My parents both work in the music industry. My dad, a booking agent and my mom, a contract administrator for my dad’s company. Their entire childhood was filled with the start of pop music and the prime of rock and roll. They had the Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Who, The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Grateful Dead, Queen, and many extraordinary others. Their taste in music stems from the very beginning of music that let young souls express themselves. Instead of Classical, Jazz, or Opera music they had loud, eardrum bursting, mosh pit bands. It was the beginning of a change in music that would initiate so much more than they thought.
Today’s generation listens to rap, hip-hop, r&b, and pop music. We have Kid Cudi, 21 Savage, Wiz Khalifa, Drake, Kanye West, Justin Bieber, Future, The Weeknd, Rihanna, Beyonce, A$AP Rocky, J Cole and plenty of other artists. While this style of music is much different than that of the 70’s, it doesn’t automatically imply that this music is ‘crap’. Almost every one of my friend's parents today says that our 21st-century music is trash, and while my opinion may be biased, I could not disagree more. Times are changing, this generation is a generation that allows more people to speak freely, express themselves uniquely, and be whoever they want to be.
When times changed in the 70’s, people from the prior generations were not too happy about the change in the music world. The Beatles were considered to be a rebellious boy band. Young teenage girls swooned over them, just as girls do today over Justin Bieber. As times changed from the 70’s to the 00’s, parents neglected to accept the changing times and learn to appreciate the change in music. While the genre of music has changed greatly, it still has the same impact. Just because teenagers find their emotional outlets by listening to rap music, or pop music doesn’t mean that we lack diversity, or that we have poor taste. We changed with the times, we evolved with the music, and just because we don’t listen to bands that are from our parent’s childhood does not mean we don’t appreciate them. We know that without those rebellious rock and pop bands, we wouldn’t have the music we do today.
All in all, in the least offensive and controversial way possible, I just want to make it clear that Rap is most definitely not crap. It is new, it is trendy, it is opinionated, it is a little vulgar at times, but it is brutal and true honesty. Rap artists like Eminem came from areas of this country that surrounded young people with violence, drugs, and abusive situations. These people have experienced pain, suffering, and struggle which resulted in their musical success. They channel their experiences from hard times into their brutal, occasionally vulgar, yet extremely honest lyrics. Rap, for some people, is an emotional outlet. It provides a type of defiance that can’t be actually expressed in the real world. I know that everyone reading this can relate to me when I say, I can feel some song lyrics inside of me. I relate to some songs so much that I literally feel like I am a part of the song. I can envision the song playing in the background of a scene in my life, kind of like a real life music video. While not everyone has to like each and every genre of music, we need to have an appreciation for them. Each genre, song, artist and listener have their own style, experiences, purposes, and truth. We all need to hold a certain respect for any type of musical artist that can manage to transform their emotions and life experiences into words that are relatable to many people. Regardless of the way the music sounds, it is difficult enough to publish your deepest thoughts and feelings for an entire world to listen to. Regardless of the genre, the songwriter, the song, or the listener, we need to appreciate all music. It’s all art, it’s all personal, and it all has a deep meaning for someone. Who are we to judge?
