How i grew into rap music

When i was a young boy, i grew up listening to rap on the radio. I was exposed to many different artists such as Eminem, 50 Cent, Lil John, Bone Crusher, the list goes on. They would play it over and over again on the school bus as i went to school that i got tired of hearing it. Finally, i decided to enjoy it. Since almost all of my friends did, i might as well too. I would play them on the radio then rap along. I was surprised at the sensual and violent content of the songs, but i realized it was the norm. I grew up hearing gangsta rappers using trap beats blast out of cars.

Soon enough, i began freestyling with friends in the neighborhood and school. Of course people thought i was garbage since i was rapping nonsense. My interest finally came to a rest when my mom told me to turn off the radio. She sat down with me and told me that rap wasn't good for me. Believing in her wisdom, i stopped liking rap.

I went on for many years hating rap when deep down, i secretly liked it. I believed that rap was foolish, talentless, immature, and horrible noise. I believed it took no talent for a guy to just talk over a repetitive beat. Rap wasn't music. Real music consisted of genres such as classical music, heavy metal, rock, and so on. Musicians were people who studied music in school. They could distinguish between many different notes, rhythm, melody, pitch, and tone. Music was eloquent and it took precision followed by dedication. For a guy to just jump into the studio and run his mouth into a mic then call it music was laughable.

Surprisingly, i listened to a few rap songs and i enjoyed them. They had rhythm, tone, melody, pitch, and catchy lyrics. Little by little, i listened to various rappers over time. It didn't matter if they were mainstream or not. Did they study music theory? No. Did they have the patience and willpower to practice playing instruments at a university? No. Did it matter? No. I strayed away from the arrogance of those who think their genre of music is superior to the rest.

Rap is a unique genre of its own. I learned that rap did involve rhythm, tone, pitch, melody, and the like. Rap is spoken poetry and to be a poet, you needed to read and write. Anyone can be a rapper, but few can reach their fullest potential as an artist. Only the best took the time writing lyrics and perfecting the art of rhymes. Only the best practiced freestyling endlessly, perfecting their mistakes. The best rappers had a unique tone of voice and presence. They practiced vocally projecting their voice and creatively structured their lyrics. They educated themselves by reading about many different literary devices.

Slowly but steadily, i came to embrace rap. Because it was readily accessible to anyone willing to learn. You didn't need an education or special instruments. You didn't need training. You just needed to pick up a pen, paper, and start writing then vocalize your lyrics. At anywhere and anytime, you could make a beat by banging on a table then freestyle. Ultimately, rap changed my entire life and taught me that music is more than meets the eye.