Final Reflection

Reginald Davis II
Angela Fowler
English Comp. II G
2 February 2021
Does rap music influence teen behavior?

Research Question

Does rap music negatively affect young African Americans? Rap plays a major role on African Americans and their communities. It has dominated the music industry for decades and expresses many emotions throughout this specific genre of music. It has been known to glorify sex, guns, killing, abuse of drugs, and disassociation with police officers which often leads young black kids either dead or in jail. Why is this? Why has this genre of music been so closely related to negativity and death? My focus is to show what rap music does to young AA’s and how if it leads them down the wrong path or a better one. I will explain how the life of a rapper can be glorious and how it may not be the best career choice. I will also explain the trials and tribulations that rappers have to face, but the luxuries that come with it. My approach to this is to first define rap and how it has ultimately become one of the top genre’s in this decade. Then go on to compare rap to other genre’s like R&B and soul (popular in AA communities) and see why these do not have the same pull as rap does.
Interest

Rap music can be very appealing at times and has caught my attention a couple times. There are many rappers who I feel like have real skill instead of becoming famous over something I would consider “corny” or “cheesy”. Rap is something that is seen as an easy route to riches and fame and is very feasible today thanks to social media. I do personally feel like someday I will blow up out of nowhere from a freestyle I did just hanging out with friends and just being caught in the moment. That’s more of a fantasy though, because I understand the ups and downs that rappers face that I’m not willing to go through. My favorite rappers are Lil Baby, Pooh Shiesty, And NBA Youngboy (aka Lil Top). These rappers are the best in the rap industry because they have glorified this lifestyle that many people can relate to. Showing the struggles of being poor to now having millions of dollars to play with. Having to come from nothing and build your way up without any handouts. Really grinding to the point, they have nowhere to go but forward. Pooh Shiesty has really made a name for himself with his new album called “Shiesty Season” that went number 1 on billboards before the album even dropped. Also having 60k sales in the first week of the release. Very comparable to Lil baby and Nba Youngboys’s numbers when they release an album. This appeals to me because I have been poor before and to get on your feet without help is really something to be proud of.
Knowledge

Understanding rap music before I became engulfed in rap music has really saved me from a lot of heartache and regret. A lot of rappers do glorify fornication and violence, two of the major reasons AA’s have trouble with overcoming. Violence has always been apart of my culture rap plays a major role in that. The people who are being looked to say and do things they have gotten away with like drug trafficking and murder and put those stories into their music for kids to try to follow and imitate. Not really understanding the consequences that come with it. Too many people are in jail because of miscommunication and following the leader. Instead of preaching about killing and guns, why not tell the story and try to show ways to avoid the situations you went through before you became a rapper. I plan on discovering in my preliminary research actual numbers of conviction rates of young AA before certain artists emerged into fame to show how their music affects people. I also plan on discussing how why and how rap music is normalized in low income communities.