AIBU to think rap is crap?

[JoanThursday1972]

I just heard In My Hood by Ice Spice on the radio with absolutely stupid lyrics.

Go back to the late 70s and up to mid 80s and it's good. Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Sugarhill Gang etc.

Now it's rap mixed with grime and stupid lyrics that we'd be disciplined about if we said this in the workplace. Bitches, hoes, drugs and knives aren't art, they're a quick fix for talentless people to get attention by thinking it's oh so clever to be a gangster's moll.

And it's dreary and boring too.

Ice Spice etc are popular with younger people. Isn’t not liking younger music just part and parcel of getting older? You are not being unreasonable to not like a particular genre, but not everything is for you. Your parents probably hated some of your music and their parents probably hated theirs. Tale as old as time.

Tale as old as time

True as it can be.

Stupid recommendation.

YABU to say a whole genre is crap and then agree with people that actually quite a bit of it is good.

You would not be unreasonable to dislike all of it though. It's just personal taste. I dislike rap regardless of the lyrics. It just doesn't appeal to me musically.

I love NF on tiktok, I find the lyrics really intelligent and moving but I really like Eminem too and that style.
Some rap is awful and uses vocabulary that I just don’t want to hear but some is brilliant and a fantastic commentary on life today, you can find if all if you listen to different things.

The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is crap? Cmon...

And yes @Herja to London rap, add some of the older taskforce and phi life cypher to that list.

I'd rather listen to some intellectual social commentary delivered by rap than the dross that is "I kissed a girl and I liked it" any day! And anyway that still doesn't mean I would say 'all pop is crap'. It's just too absolutist a comment and shows a level of ignorance.

@JoanThursday1972 have you heard of/seen Hamilton? That’s a west end and broadway critically acclaimed sell out musical, one of the most successful modern musicals, about one of the founding fathers of America. It’s literally all rap. Some of the most clever, skillful and interesting uses of the English language I’ve ever heard. I’m not a fan of rap generally speaking but my god the skill of the writer, and the performers is 2nd to none! Amazing!

So true. I totally acknowledge my inability to appreciate rap is because I’m old.

Really can't stand people who, just because they don't like something, insist it must be crap

Hundreds of millions of people around the world love hiphop but no, actually it's crap because this one random on MN doesn't like it

Come on

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion.

@Jonei yep, and people are entitled to their opinions about other people's opinions, ad infinitum. The internet would be very quiet otherwise

It would indeed 😂

The same rap song played by my neighbour over and over through the wall is pretty crap tbh! Tempted to pay for Spotify premium for him just to get some bloody variety

Ah yes... What a lovely racist thread on predominantly black rappers. This is very on brand for mumsnet.

You can not like rap, but to call it all crap? Come on now, surely you see how racist that sounds?

The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is crap?

I wish she would still rap! Miss her.
She resurfaced with a brilliant track a couple of years or so ago. It’s on the Queen & Slim soundtrack. Gorgeous song.

https://open.spotify.com/track/0vxTKTxKoTmljpT7gb4U1h?si=UMkvNErISBaOdgE8uLv-ig&dd=1

Whatever my feelings on rap, your AIBU is completely unreasonable.

AIBU to think rap is crap and like 80s rap? Slightly contradictory there OP.

If your question was regarding modern rap then yes, you are still being unreasonable, because it seems that you have only chosen to consider a very small subset of the genre. Rap is poetry. Rap provides social commentary. Rap can be funny, joyful, devastating, chilling.

You might not like it musically but there are some phenomenally talented rappers out there who can use words in a way that I could only dream of.
Please listen to Sampa the Great - Energy and tell me where the bitches and hos feature... Or listen to Kendrick Lamar Mother I Sober and try to understand why some rappers might discuss violence...

Absolutely love Ocean Wisdom!

I also love Jorja Smith, especially Blue Lights

I like hip hop/funky rap

Don't like grime

Everyone's tastes are different and YANBU to have a preference

They're having an absolute field day of it!

I don't understand how it can be classed as crap either ?
You've got to pretty gifted to rap to the standard of many of these artists listed on this thread
They're of the cuff , fast , flawless mostly , intelligent I couldn't rap fluently I sing along and mess up half way in even knowing all the lyrics
To say a music genre makes you "physically Ill " is so odd , you don't have to listen to rap or any genre you dislike so much

There are some who are modern and good but they stand out amongst the array of crap that is modern music

I won’t name any I think are good

min comparison to older stufff today’s stuff doesn’t compete

Eminem is still good and the oldies are still going

listen to old stuff

@TheVanguardSix I will check that out! I put on Miseducation whilst I was cleaning the kitchen the other day... Takes me back to being 15 but the lyrics have only deepened for me with wisdom (and old age!)

Some rap has questionable lyrics and themes, some pop has overt hypersexualised lyrics (and don't get me started on the music videos!) ... Which ones get played at kids parties and soft play and shopping centres etc etc. I find that really weird and crap tbh.