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After reading many articles supposedly concerning rap music--about the social aspects of rap music, the criminal elements in rap music, the lawsuits caused by rap music, sampling in rap music, gossip concerning rap musicians, how other musicians feel about rap music, etc.--I realized that I had yet to read about the music itself. In other words, I had not read about the "aesthetics" of rap, about the qualities which made particular examples of rap music good music--not necessarily good rap music, but simply good music.
Good art is distinguished because it possesses at least one--and usually more than one--attribute such as sincerity, originality, honesty, or creativity. Good art is usually emotionally involving and/or thought-provoking. These, I believe, are attributes that almost all "good" art shares. While many rap records possess these attributes, far more do not. This is true with most art forms, however. In general, unsuccessful artistic productions far outnumber successful ones.
To discuss and critique any subject intelligently requires both adequate knowledge of that subject and the ability to illustrate that knowledge. The ability to distinguish, qualitatively, between good and bad rap music requires sufficient knowledge about a variety of rap music, past and present, popular and less well-known. The majority of articles regarding rap music are written by music critics, or--far too often--social or political personalities who are not knowledgeable enough to be involved in a serious discussion about rap music. Rap music, it seems, is not considered worthy of serious, learned discussion. To those who actually understand the music, though, rap is a true art form--as much so as jazz, classical, rhythm and blues, or rock 'n' roll.
I bought my first album, Run-D.M.C.'s self-titled debut, in 1983, when I was 13 years old. I grew up in a household dominated by the arts--most prominently, the art of recorded music. My father was a jazz and pop music critic by trade. I didn't know it at the time, but my father's job gave me the predilection for listening to music both casually and critically. Even though I can now appreciate the breadth of my father's mostly non-rap and seemingly endless LP collection, until approximately 1989 I listened to rap music almost exclusively. I saw jazz, R&B, reggae, and the other musical...