not a fan of the genre. the stuff that becomes "popular" is usually some lame piece of crap about how you're gonna superman dat hoe. no one gives a crap.

then there's those ones about poverty and stuff. thing is the point of a song is to get you to think. but they talk fast and just go on and on so you don't have time to think. seriously.

if somone came up to you and started talking super fast "ohmygodmylifesucksitssobadbecauseofdrugsiknowdonttakethembecausehteyruinedmylifeandmyfamily" you wouldn't think that is rap right? so how does that make rap different? if i threw a beat into a slurred speach about poverty it could be considered the next greatest rap.

yeah some people say "omg rock needs lots of people so that takes no skill"
misconseption. or some over defensive way to get back at the rap haters or something. when you say that you imply that anyone who plays in an orchestra has no skill. uh... hello they spent a long time learning music theory and how their instrument works i think that qualifies as skill even if they need a full sized orchestra to make the sound full. also saying that implies that you think britney spears has skill. uh well shes a solo artist right? like rappers? and its not like shes used a guitar or drums. like rappers. so how does that make her different?

then there's the rant "it takes a lot of skill to make the beat blah blah" if you can explain how it is done, and ive seen people explain it... then its probably not a life and death struggle that you describe it to be. also youre saying that coming up with a beat is incredibly hard and impossible... but learning how to keep a beat with drums and make them entertaining to listen to also takes time and skill. so does learning how to play guitar and make it sound entertaining. when you make coming up with a freaking beat sound like a life and death struggle youre making it seem like actually learning an instrument takes no skill.

and please dont describe writing rap as a life and death struggle. how does writting rap make it different then songs of other genres?

bottom line: lets not get too defensive about our favorite genres here. if underground rap is good and mainstream rap is bad then who cares about what the mainstream thinks? dont blame them and call them white rednecks either. you just sound stupid. and like you're trying to sound like a black person. unless you are but if you are you still sound stupid.

besides if someone hears a few crappy songs why would anyone want to go further into a genre? i mean ive heard crap from dances and decided rap took no skill. then i got curious, looked up rap on wikipedia, found out about the stuff from the 70's listened to that and decided "well this is different from the mainstream crap people try to sell just because they make money"

sure rap still isn't my genre, but its not as bad as i first thought. but thats because i took time to listen to something that most people like me wouldn't bother. and don't blame them.

Rap is a music genre.Its hated by many people that believe in the stereo type that only blacks make rap and its always about shooting cops, drugs, money and sex. Which leads to another stereo type that says all blacks like rap...
1.Not all blacks like rap.
2.Rap's not only for Blacks.
3.Not all rap is about money drugs and sex...
4.Not all people who like rap are black
People who don't like rap, usually say
"Rap is crap that has artists like 50 Cent."
These are people who know nothing about rap, and judge it by what they see on TV.
If you REALLY know what rap is then you'd know 50 Cent sucks balls and isn't a good rapper at all.See the people who like rap, and actually understand rap know 50 Cent is not a good rapper.Rap is poetry, despite what any other person says. Rap is like poetry with attitude,poetry with a bit of gangsterism. Look at Mos Def. That is a real rapper. Somebody like 50 Cent or Cassidy has nothing on somebody like Mos Def.
Most people say that rap degrades women. I don't really think so, because people need to realize..
A bitch is a bitch.
A hoe is a hoe.
A whore is a whore.
And a lady is a lady.
Rap has something called a beat to it, something that sounds catchy and something you can dance to.For instance Tupac's California Love is something you can dance to. And anybody that tries to say thats not a good song...well isnt there a rock song that goes "I've got 2 tickets to paradise, pack your bags we'll leave tonight."
Some people say rap...

I will say this first. I listen to punk rock and not rap. the rap i have seen was on mtv or vh1 and therefore cannot judge it. However, those of you who are judging it need to listen to at least 5 minutes of 6 differnt rap artists before you can say anything about it. if you still hate it after doing this then shut up, keep your thoughts to yourself, and be tolerant. just like in punk rock most of the stuff that is played on mtv and vh1 is PROBABLY media garbage. the music that is underground probably has more meaning to it. for those of you that say rap is only about having sex with women, and shooting people than you you haven't heard other good rap songs(eminem's mockingbird and many others). So before you judge anything look into it not just the what you see from its cover.

75% of the word "crap"

A form of music in which a person swiftly rhymes poetry, over a beat. A subgenre of pop music. Rap is mostly influenced by hip-hop or hip hop. And this is to all the people who can't stand rap because they've never actually heard real rap:
There is no rule that talent is needed to make a song. Though talent IS needed to make rap, all of you racists just listen to a little bit of gangsta rap (i.e. G-Unit, N.W.A.) and assume that rap is all about gats, hoes, money, pimps, and gangstas! Ok you people are abosutely correct! Well....partially correct, you are correct when you say that rap is just about all about gats, hoes, money, pimps, and gangstas. *NEWS FLASH* That is NOT rap! That is GANGSTA RAP! There is a difference. If you go and listen to a rapper that was never born and raised in the urban streets, never been a gangsta, then you won't hear all that shit! Try Kanye West! Or Eminem! Even 2Pac! Though 2Pac called himself a "G", he wrote poems about love, he read books, he wasn't stupid! In high school he was an excellent actor; he was a thespian. 2Pac showed lots of love in his songs, and he WAS a gangsta. And he is the most influencial emcee in hip-hop history. Think of that. I don't really care how much the fuck you want to diss rap, as much as you classical rock people want to! Rap is music, and no one gives a fuck about what all of you people sa...

see also Hip-Hop

A genre of music spawned in the early 70's in various ghettos throughout the U.S. The name allegedly derived from people saying "That's a rap!" after performing with a DJ. A rap can usually consist of ryhmes and a beat, although sometimes done acapella. Often accused of being about nothing but sex and drugs (not dissimilar to metal), usually depicts daily life in the black ghettos or other assorted issues faced by the poorest of us.

Shittiest excuse for "music" ever created. Nobody knows why people even listen to it. Played at "parties," especially at parties thrown by some of my older cousins because they think they're "cool".

contrary to most of the shit posted here, i have supplied the ACTUAL definition:
Rapping is one of the elements of hip hop as well as the distinguishing feature of most hip hop music. It is a form of rhyming lyrics delivered rhythmically over a musical backdrop of sampling, scratching and mixing by DJs. Originally, rapping was called MCing and accompanied DJing.

Origins
Rapping (as a self-conscious artistic school) began as a variation on the toasting found in reggae, funk and dub music, mixed with influences from jazz-related performance poetry (Langston Hughes's album Weary Blues being an important example; the Beats also notable), radio DJ patter, and the tradition of playing the dozens. Among other predecessors were talking blues records and the work of artists such as James Brown and Parliament. The original rappers probably can be said to have been The Last Poets and Gil Scott-Heron with their recordings in the latter 1960s and earliest 1970s (such as Scott-Heron's famous "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" and "Whitey on The Moon"), but, slightly later, MCs (from "Master of Ceremonies") would improvise rhymes over the beats created by dancehall and club DJs. Early raps were frequently merely a sequence of boasts, or attempts to upstage the other MCs. See roots of hip hop music for earlier forms that also contributed to rapping.

The first contemporary hip hop song rele...