Rap Music: Positive or Negative?
Demon Canada
The Art Institute of Michigan
GEN095
September 12, 2012
Dr. Erik Bean

Music has a way of dividing generations, but when rap music was introduced it did more then divide generations it broke all ties between parents and children. Hip hop music also called rap music is a genre of music consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted. There are different styles with in rap music For example, Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, and Snoop Dogg are all from California, hence they West Coast Rappers. Then again Busta Rhymes, Notorious B.I.G., and Jay-Z are all known East Coast rappers. Most of them could also be categorized as Hardcore or Gangsta Rappers. While many rappers are acknowledged for at least one style, what helps verify which rap styles they fit into is made most clear by glancing into the overall history of their music styles. Most rap music is considered negative because of the hardcore and gangster rap that some rappers choose for their styles of rap music.
Most people look at hardcore gangster rap as promoting negativity of drug use sex and violence that go in everyday America all around the world, but not all rappers are all hardcore gangster rappers some rappers are considered conscious rappers, party rappers. Conscious rappers are considered positive, uplifting rappers; often rhyme over smooth, ear-grabbing beats. A party rapper is a rapper that rap about crazy situations that often go on at party like getting drunk and having a wild night and not remembering the next day. One of the biggest reasons that people say rap music is negative because of degrading lyrics about women. Rap music videos and it is blatantly obvious that women are ‘used’ for the mere delight of the male rapper and his friends Put simply, it is painfully clear that women are mere sex objects; and this is predominately true of gangsta rap music videos. rap music videos features barely dressed women gyrating their back sides up against the males’ groin area while the rapper is spitting (rapping) the b-word.

Despite the previous arguments a lot of people say that hip hop can have a positive effect on the community, Rap music was created in the 1970s in the Bronx. DJ Kool Herc is recognized as the "godfather" of hip-hop and rap music--creating a new artistic form of expression in music. Contrary to the orthodox images often associated with rap music such as sex, drugs, violence and money, there are artists who donate lyrically in a postive manner: Afrikabambata, Grandmaster Flash, Common, Nas and Mos-def are just a few whose lyrical content encourages pride and social-awareness. Early rappers "battled" one another with words, not guns. Rivalries between groups like the Sugar Hill Gang and the Furious Five were playful and included recording songs together, full of boasts. Rap music can have positive effects on political and community alertness. Artists like Public Enemy, Mos Def, and the Roots have continued a custom of inquiring urban public policy and politics through rap lyrics.
Rap continues to help young urban males to express feelings. Professor Murray Forman, a media studies professor, says that rap has a positive influence by helping young blacks to detail cultural perspectives. When rap music gained mainstream popularity in the 1990s, a common trend portrayed by all rappers was baggy clothing. Rap artists such as Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre wore baggy pants and oversized shirts. It was also common for artists to sag their pants, meaning they were worn loosely around the waist. This trend continues today with artists like Eminem and Jay Z. It's also not lost on fans of the music, which according to "From the Fringe: The Hip Hop Culture and Ethnic Relations," primarily consists of people from 12 to 22 years old, Another way rap music effects teen consumers is in jewelry. Artists frequently wear platinum jewelry and diamonds