Free Rap Stereotype Essay Sample

As observed, with the help of the media rap music has for a long time propagated the stereotype that the blacks are a violent, thuggish, and an abusive society. Many writers and thinkers argue that there has been a serious misconception about the message in rap music. They argue that music seeks to express emotions of the individual artists and their views regarding various matters that concern. However, this mode of thinking is the biggest misconception of all.The worst-affected by the rap message group is the teenagers, who take the attitude and each word in the rap songs for Gospel truth. They endeavor to lead their lives as dictated by the cloud of thought established by what they learn from the music, and what the media hugely portray to be the nature of the Blacks. Fortunately, in the recent years there have been various rappers and media content that seek to tear down these stereotypes. A valuable example is the article “How Hip-Hop Holds Blacks Back” by John H. McWhorter.The author starts by narrating his first-hand experience with a rowdy group of African-American teenage boys; he points out how they sing to cocky rap lyrics as they exhibit totally antisocial behavior. He proceeds to elaborate the misconception that there lies a revolutionary potential in rap and hip-hop music (McWhorter). The rap music and such media that propagate it constitute tools that harness the stereotypes that have long hampered blacks from exploiting their potential. By teaching black teens that a thuggish adversarial approach is the best response to a presumptively racist society, rap retards the success of the whole black generation (McWhorter).An effort to discern the roots of rap music shows it as happy party music during its early years, the 60’s; and it was not until the 80’s that a change towards a “gangster” rap culture arose. Currently, rap musical accompaniment reflects the brutality of rap lyrics in its inherent harshness and repetition. McWhorter’s article ends with a clear comparison of civil rights of blacks, who created the atmosphere of equality, striving, and success with no hip-hop culture, and the Blacks, who create the rap industry of today.

Another successful effort is captured in “Donald Glover: how Childish Gambino faces down rap stereotypes” by Rob Fitzpatrick published online on The Guardian website. It briefly details on Dan Glover, the comedian and rapper, who has targeted the black machismo and homophobia with his latest rap album, the Camp, where he poses as Childish Gambino. He makes a hearty attempt to face down the stereotypes of hip-hop culture through sharp lines about background, race, gender, and sexuality. In the album, it becomes apparent how any rapper has to hit an implied bar on how “thuggish” they are and how it is important for them to stay relevant in the industry. Furthermore, it is vivid in the songs “how black” rappers are and their need to be hustlers in order to fit into the industry. Throughout his album, he openly criticizes the expectations that the media propagates as truth, and the general attitude in the rap industry.