Rap sucks. period.

[jnd94]

Ugh, I hate rap. There is no talent involved, and there really isnt any creativity in todays hip hop/rap. ex. lyrics from "this is why Im hot"(which sux) "Im hot cuz Im fly, you aint cuz you not". In my opinion, rock is exponentially better. comments?

[AK_iceman]

Have you ever tried rapping? It's harder than it looks.

[hecter]

There is some good rap out there. It's just hard to find. The mainstream stuff is crap though, and the stuff that you will generally find at your HMV, Futureshop and Music World is going to be crap (most likely). I like some rap-esque things, but as a rule of thumb, rock is infinitely better than rap.

[Guiscard]

Ugh, I hate rap. There is no talent involved, and there really isnt any creativity in todays hip hop/rap. ex. lyrics from "this is why Im hot"(which sux) "Im hot cuz Im fly, you aint cuz you not". In my opinion, rock is exponentially better. comments?

Right, first off a big 'f*ck you' and now I'll try and find the post I made a while ago detailing why someone who said basically the same as you is completely and utterly wrong in their assessment of the music I DJ, the tracks I produce, the rappers I record, the shows I go to and the scene i rep.

[Guiscard]

Found it:

What bothers me about rap is these three things:
a) it always seems to come down to "a pissing contest" between the "talker" (I refuse to call them singers!) and his competition.
b) for some reason it seems to be convincing white kids they are cool if they pretend they are ghetto boys....(don't those poor people have it hard enough without you twits trying to steal their "thunder"?)
c) listen closely to the background music. From the stuff I've heard....90% of the music is either "swiped" from old songs, or simply a combination of old songs. The musicians can probably create their own stuff...but apparently that's not the point.
But..that being said.....to each his own.....just please please please don't inflict that crap on me unsolicited. My old quad stereo can still fire back. Don't make me bring out the ZZ Top and Bob Seger!

This deserves a proper response:

a) No-one calls them singers unless they actually sing. They're rappers. They rap. Self-promotion and one-upmanship is certainly a major part of Rap music, but it isn't the only part and it has a big place in the scene. When you're an up and coming MC you ply your trade at MC battles by being the wittiest, most intelligent, fastest and most insulting rapper in the room. You've got to be able to make up 8 bars of freestyle basically on the spot, often based around topics given to you seconds before. Its intensely hard to be the best. I spend a lot of time in the scene and have recorded tracks with good rappers and mediocre ones. As I said before, this is only ONE aspect. There are plenty of rap tracks which don't have a single diss in them. Many tracks provide brilliant social commentary, are intensely political or provoke a stark atmosphere through brilliant lyrical imagery. If you want examples I can provide them.

b)Sure there is a significant aspect of middle class white kids acting 'ghetto' and all that. It is a bit of a blight on the scene, but more often than not those kids are only into really commercial pop-rap. Nobody takes them seriously. They're not stealing anyone's thunder. I'm white, and probably lower middle class / working class, but in the UK the scene isn't quite as racial as in the US. I've certainly faced racial slurs and disses regarding my colour as a producer and DJ but underground hip-hop generally judges you on the quality of your tracks rather than the amount of melanin in your skin.

c) The 'background music' you speak of is my passion. I create tracks for rappers to record over or as instrumentals. You're talking about sampling, which again is undeniably a huge part of hip-hop culture. Sampling is about taking something brilliant and re-working it to create something entirely new. It takes hours of work to create even a basic loop, and I have a huge amount of respect for the guys that spend hours and hours digging in crates of old vinyl in junk shops to discover obscure old funk records with great drumming that you really can't replicate today. Then they take those drum parts and spend hours cleaning them up, cutting them into hits, adding in other loops and hits. Its taken me years to learn even the basics. Sampling isn't even an expected part of hip-hop, though. You can do perfectly well making completely original tracks, even using live bands (The Roots use an entirely live band and record through intense jamming sessions).

[jnd94]

Ugh, I hate rap. There is no talent involved, and there really isnt any creativity in todays hip hop/rap. ex. lyrics from "this is why Im hot"(which sux) "Im hot cuz Im fly, you aint cuz you not". In my opinion, rock is exponentially better. comments?

Right, first off a big 'f*ck you' and now I'll try and find the post I made a while ago detailing why someone who said basically the same as you is completely and utterly wrong in their assessment of the music I DJ, the tracks I produce, the rappers I record, the shows I go to and the scene i rep.

I was assuming that we were all talking about mainstream US rap, but I guess Im wrong.

[n8freeman]

i personally do not like rap

i think the mainstreem rap music is awful


like 50 cent and the game, whoever is big now idk
their rap is crap


but the older rap, the original stuff is actually ok


and freestyle rap i think is pretty damn good
it takes talent



there is some good rap out there, it just isnt mainstreem




the reason i like rock better though is because of the music
IMO less then have of what makes music good is the lyrics
i love rock because of the amazing guitar riffs, solos, etc


basically, old school rap is alright, and it takes talent
mainstreem rap blows chunks
and classic rock(1960s-1980s) like seger, zeppelin, rush etc. are just hands down the best

[Guiscard]

Ugh, I hate rap. There is no talent involved, and there really isnt any creativity in todays hip hop/rap. ex. lyrics from "this is why Im hot"(which sux) "Im hot cuz Im fly, you aint cuz you not". In my opinion, rock is exponentially better. comments?

Right, first off a big 'f*ck you' and now I'll try and find the post I made a while ago detailing why someone who said basically the same as you is completely and utterly wrong in their assessment of the music I DJ, the tracks I produce, the rappers I record, the shows I go to and the scene i rep.

I was assuming that we were all talking about mainstream US rap, but I guess Im wrong.

Why? The title of the thread isn't 'Mainstream US rap sucks. period.' - If it was I'd be inclined to agree with you.

[Guiscard]

i personally do not like rap

i think the mainstreem rap music is awful


like 50 cent and the game, whoever is big now idk
their rap is crap


but the older rap, the original stuff is actually ok


and freestyle rap i think is pretty damn good
it takes talent



there is some good rap out there, it just isnt mainstreem




the reason i like rock better though is because of the music
IMO less then have of what makes music good is the lyrics
i love rock because of the amazing guitar riffs, solos, etc


basically, old school rap is alright, and it takes talent
mainstreem rap blows chunks
and classic rock(1960s-1980s) like seger, zeppelin, rush etc. are just hands down the best

Don't worry, the qualities of old school rap are still there in the underground. Unfortunately you just don't get to hear them.

[I GOT SERVED]

Why? The title of the thread isn't 'Mainstream US rap sucks. period.' - If it was I'd be inclined to agree with you.

Firstly, I believe, can be universally agreed upon.


Secondly, there are some excellent artists out there, but you don't have to look. I could name off quite a few groups that I know of if you want me to.

[Spuzzell]

There's an Irish comedian called Dylan Moran who's BRILLIANT.

He had some words about rap.

"Rap is just.. Well, ask a 4 year old what he wants and he'll say "I wanna bike and an ice-cream and a bigger bike than the boy next door and more ice-cream and a dog and some juice and I wanna have it NOW NOW NOW you stupid poo-head." That's a rap record."


Brilliant. Because it's true

[unriggable]

There's an Irish comedian called Dylan Moran who's BRILLIANT.

He had some words about rap.

"Rap is just.. Well, ask a 4 year old what he wants and he'll say "I wanna bike and an ice-cream and a bigger bike than the boy next door and more ice-cream and a dog and some juice and I wanna have it NOW NOW NOW you stupid poo-head." That's a rap record."


Brilliant. Because it's true

sigh...

Some rap is good, but for the most part it sucks.

[Evil Pope]

Many tracks provide brilliant social commentary, are intensely political or provoke a stark atmosphere through brilliant lyrical imagery. If you want examples I can provide them.

Care to name a few?
Honestly, i've never heard a rap song thats not about partying, sex, drugs, violence, or about how much money they have while at the same time they're ghetto. I don't really care too much for that subject matter, nor is rap in general appealing to me.
Maybe thats because I don't really care for it and haven't heard more than whats forced upon me during daily life--Radio, loud people rapping to themselves near me when i'm standing outside, parties, etc.
Now I wont deny the talent, as freestyle requires you to be intelligent and quick if its good at all.. I can honestly say I respect that.. I sure as hell couldn't do that if my life depended on it.

In the end i'd take rock or metal, anything like that, over rap.. But to say that all rap in general is shit is kinda close-minded.

[unriggable]

METAL?! That's just about death, not much variety there either.

[Evil Pope]

METAL?! That's just about death, not much variety there either.

Yeah.. I guess I sound like an ass saying I don't like the subject matter of rap and then saying that I like metal and such. I guess its not THAT different as far as that goes, nor is there much variety in it. Yet its much more appealing to me as far as it sounds. Just my oppinion.

[hecter]

METAL?! That's just about death, not much variety there either.

Not necessarily.

[Spuzzell]

I found Dylan!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCjuIkVKlW8

Hilarious! Rap stuff starts at 3.20, but the whole clip is brilliant.

[unriggable]

METAL?! That's just about death, not much variety there either.

Not necessarily.

Exactly. Rap isnt always about sex drugs w/e. If you know the genre well enough (and you don't listen to mainstream bullshit) you'd know that.

[hecter]

You obviously didn't read my post then. I didn't say that.

[luns101]

I can't stand today's rap either...there was a time when rap music was a lot better, but of course I'm showing my age on this one as well as my bias.



Yes, I liked BEDTIME STORY. Sue me!

[unriggable]

You obviously didn't read my post then. I didn't say that.

*smack*

[The Gunslinger]

i agree with the majority of posters on here. mainstream rap sucks and its almost always about bitches and hoes, bling, repping da hood, ect. ect. but if you dig deeper and go into the actual culture of rap and hip-hop, idk say the bronx or something you could probably find some good rap with a purpose. Rap takes skill. period. have you tried rapping? i cant do it w/o making an ass out of myself. most people who rap love all kinds of music and are just as passionate about it as other genres. with that said i do perfer rock over rap. Audioslave>>>>all

[hecter]

You obviously didn't read my post then. I didn't say that.

*smack*

What was that for!? I said, basically, that mainstream sucks in my first post on this thread!

[dwightschrute]

Ugh, I hate rap. There is no talent involved, and there really isnt any creativity in todays hip hop/rap. ex. lyrics from "this is why Im hot"(which sux) "Im hot cuz Im fly, you aint cuz you not". In my opinion, rock is exponentially better. comments?

its terrible i no

[Dancing Mustard]

Guiscard is right, Rap is awesome. For real.

Yo yo yo check one two, on the mic up in this bitch:

I'm freestyle battling to prove rap's cool,
Hardcore beats from the mighty old-school,
I'm well hot and I think you're not,
Shoot you with my AK and let you rot,
I max in the crib with all my ice and bitches,
Did community service but didn't dig ditches,
I roll up in the hood with a fat cadillac,
My rims all spin while I play this track,
G-G-G-G-G-G-G-G-G-G-G-G-Unit!
With my semi-automatic I fill you full of holes,
My homeboys are Asians, Africans and Poles,
Repping this shit from the mighty westside,
Jump in car and I'll take you for a ride,
Pimping ain't easy but I do it all day,
Sell you these ho's then take your Mon-ay (Shut up, I'm working on it)
I got up in the club then got up in your grill,
Poured my drink on your feet and watched it spill,
Went and bought another cup of Henesy,
Thought of my brother in the penitentiary,
Danced a whole lot and did some cocaine,
Now I have a chicken-nugget sized brain,
Write these tracks and earn some bling,
I always rap and I never sing,
Now I'm done and at the end of this rap,
DJ DJ play that track!

Yeah Break it down!