Do you consider Rap to be "real" music?

Question

WhiteSteve · Accepted Answer

Absolutely. It’s my favorite genre, personally. Music is any kind of harmonious noise being created, so it’s indisputable that it falls under that broad label. It’s not required that a technical instrument to be played or for vocals to sung in a traditional sense to be valid and of good quality. Honestly, I feel like a lot of dislike for rap is more based in cultural prejudice and/or moralists concerned about the content of the lyrics than the sound itself. You don’t have to like it, the content or the sound, but don’t tell me it isn’t music. Many people get very wrapped up in music being a key defining feature of their entire personality, along with the overall cultural environment they feel most comfortable in, and I think a lot of them just can’t be non-competitive about it, or not just be plain old disdainful of others who just don’t happen to live exactly the same as they do.

One thing I never understand is when people say “I can’t even understand what they’re saying!”, because I find rapped lyrics much easier to clearly hear than sung lyrics, which are often distorted. The only trouble you might have is with hip-hop slang, or even regional slang personal to the rapper in question. Sometimes I’ll hear something for the first time, or they’ll reference a person from their personal life, or maybe a street or neighborhood name, and then you have to kind of just infer the meaning or look up the lyrics. I remember in California Love, for a very well-known example, 2Pac has a line where he says “let ‘em recognize from Long Beach to Rosecrans”…I think I was hearing “Long Beach to Rose Ranch” back when it first came out, because I was 3,000 miles from LA and had never been there, so I didn’t know Rosecrans Avenue was a thing. I think I thought Rose Ranch sounded like a rich town, so he was just being like “from the ‘hood to the suburbs”, but really it was just “from one ‘hood to another ‘hood a few cities away.” But more often than not, I understand everything that was said after a few listens. There are rock songs I’ve listened to forever and I still couldn’t tell you what the song is all about or know all the lyrics. Depends on the vocalist and the surrounding noise made by the band, but like…does anyone know the words that Slipknot’s guy is singing? Lmfao. Robert Plant from Led Zeppelin, I’ve never understood him too well. It’s hit or miss. With rappers, I guess the current “mumble rap” is hard to decipher because it’s rapid-fire, or older guys like Busta Rhymes or Twista who were known for speed-rapping. But most hip-hop is very understandable, in my opinion.

Listen to the second verse of this song and tell me rap is on some dumb shit, you’ll be lying…

https://www.youtube.com/embed/klZNvJArVSE

“Cole World, the heat’ll blast through your speaker/ He the Last of Mohicans, no weaklings last in my sneakers/ N——a want me on a song, he gon’ see the wrath of the Reaper/ I’m probably gon’ go to hell if Jesus ask for a feature/ I’m higher than n——as and don’t need a bag of the reefer/ Some see the glass as empty, I see a glass full of ether/ Collectin’ his bread in mass like he a Catholic preacher/ Just to count a n——a cash you might need a calculus teacher/Eureka, Einstein on the brink of/the Theory of Relativity, really no (know) MC equal🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

I mean, good lord, what else do you want from a lyricist? The ACTUAL Theory of Relativity?

As a final comment, to all the detractors out there…. there is absolutely nothing more cringe that I have experienced in my life than the one-millionth person who says “rap is crap”, with this smirk on their face like they just said something original and clever. It wasn’t funny the first time someone said it back in the 80s, and it hasn’t gotten any more funny in the 40 years since. I could literally die of second-hand embarrassment every time, lmfao.

Amuere · Accepted Answer

I don't know why it wouldn't be considered "real" music any more or less than any other genre. I personally love rap/trap as a style of expression just like I enjoy rock & metal.

I don't like country or gossip, but I'm not conceited enough to belittle them by saying they're "not real music" I just don't vibe with them. It takes a certain amount of hatred and disrespect to label an entire genre as just noise.

msmissydc · Accepted Answer

Rap is such a big group of "music". Not sure if I would consider the majority music. At least I would some consider poetry because thats what it is actually closer to. The beats on the other hand are music and the poetry is just added. Not everyone that is a "rapper" makes peotry and not everyone who makes "beats" makes music. Its more a case by case thing for me.

Little_Bumblebee · Accepted Answer

Yeah, it's real music. I hardly enjoy it. It's just not for me. But it's music.

LiamJHayden · Answer

Most of what I hear of modern Rap is computer generated music with lyrical content that is trite. A lot of the older stuff took genuine talent and had interesting, story telling, real life lyrical content. Not that the earlier style is dead, but like good modern rock, a lot of it is probably by people who are playing locally and will never make it big.

Siri137 · Answer

No, it doesn't even come close. It's just a cacophonous jangle of bells and whistles, silly rhymes and autistic screeching.

NathanDavis · Answer

a lot of it is just trash it is still music, yes... and any educated musician could show you about it, lol

Nikki1989 · Answer

95% of rap can be made on a laptop using a preset on a computer program. It takes zero talent and has no real artistic value.

clampfan101 · Answer

Real? Yes.
Good? Depends on the song just like any other genre. Unfortunately rap seems heavily filled with songs of sexual desires and/or including lots of foul language. I personally would not call such songs good.

Angxl3120 · Answer

Yes it is, most of the raps are better than normal music nowadays

TheSpaceGnome · Answer

Nope.  Music is what instruments do. Rap in most cases is devoid or minimalist with instruments.

OddBeMe · Answer

Of course. By Hegelian logic it’s real because massive amounts of people think it is.  We all have preference but we need to be able to agree on basic facts.

syncheart · Answer

I got to say yes, but it's one of the lowest forms of music.

KostasKouvalis · Answer

Some people aren't gonna like my answer, but honestly, NO. HIP HOP, YES. But not rap.

Anonymous · Answer

But it doesn’t belong in the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame.

Anonymous · Answer

Of course it's real music. I don't listen to rap, but music doesn't even need words at all to be music. It’s art using sound. That’s all music is.

purplepoppy · Answer

It's neither music not poetry.

exitseven · Answer

Yes, but I never saw anyone dance to it.

Anonymous · Answer

It is the music of Satan...

Lottifan · Answer

No. It’s crap music.

riverrat3 · Answer

More akin to spoken word

idkkkk24 · Answer

sometimes

jahaims · Answer

Duh.

Do you consider Rap to be "real" music?

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