I'm the best

The things about rap music I like and don't like

THUMBS UP
1) The competitive nature of it. The fact that you can beat someone by being better with your words. It reminds me of one-on-one basketball. When I used to play basketball as a teenager, against someone who was a similar size to me, it soon became apparent who was better. It wasn't subjective. It was an objective thing. I can beat you because I am better at this. That is part of what I like about rap music. "8 Mile" is a great example of this.

THUMBS DOWN
2) The violence. Is generally a negative, especially the repetitive violence. Sexualised violence is horrible to listen to, but the majority of rap music I listen to doesn't go near that. Only the occasional Eminem track goes in that direction. Sometimes though, the violent lyrics can contribute to the overall feeling of menace, which is actually quite attractive. Music can make you feel emotions. Listening to badass music can make you feel like a badass. Just like listening to JT can make you feel like a futuresexy love machine. Or listening to Nickelback makes you feel dumber. The menacing feeling is pretty cool sometimes. Because, I've got to say, I'm really only menacing to people when I've got a keyboard in front of me and I'm writing a negative story about them.

THUMBS UP
3) The beat. There is a lot of skillful musicianship that goes into rap music, but I don't have to tell you that because you have brains. And no one would dismiss an entire genre of music as useless without recognising the skill that goes into it. Dancing to rap music is a lot easier than dancing to the majority of rock music (especially current rock music, which seems designed to make people move up and down and up and down and that's it). It helps that I love dancing, of course.

THUMBS UP
4) The ability to make a statement. I sometimes feel like rappers are the only ones who aren't afraid to call a spade a spade anymore. It happens less than it used to, but how often to you hear a rock or pop or indie musician make a point about the murder rate in Chicago or the plight of child soldiers in Africa or the hypocrisy of western culture? And if they do make a point like that, how often do they do it without sounding like a massive tool? I love listening to clever, pointed lyrics. Sometimes whimsical just doesn't cut it (hear that, indie bands! Stop with the whimsy!).

THUMBS DOWN
5) The attitude towards women. It's weird. Because rappers clearly love women. But they so often demean them in songs. Perhaps it's because unlike rock stars, rappers actually got women before they were famous? Rockers usually have to wait until they've played a couple of chords at a pub before women find their smelly bums irresistible. Perhaps it's part of the male culture that permeates football clubs, where men who have women throwing themselves at them constantly develop an unhealthy view of the opposite sex. Is it something that rap music suffers with alone? No. Female pop singers do arguably just as much to demean women as rappers do. But it's a part of a culture that is surprising given how many women enjoy rap music.

THUMBS UP
6) The confidence. Pop stars seem so fake and manufactured. Indie musicians lie their asses off about not caring if people like them or not. Rock stars still sing songs about how no one loves them. Rappers say "Hey, I'm young, handsome, talented and rich. Let's party!" There is something appealing about that. It was part of what I liked about Oasis too. Liam and Noel said "We're the biggest band in the world and we're going to party and rock out." If you can't enjoy or use your success, why bother? Confidence is attractive - any dating expert worth their salt will tell you that.

Okay that's a few things. There are more. But that's enough.