I am a huge fan of rap and hip hop music and, to be honest, listen to it daily. However, no one really understands the true meaning behind the lyrics when they are listening to the songs. People may like the beat that a song has to offer, and the rhythm may make them want to dance and have a good time. However, music uses language that we classify as bad. There is a ton of profanity in music, especially rap and hip hop. There aren’t many rap songs that don’t use the N-word. It is offensive, corrupt and wrong to use this kind of language from my perspective. The N-word was never used as a nice word, and it is a highly offensive word. Using this kind of language is a form of racism. However, most of the time African Americans are the ones singing the songs and using these bad words against themselves. It is not even just the N-word that is the problem in rap and hip hop music. In this century of rap and hip hop music, women are objectified in music and there is a large amount of sexism. Language in hip hop and rap music includes profanity, sexism, and slang, which we may consider arbitrary.
To start off, profanity in hip hop and rap music is overwhelming, utterly insane and unnecessary. When I was younger, I was unable to purchase explicit music on iTunes. I did not understand why I could not do this when I was younger, but now I completely understand and I appreciate that my parents did not let me listen to the vulgar music. When you are a little kid, you know simple curse words and you even learn that the word “stupid” can be a bad and hurtful word. You may have heard your parents drop the A-word or the S-word. But, what makes these words so bad? You learned that they are classified as “dirty” and that there are “cleaner” words to use. The word that is most widely used nowadays in rap and hip-hop music is the N-word. Surprisingly enough, African Americans use this word often in their music. African Americans call other African-Americans the N-word even though it was an offensive and despicable word in the past during the times of slavery. This type of language has been considered acceptable in rap and hip-hop music. It would be weird if a rap or hip hop song did not contain explicit language. It is acceptable for African Americans and Caucasians to use this with each other and within their music. However, if a Caucasian person says it, it is unacceptable, frowned upon, and considered racist. I think that this profanity has given people the impression that it is OK to use this kind of language, but it most definitely is not. It is not OK for African Americans or Caucasians to use this type of language. Even though every other word in most rap and hip hop songs is a “bad” word, I still recognize when a bad word is said out loud. When I am singing out loud to a rap or hip hop song with my friends, I do not say the N-word because I know it is offensive. Although it is being uttered in the music and it is said to just part of the lyrics, it is not acceptable. It is much more than just a word. It offends people and has never been a good or acceptable word. If African Americans use it, it gives Caucasians the impersonation that it is okay to use it. So, no one should use it because it is offensive in any way, shape, or form.
Furthermore, language, in hip hop and rap music also uses offensive language by objectifying women. This goes along with profanity and “bad” language in music. What makes this even worse is that women are going along with it and using this language, degrading themselves. Now, I am a Nicki Minaj fan because she is good at what she does, but men objectify her in her own music, and she encourages it. She is a good rapper and has a lot of talent, but even rap music now has changed dramatically from what it used to be. It is horrible and unjust that women are objectified in rap and hip hop music. However, just like profanity with race, women are encouraging profanity with sexism. There are a plethora of examples that prove this. Honestly, I do not know many rap and hip hop songs that do not use this kind of language. But, this is fairly recent and “acceptable.” The song “Summertime” by Will Smith is a great rap song, in which Will Smith talks about how great of a season summer is. The words rhyme and he mentions women briefly, but he doesn’t curse about them or call them “dirty” names that we consider offensive in the English language. He does not refer to them as “sluts” or “whores.” He does not call them “bitches.” This language has evolved over time based on how our face-to-face communication and language has changed. Men think it is okay to call women this in person, so it seems acceptable to use this language in music. Now, this is not to say that women do not bring this on themselves. Either way, it is unacceptable and a form of profanity in hip hop and rap music.
To continue, another interesting thing about rap and hip hop music is that rappers will occasionally use slang to replace other words in order to make the music sound better and rhyme. Random words that do not really mean anything have been created in rap and hip hop music; some words are even ambiguous and after people hear these words being used in music, they then use the words themselves. A lot of rappers have created alternate names for drugs, such as cocaine. The song “Yayo” by Yo Gotti is about cocaine. The word yayo means cocaine. However, where did words like this come from? This is called slang. Slang is an ambiguous form of language in a sense. Slang consists of made up words or nicknames for words. This has become popular in rap and hip-hop music. People hear and see these slang words all the time. For example, the word “bae” is a slang word, but it has become well known and widely used because of its prominence in music and the media. What is lacking is knowledge about what some of these words mean. People will say these words and they would never know whether or not they are offensive because they do not know the true meaning. I had no idea what bae meant when I first heard it. Honestly, I thought it was just a way of saying "babe." It turns out that bae actually was an acronym for “before anyone else.” Slang words have made their way into rap and hip hop music and the terms can be labeled as offensive or inappropriate.
In conclusion, language, in hip-hop and rap music includes profanity, sexism, and slang, which we may consider arbitrary. Unfortunately, a majority of the language in rap and hip-hop music is inappropriate, offensive or “dirty.” If you actually listen to lyrics in rap and hip-hop music, you will recognize the profanity. We are so used to just listening to music and picking up and repeating the language, that we do not even pay attention to what it actually means. As a community and as English speakers, we need to understand that using profanity in music, specifically rap and hip hop, is not acceptable.
