Do you think hip hop is harmful to society?!
Question: I believe that alot of violence and poverty is based on the influence of hip hop. Any true lyricist will tell you hip hop is a culture and a culture is something you live. By no means will I blame for murders but music tends to make an impression on the weak minded. Whatever style these spit about and wear in these videos, a majority of my peers will go out and by the second they get some money in their pocket. Do you honestly think the music is only effecting our fashion choices? Those who are intellectually inept may not be able to rationalize, therefore making ignorant decisions based on the lifestyles of songs like "ILL Still Kill" and "One Mic". Plus the movie all hip hoppers seem to love is Scarface, which depicts the life of a cocaine boss leaving this world with guns blazing in both hands, like a G should.
Do you agree or disagree? Dont give me a biased answer based on your love for hip hop because if you read my name, I love hip hop as much as the other man.
Answers: I believe that alot of violence and poverty is based on the influence of hip hop. Any true lyricist will tell you hip hop is a culture and a culture is something you live. By no means will I blame for murders but music tends to make an impression on the weak minded. Whatever style these spit about and wear in these videos, a majority of my peers will go out and by the second they get some money in their pocket. Do you honestly think the music is only effecting our fashion choices? Those who are intellectually inept may not be able to rationalize, therefore making ignorant decisions based on the lifestyles of songs like "ILL Still Kill" and "One Mic". Plus the movie all hip hoppers seem to love is Scarface, which depicts the life of a cocaine boss leaving this world with guns blazing in both hands, like a G should.
Do you agree or disagree? Dont give me a biased answer based on your love for hip hop because if you read my name, I love hip hop as much as the other man.
Is hip hop harmful to society? No... not really
Are the weak-minded? yes
And with this in mind i would probably redefine what hip hop is. 'True lyricists' ( as you would say) probably don't need gimmicks to sell their music, AND they wouldn't be worried as much about their money as some mainstream monney-makers-booty-sharkers are.
I think some artists would keep doing what they do without the money. Others wouldn't. Which of these groups is weak minded? After answering that, consider the followers who ACTUALLY take some of their values from music from music just about ANYTHING they hear. These people are weakminded anyway...
And it really wouldn't matter how much if hip hop existed or not, so long as there is any negative message in music for the weakminded to swallow whole, society would be doomed.
So to say that hip hop has a negative influence on society (excluding scanty fashion trends, perhaps) doesn't necassarily add up. rather, I think that violent hip hop is probably a reflection/result of violence in society, not exactly the other way around. We all know that 50 cent, 2pac, and Biggie didn't grow up in Beverly Hills. And when you write poetry, it usually comes best when speaking from your own experience, i supppose.
Still, don't get me wrong: Mysogyny and the PROMOTION of violence are unnaceptable. However, hip hop was not the first music to introduce these elements, and isn't the only one that still has them.
Um...no, i disagree with ya there buddy. There were plenty of murders and poverty before it was introduced.
Anyone who takes violent lyrics too seriously already has a problem in the first place. hip hop doesn't influence violence anymore than Rock or video games influence school shootings.
...people are always looking for something to blame. but violence and murder have been taking place since the beginning of time.
yes some
Hip-hop can't be the blame for others' ignorance
thats like asking is wrestling or power rangers...if people lived there life off of what other people say black people would still be slaves, jewish people would no longer exist, indians wouldnt be fightin for their land, and so on
I do agree that hip hop and rap CAN influence violence. But that does not mean it has to. I am a very avid listener of hip hop and rap and I do not take those songs literally. I am not going to go out and "bang" someone up. It's just a song to me. But we have our youth that are easily influenced, especially by popular music. And at the moment, a lot of hip hop and rap music is what's popular with the youth. Our youth are very impressionable. While I am sure they really do know that what is being said in the song shouldn't be taken literally, if they think it is cool to think or be that way, then what do you think will happen. Very good question, btw.
It's only harmful in the hands of idiots..It's like guns...guns get a lot of blame, but it's the people that use them wrong that are responsible, not the gun..same thing here...perhaps hip hop influences them..but if that happens they are the problem, not hip hop
I dont think violence and poverty are based on the influence of hip hop. I mean it doesn't help the matter but take away the music and the same kind of people will still being doing the samething. I mean I dont think Ted Bundy sat around listening to hip hop all day.
No, I think some people try to give in to the stereotype and make it so. But really i think it is more the persons actions then the music. Dr. Dre ain't a gangster, but he preaches as he was one. I listen to all kinds of stuff all the way down to Brotha Lynch Hung. Just cause he has some crazy lyrics, its not going to make me do what he speaks.
"Hip Hop cant be the blame for others' ignorance"
CLOSE THREAD
close thread = nothin else to say
some is some not u know. but its all about the parents and the ppl the kids hang out with. music affects people way of life and if thats with hip hop, that my not be good ( nowadays ). but the parents need to raise their kids
I've never really understood people's obsession with lyrics. The lyrics are only an instrument for the music. If people like the hip-hop musical genre, there is nothing wrong with it. The trouble is that lyricists/songwriters are misusing the popularity of that musical style to publish their personal thoughts and ideas.
You could have the same lyrics written to Operatic music or Soul or R&B or Latino, and people who could get influenced easily would still get influenced.
So my answer would be, as a genre, hip-hop is not the trouble. The lyrics need to be cleaned up, which is where the music companies need to step in.
yes i get wat you're saying. ppl who don't have a brain for themselves automatically do thingz it tellz them too, which is making us look bad for the ppl who have brainz and say just because they do it doesn't mean i have to or understands metaphors or whateva. fashion is another thing. yes, im sure we all seen ppl wear the thingz what they have on tv. maybe they like the style themselves and jus want to wear it or maybe they think itz cool or whateva. personally, i wear thingz that appeal and look nice to me, not just because i saw beyonce or whoever wear it.
and itz not just hip hop, itz all genres from hip hop to pop to rock to heavy metal and whateva and they all have their preferences and issues but hip hop is like the outlet to everything wrong, which is not tru at all and plus ppl need to stop stereotyping about it.
and i luv hip hop just as much as any other person either. thingz don't stay the same, they develop/change/whateva u wanna call it. rite now, hip hop is changing and new and different rappers are coming on as well as a few pointless onez. then there will b a time where hip hop will b betta than ever. we jus hafta wait and see.
I hate new hip hop and rap. All they do is swear and talk about drugs and sex.
go ahead and give me thumbs down. could care less.
I believe that music can't create society, it can only reflect it. I suppose though, it could be argued that even though the music has reflected society, it's become a vicious cycle of them feeding off of each other (if that makes any sense).
Society is in such a bad state today that it's hard to pinpoint any one cause. I'd certainly blame our greedy, get rich quick and fcuk everyone else culture before I'd blame music for it though. And although certain elements of hip hop condone that, it was rich white America that invented it.
This is a good question, glad you asked it.
No I don't agree. Maybe in some cases yes, but that's only for people who grew up in a harmful environment.
well like you said music tends to make an impression on the weak minded theirs a reason why CD's have the explicit lyrics sticker. and i know that its not just some young teens that can easily be manipulated by anything adults could too. but the point of the music is to express yourself not to promote violence. some people actually hear gunshots at night some people do deal coke so that they wont go to sleep hungry.i think that when someone raps about there environment and life they think "ok this is my story,this is what i've been through" not "the whole world should do what i have done to be cool and famous like me" so to answer your question i think it hasnt it just that some people are confused in this world
I think there is a huge double standard in Hip Hop and in the "neighborhood".I can't count how many songs end in some s**t like"And I'll kill any mfer that comes near me....PEACE!"No matter what, people of any culture,will alway try to pass the blame.The kid caught stealing will blame it on the rapper,the rapper will say "I grew up watching kids steal".And I'm sorry if I offend you but Hip Hop is DEAD!And if it ain't...it's seriously sleeping.
Evil gave a great example...and I totally agree
I'm not being biased when i say this, but i think we fail as a society not as separate cultures. Yeah hip hop will influence you to a certain extent but you'd have to be a pretty f*cked up person to listen to something and act on it, if it isn't something you hear in a song, it'll probably be something you see on the streets that'll drive to commit a crime. We as a society don't look to help those people, we look to blame certain influences. That's just sweeping it under the rug.
And I see your game quote..but consider this:
'They say music can alter moods and talk to you
But can it load a gun for you and c*ck it too?'
It doesn't. You as an individual make a choice to pull a trigger or carry a knife with the intention of using it. As a society we have to look at WHY people do that, not blame it on something and hope it'll go away. If you live a happy life, have all the things you want, then hearing a song about killing someone isn't going to affect you right? And you have all the things you want either because you as an individual made a conscious decision to succeed. Or because your social condition veered you towards it. Individuality is a double edged sword.
"music tends to make an impression on the weak minded." I agree with that, if people are that impressionable, the music will have some sort of impression on the person. Impressionable people exist, therefore; I think you're correct. Society is filled with the weak minded. The same can be said about other forms of entertainment.
^^^you never blocked Hilary Jones?
White kids kill themsevles and each other and no one blames rock music for "tearing the fabic of society" So why blame rap music.
i agree with you, most of the people on here don't want to believe that hip hop has a harmful affect on society, i mean most of the people in the hip hop section are far from weakminded so we don't fall in that trap. No i don't think hip hop should be blame for people's ignorance but the truth is it does affect the weak minded people. Not everyone is blessed with good parents or people to guide them in life. I have good parents who are raising me right so i could look at B.E.T and see a girl shaking for some male attention and know that's wrong but imagine if i had nobody with a good influence in my life and i looked at B.E.T and saw those girls doing that.......where would i be at now?
Same goes for my little brother who's 13, he has a good influence in his life but what if he didn't and he looked at B.E.T and saw rappers rapping about drugs,making it rain in the club and of course they're getting all the girls then where would he be at now? like i said before alot of people on here know it's just entertainment and know what's right and wrong. Just try too look at it from a boy or girl's view who is weak minded and doesn't know it's just entertainment and actually believes what they're saying. Come on yall let's be real! If what these bubble gum rappers flow about can affect peoples fashion choices..... they can affect other choices as well..... the sad thing is, there is too many weak minded people.
One could say the same thing about certain video games and movies being harmful to society. So, if a person is saying that only hip hop is harmful to society, then I'd have to disagree. I don't agree with the subject matter of certain hip hop songs, but if I don't like it, I don't listen. It's that simple.
Yes it is it gives everyone a false outlook on everything.
no but rap is
hip hop is avery bad...they use bad words...
Well, I listen to Rap (drives my husband crazy, or should I say crayzay).
Any way, you are being racist because Rap is the way Blacks choose to define themselves
I will not tolerate your racism!