I feel that rap music in it's majority doesn't depict viloence. The music is about what the artist has gone through in their life and how they have resolved their issues. Yes, there is some music out there that is all about killing and viloence but not many people listen to that because it isn't real. There is more positive music other than Will Smith and Run DMC. There is Jill Scott, India Arie, Dru Hill, Musiq and many more. Please see that there is more to black music than the negative.

the other difference between rap and metal is that, as a general rule, you can't understand the lyrics to death metal/black metal/doom metal bands (as a general rule) whereas you can with rap.

There are postive and light-hearted examples of rap, like Will Smith (who is hated for "selling out") and RunDMC.

Most of the death-metallers I have met don't exactly take the lyrical content to heart.

Hove is back, life stories told through rap
Niggaz actin' like I sold you crack
Like I told you sell drugs...no...
Hove did that so hopefully you won't have to go through that
I was raised in the pro-jects, roaches and rats
Smokers out back, sellin' they mama's sofa
Lookouts on the corner, focused on the ave
Ladies in the window, focused on the kinfolk
Me under a lamp post, why I got my hand closed?
Cracks in my palm, watchin' the long arm o' the law
So you know I seen it all before
I seen hoop dreams deflate like a true fiend's weight
To try and to fail, the two things I hate
Succeed in this rap game, the two things is great

I feel that the gangsta rap has helped in some way in the sense that people can relate. I think that it is good that the bad is talked about because it makes people face the harsh reality of the world. No other music states what happens in the world that is bad, and that's what makes it different than other music... it reveals others pain and the harsh situations, that people are face with everyday, because every where these bad things happen and if the victim of this trauma doesn't speak of it he/she has something to relate to. And it helps in some ways .I don't agree that artists should push their limits in the sense that they are saying it is a good thing that these things happen, but to just make people aware that it happens.. I don't think that it has made more crime if anything it has made the potential victims of violence aware that this is a cruel world. Women that get abused can relate to songs like "love is blind" by eve, these songs state that if you don't get outta a abusive relationship there is a chance that you could die by the hand of someone who made you believe that he/she loved you. So get outta situations like that... music gives you strength use it to your advantage

I used to be a Hip Hop Junkie back in the 80's and 90's but now I feel that a lot of rappers send mixed messages to our young generation who buys the majority of the cd's. They seem to make 1 or 2 positive songs and then the rest glorifies how they pimped this chick or how they sold this kilo to get this dough. Why do most rappers potray being a super thug a good thing? I feel that if you grew up in the Hood, most people's life experiences were not always pleasent, so please tell the young generation what they can do to get out the hood, and not to glorify your street credibilty as a rapper to make money. That's what they do. Negativity sells records and that's all they care about. Not all rap is bad, but clean rap hardly sells and cannot get any air play on radio stations or BET.

"and not everyone can identify with the clean cut pleasant life Will raps about. They can however identify with NWA or Jay or Eminem for that matter."

This is exactly a problem with black America. There are kids too clueless or stoned to judge which presents the better role model, which always keeps them down and unable to succeed in the world. I'm sorry if this is too politically incorrect for some of you, but it's true.

I must say that i have tossed all my rap CD's away because they make 1 or 2 good song's then they call girls B's and H's or what ever.And they are killing are kids ears with this talk about sex ,money, guns ,and gangbanging and it needs to STOP......

I"LL FINISH THIS ONE DAY I HAVE 2 GO

Rap is definately horrible with its lyrics. They have an extremely bad influence on the youth. There are just too many kids in my school that keep implying that being "black" is "cool". Most girls are now always referred to as sluts. I've heard that their is underground rap that is not as much about being a gangster and stuff, but people just make rap for the money, so they only make stuff about negative things as an above poster mentioned. Also I just cant stand listening to rap, and its unfair that they make huge amounts of money off making ryhmes about "da hood", when rock bands have to actually work hard and play instruments. and by the way, at least in death metal bands, they can actually play instruments.

Just like he said metalers dont take the content to heart as much as rappers do... Metal is much more demonic.. but rap deals with more common things
drugs, sex, killing.... rap is just used to make money.. people like the computer generated beats so they take it in.. Rock however much much less computers are used and you actully need talent to make it big..

This article takes a very simplistic view of a complex issue. On its surface, rap and hip-hop do seem to glorify negative stereotypes, use of bad language, drug use, etc.

But you have to face facts. The most popular rap groups today are homogenized and watered down; paled versions of other ground breaking groups, or the lowest common denominator.

They are all flash and no substance. They are what the record companies can make the most money off of. One hot single about a girl "shaking something" will make the record company a lot more money than a thoughtful, theme based album, that has a real message.

There are excellent acts out there. And yes, anger about the current domestic/economic/racial situation is pretty common. But most of the anger is directed, channeled, and hopefully shaped toward some sort of positive change. If you're looking to MTV for your hip-hop, you aren't looking hard enough.

i dont like rap heavy metal or punk rock or grunge i like only classic soft rock like Billy Joel Elton John James Taylor Gordon Lightfoot John Denver the Eagles Kansas Seals and Crofts America Chicago Jim Croce Bread Don Mclean Cat Stevens Harry Chapin Hall and Oats Simon and Garfunkel Harry Nilsson Toto Neil Young and SteelyDan

I say that rap just strait up sucks ass because of the things that it tells entire generations of our youth to do like to degrate women or even go and sell dungs and shoot people. I'm not saying rockl doesn't say that kind of stuff either butt not as much as rap.

all rap is really gay beacuse rap is 4 posers who hav half a brain.this is a fact people who listen to rap all dress alike u no the fubu and pants below thier ass rokers all look different

If you are saying that Rap Music is only a way for the artist and companies to make money, like I have read a few times from different people, then would you agree that creating any type of music, or even just plain writing poetry are also only ways of generating money? Some Rap artists may like that they can give their message to plenty of others, or they may like to be humorous, and begin to explain their world and their view of life for anyone to pick up. There is more in creation than just the money.

Implying that the creation of Rap music doesn't involve talent is a moronic thing to do. Why can people have an opinion about a rap song, compared to another? Why are some rap songs better than others, even to those who loathe the genre of music? It is because like any other art form, a good rap song takes talent to produce.

Mark, the sane and sensible: Assuming that because kids like rap music that they are on drugs is another big mistake. Think about what you say before you say it.

Rap music is a forum between an artist and their fans. A rapper can hand out a message, and portray life like he knows it. Are you seriously going to ask 50 Cent, who allegedly dealt drugs and was shot at a number of times, to rap like

I believe that rap can be good and bad. Its bad beccause of what it talks about, but if you listen to the beat and not the lyrics, it can be okay. I know that the language and the things that it is saying is bad. I am doing a debate tomorrow about if rap does more harm than good. Any suggestions on what to say? I was chosen to be on the side for rap does more harm.

the person who invented the gun did not kill anyone, by this i'm sayin people should not judge hiphop it is like a ground of expression, it is the people who choose what to express

So many steriotypes been thrown about here methinks some truths should be told, firstly hip-hop is both positive & negative as is everything in life (u tryin to tell me death-metal doesn't breed some psychos yeah rite!!!) what u take from it is completey up to the listener. Secondly the only people who dislike ALL hip-hop are the type who like to judge a book by its cover (lame analogy but nothing better came to mind) hip-hop has heart as does rock and so should not be judged entirley on the records of a few. The main difference with hip-hop is the commercial/underground split many have only heard the merc side of things and as such do not truly understand. PEACE&LOVE

I just think it's unpleasant to listen to. Doesn't sound good. Not very musical.

Actually, rap has been more creative over a much longer time than rock or any other kind of music ever...

I prefferly am a fan of the rock i like some metal but not all metal is good same with rap. Although seeing little kids no younger then 5 at rinks , schools, just places in regular singing shake that laffy taffy and other songs is troublesome. Not all rap is bad but if you like clean rap you are hated on people call you a poser and just everything. I think everything has its good and bads. WE just need to live a fuller cleaner healthier lifestlye.

rap is soooooo bad, all it does is degrade women but i do have to say, some of it is good but not much

"Rap"? Wow what a throwback term!
Anyway, I don't think the problem is the music. Hip-hop like counrty music has been ruined by corporate America. Visionaries and poets like Chuck D, Q-Tip, Meryl Haggard or Loretta Lynne are things of the past. Music today is about "smack that ass out on the floor" and safe boring artists with nothing to say.

As far as gangsta rap goes, it's been done. NWA and Ice T wrote about gang life nearly 20 years ago. It was important then to chronicle a life rarely heard from. Now, it's all been rehashed and repackaged. Yawn.

This is exactly a problem with black America. There are kids too clueless or stoned to judge which presents the better role model, which always keeps them down and unable to succeed in the world.

sorry but that's racist. I don't know what you would do if you grew up in that environment. I think you would be as pissed like the NWA records sound, check eminem he's rappin bout the same thing but he's white so it aint' always the black youth

rap isn't bout degrating women,(btw they degrate blacks too by sayin N's instead of brothers and stuff) so stop winin bout that. Rap is about expressing yourself. People just don't understand. every thing they say in their lyrics is true, and has a mmeaning. hip hop nowadays is less good as in the 90's. But people just judge rap negatively because the hear Btch and stuff like that, and that's the only thing they hear

Hip hop, to me, is my passion. True it doesn't have to be the way it has become. But what can we do..
My main inspiration has been this christian group called "Agape". I have liked hip hop since I can remember. I don't live in the rural areas, I live in the countryside.
when I tell people, "I rap in church", their response is immediatly, "they let you do that?"
the simple answer is, yes they do, it's clean, it glorifies what my religion is to me and it's fun to perform. Hip Hop has had a positive influence on my life. I listen to artists like chris brown, kanye west, pitbull, Ne-yo, T-Pain, and so on.

the comment "all rap is really gay beacuse rap is 4 posers who hav half a brain.this is a fact people who listen to rap all dress alike u no the fubu and pants below thier ass rokers all look different" is a generalization by a person who does not know the facts.
My dress is normally button down shirts or polos, along with pants that are waist high with a belt. so for further comments, don't say those kind of generalizations.

Ok, first of all, there is too much conflict between rap and metal. I used to listen to rap hiphop etc, but i then turned to metal and such alike. I still do listen to the random Rn'b track, but i prefer metal. And i will tell you why...

firstly, i got bored of hip hop,rap etc because I felt that the lyrics were a bit repetitive and the sounds produced ie background music was jam-packed with these claps,if u get what i mean. In metal/rock, you get these beautiful riffs produces from the guitar, exhillarating drum solos, grooving bass lines,and comical keyboard signatures. ok, maybe metal has a few bands that SCREAM and growl their lyrics, but some bands actually sing their lyrics. if u get what i mean. heavy metal however produces a symphony of guitar/bass/drum/vocal/keyboard harmonics.the lyrics can sometimes be clean, and sometimes obscene...but what people havent realised is that there is such thing RAP METAL...YES people it exists. potrayed by Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, Slipknot, Rage Against The Machine...and so many others, please type 'rap metal' into wikipedia and see what you get...anyway, dont u think that planet Earth has too may conflicts. we need to make peace between music. do u see how we humans have even created a barrier between music. that is disgraceful!!! ALL in ALL, rap and metal is fine.Anyway, isnt music meant to be about expressing yourself,...... by the way, why is that i have only seen rap supporters attacking metal, especially in my school, but not here, OUTGOING NOTICE: metallers, do not attack rap culture, it is disrespectful.

however i do admit that rap musiq has developed this tendency to include shocking lyrics abt killing police, selling dope, getting shot for saying the wrong thing, abusing females for the sake of it, in metal it talks abt the mysteries of life...shouted,sung,growled,screamed,but still clean/(dirty in rap metal) lyrics.

to conclude, rap music has shocked me because it has violent themes and messages. recently, my best freind died from a gunshot becos he listened to the 'genious' called 50 Cent. wheres 50 gonna be, when youve gotten that bullet driven into ur head, or wheres DMX gonna be at, when the police close the jail dor on you for possessing a gun?

the message here being that you should not listen to the lyrics personally or take them to heart,

oh yh, to quote the author: '...-rap. Most of the death-metallers I have met don't exactly take the lyrical content to heart. They seem to prefer the aggression of the actual music rather than the words. In Europe... 'i totally agree with it.

Before you hate, take time to pick out ten things they have done wrong to you.

i love hip hop,think its the greatest music ever,gangsta rap has changed a lot,most of its lyrics are poorly written,if there were more of the first and prime rappers today like the rappers who created hip hop like 2Pac,Eminem,Bone Thugs N Harmony,Dr.Dre,Nas,Jay-Z,most people would have no problem with rap,the rappers we have today are saying the same things,most of them dont know nothing about music,bad artists such as Dem Franchise Boyz,Ja Rule,Kevin Federline,Soulja Boy,Lil Wayne and mostly dirty south or southern rappers aint got no talent, tell them 2 go acappella and they would suck,hip hop needs a hero 2 save it,because hip hop is gonna die soon,cus most of todays rappers are wankstas saying the same things
R.I.P. 2Pac, Makaveli Continues

I would like to say that I have teenage boys in my foster home and they have been deeply impressiond by the rap to the point that the one treats all women with the ut most disrespect. He is very rude and will argue for hours till he makes the women cry or till she leaves then he laughs at her. He hates all women athority and he will only listen to the rap that talks about women beeing B's and he calls all women B's he feels that it is a slang word he aloso uses I will kill you alot and he feels this to is a slang word. SO to me rap is a powerful way of teaching young children expecialy males how to look bad at all women. (what kind of life will these children have)? I can tell you the young man I have is 17 and on probation and he is one more terraristic threat (to women for that is who he gives them to this time a teacher in school). away from jail/or boot camp. So I would like to say that rap is effecting our children and there lives.Speeking from a voice of experiance. I do hope that I have not offended any one with this post but I speek as a theraputic foster Mom who has spent time with what these boys have become from the impression the rap leaves on them.

Hip Hop today isn't all bad, anyone who doubts that hip hop still exist as an art form should listen to Lupe Fiasco.I like to think I'm open minded so my posse is fairly diversed but all my metal head buddies and girlfriends that listen to country fell in love with Lupe.

I agree though that certain artist like Eminem and Marilyn Manson shouldn't be listened to by young impressionable children (cause we all now how few real parents are still out there).

I recently just revisted The Marshall Mathers LP, Eminem's darkest record. The last time I heard it(unedited) was in 4th grade.My mind is a bit more keen nowadays so I simply pay attention to the stellar rhyme scheme and meticulous description, but back then I wonder what I thought as listened to this man kill his wife on record?(unedited!!!)Luckily I do have real parents but take a kid who is only influenced by their peers and television(which is terrible these days by the way) and give him some music like that, there will be trouble. So uhh... to end the rambling..where are the real parents?!
Cheers

Hip Hop today isn't all bad, anyone who doubts that hip hop still exist as an art form should listen to Lupe Fiasco.I like to think I'm open minded so my posse is fairly diversed but all my metal head buddies and girlfriends that listen to country fell in love with Lupe.

I'm 16 now, and I agree that certain artist like Eminem and Marilyn Manson shouldn't be listened to by young impressionable children (cause we all now how few real parents are still out there).

I recently just revisited The Marshall Mathers LP, Eminem's darkest record. The last time I heard it(unedited) was in 4th grade.My mind is a bit more keen nowadays so I simply pay attention to the stellar rhyme scheme and meticulous description, but back then I wonder what I thought as listened to this man kill his wife on record?(unedited!!!)Luckily I do have real parents, but take a kid who is only influenced by their peers and television(which is terrible these days by the way) and give him some music like that, there will be trouble.Anyone who is so influenced by their music that they act on whatever an artist says has some serious issues within their foundation.(for example the foster child above) The most your music should do to influence your actions is effect your mood.

In conclusion anyone who's parents played an active role in establishing(not brainwashing)their kids with the correct set of discipline and morals(which is kind of the definition being a parent)should be able to think on their own.Everyone goes through trials and tribulations but the ones who shoot up schools are the ones without the support of parents.

Eminem actually says his mother didn't raise him and that guy is freggin twisted.Like his music and all, he's twisted.

I dont believe this is true.

Rap music and hip hop cannot be fully responsable for the youth's actions besides, rap started out as a method to express the frustration of those from the "hood" to trigger the government to react. Even though some rap songs are not all that great, many are such as "runaway love" by ludacris and "changes" by tupac. Songs that do convey a less mature message, the ones with much listeners, are what people want to hear, and if they didn't they wouldn't buy the cds or place them one their mp3s. Lastly, no one can judge the artists who sings these songs because you were never in their shoes and some of you have never even stepped foot in the "ghetto".Therefore, you do not know how rough their lives can be, you only know what the media presents you with, thus, you are ignorant. Also, a lot of the hip hop artists appreciate many other genres of music and are much more intelligent than you'd think.

RAP has to move in a different direction. It is. Up here in Seattle is a guy from the suburbs called STBG (Switches to Boy Genius). He takes on the battles of life and how to survive and progress. The rockers like the sound. As if Joy Division's producer did hip-hop. They call it prog-hop.

Very good and talented with a very introspective way of looking ane daling with things....

anyway, Rap has gotten a bad rap. Some of it justified. some of it trying to break out of the bad rap scene.

As a genre, it will evolve. a positive message seems to be coming. It will be good for your kids.

there is good stuff out there,
DM

most published or highly listened to rap does nothing but encourage pride in growing up to be a thug, rapist, druggy, or just flat out loser. detah metal black metal or goth metal revolve alot around violence but even those who do take this to heart will keep it to themselves. they dont care wether or not they are different for how they dress or what they listen to they take this to heart and live off of it according to how they see fit instead of what the gangster society sees fit. which makes them more human than any gangster who thinks hes tough cuz he travels ina pack and carrys a gun.

I think that rap music is not that bad. I mean if you listen to it and you know better than it shouldnt be a problem. And if your being all immature about the songs than I guess its just not for you.

with rap music though, because of its slang and violance that it portrays in the music it can affect the youngs education when its listened to on the radio and makes people from a young age grow up listening to all this violance making and rebelling that without knowing it their growing up influenced to do crimes withought realising what is happening to them. so not only is it ruining their education for them theyll end up going even more so down hill and ironically its not really their fault.

i think rap music has a passion and a meaning, i mean yes they talk about sex money and drugs but they also talk about life and what they have been through, and people this days are worrying about pushing rap off the market, what about meadal and punk rock and gothic music what about there music because the talk about sex and drugs and killing people and worshiping the devil and things like that so before you want to talk abot rap music look and think about the other music before you want to judge.