As a genre, rap as we know it today didn't really begin until the late 1970s with DJ Kool Herc. From there the genre exploded with artists such as Grandmaster Flash, and The Sugarhill Gang started popularizing rap, as well as using it as a form of social commentary. From this, rap evolved into all sorts of different sub-genres each with their own unique sound and style. Today, it is one of the most popular genres of music in pop culture today. However, there are a lot of people who don't listen to rap either because they feel the lyrical content of these songs are quite vulgar, and they can be. Many rap songs do contain large quantities of profanities, as well as using degrading terms in regards to other people. If this is a reason why you personally don't listen to rap, that's a valid reason; people like to have a moral standard.
But if you've ever wanted to dive in to rap, I believe that Kendrick Lamar's good kid, m.A.A.d. city is the perfect album to start with if you've never experienced the genre. Now granted, if explicit content is not something you're ever comfortable hearing then rap may never be for you. I believe in order to expand your horizons of learning you must push yourself out of your comfort zone a little bit, however, so that's something that you're going to have to ignore.
Kendrick Lamar's good kid, m.A.A.d. city is easily the best album to begin listening to rap because it's arguably the best hip-hop album of all time, but there are a few specifics. One of the biggest strengths of the album is Kendrick's story-telling. Throughout the course of the album Kendrick is telling a story of a young Kendrick growing up in Compton, and experiences with gang-related activities. He talks about his struggles with living the lifestyle he's been wrapped into with the life that he wants to live, such as leaving Compton and ending the gang violence that he's lived around.
Another major key to this album is Kendrick's flow and delivery. A rapper's flow is the way that a rapper constructs their words around the beat of the song, and delivery is how the rapper gives the lines to the beat. For both of these, Kendrick is nearly unmatched. He has such creative lines and the way he does it is flawless.
Arguably one of the biggest strengths of good kid, m.A.A.d. city is the instrumentals and beats of the album. Every song has a beat that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up. They are all so thoughtful and powerful that they almost always give you a cathartic experience every time that you listen to any song on the album. There is just something unique and unmatched with this album; the way that he tells the story, the music behind the story and the story itself are all the things that make this an irresistible album and a must listen.
