There are many subcategories that come to mind when thinking of the Rap genre. When thinking of rap music today, common artists that come to mind are Meg the Stallion or DaBaby. They are what I would consider as "hip-hop" artists. Their style of music greatly differs from the 'old school' rappers such as Tupac or Snoop Dogg. From then to now rap has changed greatly, from the instruments to the lyrics and rhythm.
Typically, rap can be identified by the instruments played in the song. Commonly used are drum machines, keyboards and turntables. Many rap songs today still use these instruments however, they add in modern twists. An example of a modern twist that most rap artist use in todays day and age is autotune. This is a computer device that is used to alter an artists voice.
The word "rap" was originally used as a slang word to mean that someone was talking or having a conversation. Rap music can be traced back to West Africa where they would tell stories over the beat of a drum. Rap as a genre dates back to the early 1970's in New York City where DJs would preform at block parties. In August of 1973 DJ Kool Herc, who is known as the first DJ and the founding father of rap, threw his first historical block party in the Bronx.
(DJ Kool Herc)
During the next few decades, rap music would be offered in different styles. During the 80's and the 90's, there was an "east coast" rap and a "west coast" rap. The style of west coast rap was more laid back and focused more on the musical aspect. East coast rap was more focused on the lyrical aspect, making it more hard hitting. East coast rap focused on telling stories about a life in poverty and crime.
Notorious BIG (east coast rapper)
Ice Cube (west coast rapper)
Since the 90's rap has moved towards the hip-hop direction it has also moved into the R&B direction as well. Drake and Chris Brown are categorized as rappers that have also moved towards the R&B subcategory. This subcategory of rap differs from others in the sense that the tempo is more upbeat and it is not as emotional as a west coast rappers music might be.
From the 70's until now rap has changed and evolved dramatically. Rappers such as 21 Savage or Travis Scott, have a completely different style of rapping compared to rappers from the 80's and 90's like Tupac and Ice Cube. Back in the 80's and early 90's autotune was not yet a thing so in order to become a rapper you had to have the voice for it as well. Today, if you look the part and do the work you can become a rapper by perfecting your pitch with autotune. In old school rap the lyrics are easy to follow, no matter the pace of the song, it was typically clear and concise. Todays rap is often considered as "mumble rap" due to autotune and not flowing true stories together as they would in old school styled rap.
Rap is ever changing. No matter what genre or area of rap you prefer, there is always something for someone. If there isn't, maybe there will be in the future as the rap industry continues to advance and evolve!
Rapping. (2020, October 25). Retrieved October 29, 2020, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapping
Dye, D. (2007, February 22). The Birth of Rap: A Look Back. Retrieved October 29, 2020, from https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7550286
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