up if I’m feeling down, mad or even nervous: “California Love” by 2Pac, “Hypnotize” by Biggie, “The Real Slim Shady” by Eminem, etc. Eminem, in one of his famous songs, has a very powerful quote. In “Sing for the Moment,” Eminem intones that “music can alter moods and talk to you”, exemplifying my point.
Fun to jam to
Rap music is not only relatable, but can also be very fun to jam to. Sometimes, it’s just fun to jam to rap music in the background while working out, talking to friends, swimming, or even while doing homework. There are a lot of really fun rap songs out there, so sometimes I even sit and listen to it for fun even if I am not actually doing anything else. I know some people may not like rap, but to me, the way the beat syncs with the way people rhyme is exquisite. Not all rap songs I like have the relatability effect, but some of them are just fun to jam to.
Conclusion
Everyone’s opinions are all over the place for rap music. Some people hate or dislike it for various reasons, such as profane language or the conflict it starts. Some people – such as me – like or even love rap music for reasons like reliability, or the ability to have fun while jamming out to it. People have different opinions on it, but for me it is clear: I LOVE RAP.
