Is Rap Music Really Music?

[Ghengis John]

I say no. I define music very simply as something having a musical melody. Sung, played, strummed, doesn't matter, as long as it's present. Speaking quickly does not a melody make. Thus rap isn't music.

Which is not to say there's no rap out there worth listening to; on the contrary, some is both worthwhile and socially relevant. However, when the vast majority of it is about how cool it is to be a criminal, or to have hot bitches and big TVs, I think society as a whole can do without that.

I don't really care for rap, but that doesn't mean I don't consider it music. And yes as you say there are rappers out there doing legitimate, artistic work and grappling with social issues.

Take Sage Francis for example:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcMJ5QD4r60
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VL0mB8ILeo

The vast majority of movies released are not art. That doesn't mean movies can't be art. I don't look at the Zack Snyders, the Ewe Bolls and the Micheal Bayes and say suddenly Stanly Kubrick, Akira Kurosawa or Alfred Hitchcock are not artists. I mean the vast majority of people are shallow and stupid. It only goes to figure the vast majority of what they produce will be crap, Hunter S Thompson estimated it was something like 90% of everything made that was crap. Like Lot, I'll look to the few as opposed to the many when I pass judgment.

 

[vrbtny]

Rock AND Rap

Hollywood Undead. Go find it on utube.

 

[TriggerUnhappy]

I suppose so, though I'm not the biggest fan. I do enjoy hip-hop though:
<youtube=3Z_Ys3BO_4M>

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

It sure is. I don't like that particular kind of music, but then I don't like Country either.

 

[Max Goldfine]

Ok, i understand where the confusion is coming from. first, lets think about what music really is. There are so many different forms of music it is hard to tell what is and what isn't valid. we have Metal, Pop, Jazz, Classical, Electro, Prog, R&B, Rock, and many others. plus, each catagorie has almost an unlimited amount of sub catigories (Electro house, Heavy metal, Acid jazz...) each catagorie is just as valid as the next. and then there is the genre in question, hip hop. If you define music simply as a collection of soundwaves that have order and consistancy than yes, rap is definetly music. it may not always have harmony and melody but more often than not it does. If the voice is an instrament than why cant language be used the same way. if you listen to band like "The Mars Volta" you might notice that the lyrics usually dont make sense, however, the words that Cedric uses just SOUND good together. he uses the cadence of words, and how different emphasis's in different places can make your ear focus on different parts of the song. He uses the english language (and sometimes spanish) as an instrument. Poetry has always been very close to music. They share a lot of the samee terminology (Stanza, Meter, Verse...) and all hip hop is, is a merging of poetry into music. some might say that the earliest rap song ever written is "Subteranian Homesick Blues" by Bob Dylan. in that song he doesnt hit a single note that is condusive to the key of the song. Rather, he just sort of speaks the lyrics. sound familiar?

 

[CarpathianMuffin]

Not in the traditional sense it isn't. Though the best of it flows far better than other forms of music, and has a strong rhythm.

 

[Ham_authority95]

"Rap" denotes a spoken poetry style, so it isn't always music.

"Hip-Hop",(which is the proper term for what this thread is about), however, has a backing musical track with rhythm and melody, so Hip-Hop, indeed, is music.

The more you know...

 

[Ham_authority95]

The VAST MAJORITY OF ANYTHING IS CRAP!!!!
And listen to De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest

Fuck yeah! I was waiting until someone posted some Quest.

 

[Ham_authority95]

I hope you realise this is very racist.

What? You can't be silly enough to suggest that not liking Hip-Hop as a musical style makes someone racist...

 

[TheLaofKazi]

When rappers rap they tend to have a pacing this pacing is based upon the instruments in the background if they keep in sync with this you create a sort of tune which can be some thing a kin to chanting...but at the end of the day your definition of music is simply your opinion...

Jean-Jacques Nattiez summarizes the relativist, post-modern viewpoint: "The border between music and noise is always culturally defined?which implies that, even within a single society, this border does not always pass through the same place; in short, there is rarely a consensus ... By all accounts there is no single and intercultural universal concept defining what music might be."

that implies that any thing can be dubbed not music...

Yeah, pretty much this. The sound of me typing this on my keyboard could be considered music. Humans can find pretty much any sound musical, appealing or interesting in some way.

And even by more conventional standards, there is plenty of hip hop out there that is great.

 

[Sejs Cube]

Yes, rap is music.

I'm sorry to tell you that your preferences do not define what constitutes a particular art form.

Rap is music. Tuvan throat singing is music. Structured hand-farting can be music. Banging around random objects from a junkyard can be music.

 

[Shoggoth2588]

It has a beat and uses music be it original or, in the background. The messages (be they relevant or not) are lyrical. Therefore, it is music. Just a genre I dislike.

 

[RYjet911]

Rap is not music. Rap is the style of singing, i.e. focusing more on beat and flow of words rather than pitch.

Hip hop is the general style of music which a lot of raps are done to, although you get them to all sorts of things, from grime, industrial, drum and bass and dubstep to stuff like classical music.

So in a way you are correct, but know that rap is not a genre of music, it's a type of 'singing'. Plus I don't understand why you are trying to make out that rap is bad because it "isn't music". You just dislike it. I like it. Many others dislike it. Many others like it.

Get over it.

 

[superbatranger]

I say if people enjoy listening to rap, then it's probably music. I know the logic in that sentence is somewhat flawed, but I'm sticking to my guns.

 

[Alucard832]

This isn't to shit on rap and everyone that listens to it, but to show that it simply does not fit the definition of music. There is no melody, no singing, no instruments, etc. The only instrument-like sounds form a beat, and that just doesn't cut it. Talking is not singing as any elementary school music teacher will point out. And yea, the subject matter being 90% about crime, drugs, and bitches does not help rap's case. You can be entertained by it all you want, but don't try to pass it off a music.

I would personally listen to Justin Beiber before any rap song, so I can't wait until all the kids and general public get over this whole genre.

 

[MegaManOfNumbers]

The Pokemon Rap.

I has win.

 

[Kagim]

Rap is using an audio based medium to express some form of idea or thought or emotion.

Therefore it is music.

You don't like it? That's awesome, opinions kick ass.

That doesn't mean it is no longer music.

It just means you don't like it.

 

[Chaos Bringer]

Music is like candy, you throw the rappers away.

 

[IAmTheVoid]

I used to hate rap. I judged the entire genre by what I saw on the radio- gangsta rap nonsense, one-phrase songs, no actual rapping.

I am still atoning for my sins. I got introduced to Aesop Rock by my forum and I've never looked back. Seriously, immerse yourself in the music through the underground and past greats (Public Enemy I'd say is a good starting point, but ol' Aesop Rock got me started. Look up 'Daylight' and tell me it isn't a beautiful song.)

Don't be so quick to judge. Like some genres, what's actually good isn't showcased very well. Dig deeper. That's all I've got to say.

 

[IAmTheVoid]

This isn't to shit on rap and everyone that listens to it, but to show that it simply does not fit the definition of music. There is no melody, no singing, no instruments, etc. The only instrument-like sounds form a beat, and that just doesn't cut it. Talking is not singing as any elementary school music teacher will point out. And yea, the subject matter being 90% about crime, drugs, and bitches does not help rap's case. You can be entertained by it all you want, but don't try to pass it off a music.

I would personally listen to Justin Beiber before any rap song, so I can't wait until all the kids and general public get over this whole genre.

The subject of a lot of rock and roll was drugs and women (crime to a lesser extent). Take Led Zeppelin's "Living Loving Maid". Take Motley Crue's "Dr. Feelgood". Velvet Underground, "Venus In Furs". Hell, "Breaking the Law" by Judas Priest. All bands and songs that I like, FYI.

I'm not going to tell you that you SHOULD like something, but you should at least acknowledge it has artistic merit in the form of music. Rap can be as thought provoking and deep as any other musical medium. Just like gaming has games devoid of any artistic merit, you have games which are powerful and resonating. Don't tar the genre with one gigantic brush.