This is kinda related to today's post lol. I also just like this song and wanted to show it here. I hope you guys enjoy! :)))
- Word Count: 618
I know I talk about my senior year of high school a lot – and I know I should probably stop – but it’s really where a lot of this shit started. A lot of the shit I’m into now stems from me experimenting in high school. Back then, I had a little more leeway; I went to places I shouldn’t have gone, and I found out things I had no business finding out, but that doesn’t mean I regret it. I love hip-hop.
When I found out about N.W.A at 17, I did a full deep-dive on hip-hop itself; the origins of it, the main pioneers, hell, there are things about hip-hop that I haven't discovered yet. The main thing that attracted me to it was how bold it was; the music was bold, and so was the culture surrounding it. The people in hip-hop- you can tell they have so much fun with what they do. If anybody’s willing to experiment, be bold, and fuck around finding out, it would be a rapper. Hip-hop isn’t allowed to be “normal” or bland, and that’s what I like about it (and that’s not to shit on other genres, so don’t start).
So anyway, you could imagine how 17-year-old me felt when I was introduced to everything. Bro, I was all over it; the graffiti culture, the fashion, I found my way into skate culture and fell in love with that too, grind fiction, the whole nine yards. Before I knew it, the shit was influencing the media I consumed, nearly dictating my life, and I happily let it. Hip-hop is a form of escapism for me. You know, in Kendrick Lamar’s album, Section.80, where he was saying he was hypnotized by hip-hop? That’s how I feel about it too.
Similar to metal and rock, there are so many subgenres in rap music. That’s why I don’t take people seriously when people say they won’t listen to it. Motherfuckers listen to one song they don’t like and start generalizing the whole genre. I will say, while we’re on the topic, there’s a lot of anti-blackness directed at hip-hop too. It’s one of the only genres that still has a majority of Black artists. For years, Black people have deeply influenced – if not directly created – the majority of music genres, and every time, we have been pushed out and ostracized. It’s like making a club, inviting a shitload of people, and then they kick you out. It’s bullshit, ain’t it? With that being said, I feel this weird sense of protection for hip-hop. So many people are so quick to disrespect the genre, and at the same time, want to copy it. It’s like they don’t want Black people to have anything, and it irritates me.
Irritation and disrespect aside, though, the last thing that makes me love hip-hop is the pride. When it comes to hip-hop, no one is ashamed of their roots or who they are. If anything, rappers and MCs let their roots influence their artistry. I know I’ve said this before, but seeing people be proud and love themselves- it makes me want to do it also. Rap music, along with the culture tied to it, has to be one of the most lively things I’ve ever seen in my life. I’ve never seen something that I wanted to be a part of so badly; it was something I involved myself in with no hesitation, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Hip-hop taught me love, pride, and a level of confidence I know for a fact I wouldn’t have gotten anywhere else. Needless to say, it influenced the shit out of me. LMAOOO
- CD ★
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