<p>You think reggae is somehow less degrading than rap? Reggae music has some of the most degrading lyrics out there (as well as some of the most uplifting). Reggae culture is extremely homophobic (some songs go as far as to actually advocate killing gays) and the gun talk goes just as far as any hardcore rap record. Not all reggae music is Bob Marley and happy fun talk.</p>
<p>You want to talk about degrading? How bout MTV actively banning black artists from getting their videos played back in the 80s? What about record labels having white artists like Pat Boone sanitize black R&B songs in the 50s to protect America's white ears? How about rock bands that jacked hooks and entire songs from black blues artists and gave them no credit? Now that's degrading.</p>
<p>Somehow rap is a bastion of all bad things in the world and rock and country and R&B and all this music out there has never referenced any of that at all. Nope, I've never heard a rock song talk about drugs or alcohol and getting loaded and being a junkie. Nope, I've never listened to a country song that talks about shooting someone. Nope, I've never heard a rock song degrade a woman in any way. Oh wait, yes I have.</p>
<p>Look I love all kinds of music. I dig Snoop, I dig the Beatles, I dig Johnny Cash, I dig Outkast, I dig Hendrix, I dig GNR, Peter Tosh, Gnarls Barkley, lots of music. If you don't like rap, rock, country, whatever, that's cool. All of us have different tastes and that's cool. But dissing something you don't like and don't really understand is just dumb. And yes there is a lot of ignorant stuff in today's rap music. It doesn't mean that lots of people can't actually separate real life from what's said in a song.</p>
<p>The reggae music I listen to,buddy. Which is not degrading and ignorant. </p>
<p>I don't listen to alot of things that send out negativity.</p>
<p>Well at least I try to. :p</p>
<p>Smart black people like Larry Elder, Walter Williams, Thomas Sowell, Bill Cosby agree. These are the men that black kids should look up to, not worthless scumbags like Ludacris and Tupac.
Smart black people like Larry Elder, Walter Williams, Thomas Sowell, Bill Cosby agree. These are the men that black kids should look up to, not worthless scumbags like Ludacris and Tupac.</p>
<p>Interesting choices You never find, say, a Barack Obama, an Oprah Winfrey on these lists do you? Wonder why...</p>
<p>How are Ludacris and 2Pac "worthless scumbags?"</p>
<p>In the case of the latter, you can't possibly think that all of Pac's work was negative. It was 1/2 and 1/2. He exalted women in one song, just to turn around and degrade them in another. And then hed be back lauding them again
He spoke of changes ("we need to change the way we live"), but ended up going out like so many before. I think Pac is and forever will be the most fascinating rapper because he was so aware of what was wrong with him and his communityhe not only articulated it but he embodied itand yet he was still unable to break free from where he came from. But maybe when you grow up in a world where you're considered a "sell out" for going downtown to learn classical music, Pacs end was inevitable. Not to mention the other extreme in the black role models you listed.</p>
<p>*Samuel L Jackson refused to be in a movie with 50 Cent because L thought that 50 Cent was a bad influence on black kids. *</p>
<p>Jackson should talk. He's made a living being a stereotypical brotha but for some reason people like him. Wonder why...</p>
<p>Shame on all you racist, white conservatives degrading rap! And then you try to come back and come up with all these examples of degrading lyircs. And TUPAC - how dare you? Tupac is one of the fathers of hip hop. You have no right to talk about rap when you dont know anything about it. Watching that MTV doesn't make you a rap listener - so you dont know! You dont know about hip hop. and whoever said the comment about people with sagging pants in the prison courtyard is incorrect, you are ignorant about the whole struggle. Many of the people on the street aren't there because they want to! Many of them were raped as children, parents left them, money issues. SOme are prostitutes, hoes, etc. - but do you really know their story. You have no right to judge anybody. Only god judges! Unless you are some atheist that is racist. You can't judge anybody you don't know the story to. And not all hip hop is demoralizing, first of all, you are white! So nobody is offending you. Wait, except all the racist white people that give no opportunities to blacks and other minorities! This is the way some blacks express themselves. It's straight from the heart! The freestyle, etc! You don't know hip hop - you're basing your opinion off a few songs you heard on that white-run station of MTV or whatever. Do your research before you come on here calling rap trash!</p>
<p>Just because rap doesn't appeal to you is not the reason you should call rap garbage. Rap is one of the biggest genres today around the world - whites, blacks, asians, hispanics, all listen. From all ages - 6-60! So you're just one of the few that live in the redneck country that still believes in the idea of one race.</p>
<p>and whoever criticized ludacris is wrong. ludacris has many charities bringing many black children out the hood. you are ignorant - research! he has donated to many black inner-city schools, things such as computers and books! So i guess this stupid rapper is not doing anything good. </p>
<p>YOU SHOULD SHUT THE **** UP</p>
<p>Reading through this thread...I am surprised at some of the comments. I don't understand where some people come off saying "rap is crap". Writing off an entire genre of music like that is simply ridiculous. People...you do realize that the entire genre does go beyond what is shown on BET and MTV? I know people on CC would BITE my head off if I made a generalization such as the "rock music" shown on MTV is representative of all rock music, hence all rock music sucks. </p>
<p>I think it might be best that people actually look up the origins of rap/hip-hop before they go spouting negativity about it. At least be respectful of someone else's choice of music...</p>
<p>IMO, reggae has its moments, just like McGizzle pointed out. Oh...yes it does. The piece of info about homophobia for some songs is true as well...I'm not surprised really. Still, just because some individuals choose reggae to spout their crap doesn't mean that the whole genre is useless and without meaning.</p>
<p>I'm sayin.... rock stars, jazz musicians, famous musicians have some of the biggest a-holes and worst people I've heard in general... and yet people want to single out rappers as being terrible people? I mean, Pete Doherty is one of the worst junkies I've heard in my life, Sid Vicious allegedly murders his girlfriend, heck in the jazz days Charles Mingus beat up his band members and Miles Davis beat up his women... and yet rappers are the scourge of the Earth? I'm just sayin, not all rappers are bad people, not all rock stars are bad people. In fact, being from LA and into the music scene, a lot of the musicians I've met (rap, rock, R&B, jazz) are actually really nice people. There are some messed up folks in all music, yes. Sometimes you just have to be able to separate the musician from the music (I still enjoy Miles, Mingus, and Michael Jackson despite their personal shortcomings) and sometimes you have to separate certain artists messages from an entire friggin genre of music.</p>
<p>Well I have said enough.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I Think I'm Starting To Like Rap.
[/quote]
Then It's Time For You To Commit Suicide</p>
<p>hahahaha! Very funny.</p>
<p>Racist?????? </p>
<p>What?????????</p>
<p>I wish this thread was never made.</p>
<p>There are messed up people EVERYWHERE--not just in music. I think we just tend to focus on famous people, because, well, they're famous. Sucks for them.</p>
<p>But, although I am not as extreme in my views as other members, I DO agree with G-U-NOT and Viking in a way...hip-hop is and always has been the voice of minorities...
For example:</p>
<p>All our Algerian, Moroccan, and other African brothers and sisters struggling against the government in France.</p>
<p>Palestinians rapping out against their struggles in the occupied land.</p>
<p>And these are just a few examples. But when you hear the work of these people--you are blown away.</p>
<p>This is the REAL hip hop. And although I enjoy mainstream, too, that's mostly for the entertainment part (like I mentioned before...as opposed to the political part I guess)..for the beats...the dance...the 'culture'.</p>
<p>i was wondering that too...good call.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Interesting choices You never find, say, a Barack Obama, an Oprah Winfrey on these lists do you? Wonder why...
[/quote]
Oprah is an example of how even the poorest men can get rich in a capitalist society. Other than that, her views are idiotic. Obama is a socialist.</p>
<p>Don't even try to play the race card here. It might work very well in public schools, but not here. I am not against blacks, just against a genre of crap music.</p>
<p>Now, jazz is good music.</p>
<p>Umm...Oprah's not a man--she's a woman who has contributed heavily to improving the education and wellness of blacks around the world--and you haven't even come close to proving that socialism is a bad thing much less that Obama is "guilty" of it, thereby discounting all the positive things he has done in his short career thus far. One word adjectives aren't going to cut it. </p>
<p>I never said you were "against blacks" so your assumptions and personal attacks have no place here. My issue is with your telling choice of black role models and your limited (limiting) perception of rap.</p>
<p>Now Blackstar, Gift of Gab, Reef the Lost Cause, Immortal Technique, that's good hip hop.</p>
<p>hmm....well that sure progressed</p>
<p>To actually add some substance to my post, I just want to say this. Many of you who are anti-rap, seem to be ignoring the fact that the "crap rap" is just a small segment of the genre. The songs about "*****es...hoes etc" are a tiny portion of rap music, but tend to be the most visible and "popular" today. Even so, some of mainstream rap isn't blatantly about that; it's about partying and fun. And I hope nobody's against partying and fun being spoken about in any type of music, or else there's something wrong with you.</p>
<p>You seem to be ignoring the GOOD music, maybe because you live in a bubble where you've never had the opportunity to hear it. Or you have already written off everything about the genre because of a few <strong><em>ty mainstream songs you have heard. Which is a shame, because I didn't write of the entire rock genre when Fall Out Boy came out (that's a whole different topic altogether, as some of you don't consider FOB rock at all--which kinda makes no sense...but whatever, you music elitists). BET doesn't play the good rap music (well maybe Kanye West and Common, but I laugh at you if that's the extent of your non-drug/hoe/</em></strong>* rap music knowledge. hah! kanye west...but I digress...). Rap artists such as Immortal Technique, ATHQ, and even Bone Thugs and Harmony to some extent, have been rapping about greater things, better things, like love, pain, the human struggle--for years; they just do not get major airplay. </p>
<p>But you know what, I'm fine with them being underground. Because then, when people say or write such ignorant things like some of you have in this topic, I can just laugh and say "you think you know everything, but you really know nothing you ignorant little puppy". Not in those exact words, but you get my drift. Now excuse me while I play rap music....that ISN'T 50 cent. Ew.</p>
<p>***? the examples you give (china, cuba) aren't true socialist states. nice try, iloveagoodbrew. of course, i admit, i don't think it's possible to have a true socialist state...look at how successful the attempts have been. in the end the attempts degenerate into dictatorships.</p>
<p>Another one who hasn't yet graduated from junior high I see.</p>
<p>and stop talking about socialism people. that's retarded, and you're just doing it for an argument. start a new topic then "socialism: yay or nay?"</p>