Editing Rapping (section)

==Subject matter==
"Party rhymes", meant to excite the crowd at a party, were nearly the exclusive focus of old school hip hop, and they remain a staple of hip-hop music to this day. In addition to party raps, rappers also tend to make references to love and sex. Love raps were first popularized by [[Spoonie Gee]] of the [[Treacherous Three]], and later, in the golden age of hip hop, Big Daddy Kane, [[Heavy D]], and [[LL Cool J]] would continue this tradition.
Hip-hop artists such as KRS-One, [[Hopsin]], Public Enemy, [[Lupe Fiasco]], [[Mos Def]], [[Talib Kweli]], Jay-Z, Nas, [[The Notorious B.I.G.]] (Biggie), and [[dead prez]] are known for their sociopolitical subject matter. Their West Coast counterparts include [[The Coup]], Paris, and [[Michael Franti]]. [[Tupac Shakur]] was also known for rapping about social issues such as [[police brutality]], [[teenage pregnancy]], and [[racism]].

Other rappers take a less critical approach to urbanity, sometimes even embracing such aspects as crime. [[Schoolly D]] was the first notable MC to rap about crime.<ref name="r10">{{cite web|last=Blow |first=Kurtis |author-link=Kurtis Blow |url=http://rhino.com/Features/liners/72851lin.html |title=Kurtis Blow Presents: The History of Rap, Vol. 1: The Genesis (liner notes) |work=Kurtis Blow Presents: The History Of Rap, Vol. 1: The Genesis |access-date=May 14, 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060503042101/http://www.rhino.com/Features/liners/72851lin.html |archive-date=May 3, 2006 }}</ref> Early on KRS-One was accused of celebrating crime and a hedonistic lifestyle, but after the death of his DJ, [[Scott La Rock]], KRS-One went on to speak out against violence in hip hop and has spent the majority of his career condemning violence and writing on issues of race and class. [[Ice-T]] was one of the first rappers to call himself a "playa" and discuss guns on record, but his theme tune to the 1988 film ''[[Colors (film)|Colors]]'' contained warnings against joining gangs. [[Gangsta rap]], made popular largely because of [[N.W.A]], brought rapping about crime and the gangster lifestyle into the musical mainstream.

Materialism has also been a popular topic in hip-hop since at least the early 1990s, with rappers boasting about their own wealth and possessions, and name-dropping specific brands: liquor brands [[Cristal (champagne)|Cristal]] and [[Rémy Martin]], car manufacturers [[Bentley]] and [[Mercedes-Benz]] and clothing brands [[Gucci]] and [[Versace]] have all been popular subjects for rappers.

Various politicians, journalists, and religious leaders have accused rappers of fostering a culture of violence and hedonism among hip-hop listeners through their lyrics.<ref name="criticism1">{{cite news|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2088-2272091,00.html|title=The hoodie needs a daddy, not a hug|access-date=July 22, 2006|first=Jill|last=Kirby|date=July 16, 2006|newspaper=[[The Times]]|location=London|archive-date=August 8, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240808235104/https://www.thetimes.com/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="criticism2">{{cite news|url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/challenging-pepsi|title=Challenging Pepsi|access-date=July 22, 2006|first=Bill|last=O'Reilly|date=August 28, 2002|publisher=Fox News|archive-date=June 19, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060619092000/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,61546,00.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="criticism3">{{cite news|url=http://arts.guardian.co.uk/filmandmusic/story/0,,1824848,00.html|title=We need heroes|access-date=July 22, 2006|first=Dorian|last=Lynskey|date=July 21, 2006|newspaper=The Guardian|location=London|archive-date=November 22, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071122000614/http://arts.guardian.co.uk/filmandmusic/story/0,,1824848,00.html|url-status=live}}</ref> However, there are also rappers whose messages may not be in line with these views, for example [[Christian hip hop]]. Others have praised the "political critique, innuendo and sarcasm" of hip-hop music.<ref name="Sampling">Demers, Joanna. "Sampling the 1970s in Hip-Hop", Cambridge University Press, 2003, pp. 41–42.</ref>

In contrast to the more hedonistic approach of gangsta rappers, some rappers have a spiritual or religious focus. Christian rap is currently the most commercially successful form of religious rap. With Christian rappers like [[Lecrae]], [[Thi'sl]] and [[Hostyle Gospel]] winning national awards and making regular appearances on television, Christian hip hop seem to have found its way in the hip-hop family.<ref>{{cite web|title=Lecrae Wins Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song|url=http://www.grammy.com/videos/lecrae-wins-best-contemporary-christian-music-performancesong|website=Grammy.com|publisher=Grammy|access-date=March 14, 2015|archive-date=March 13, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150313111539/http://www.grammy.com/videos/lecrae-wins-best-contemporary-christian-music-performancesong|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Cummings|first1=Tony|title=Hostyle Gospel: The Illinois militants called to be servants not hip-hop stars|url=http://www.crossrhythms.co.uk/articles/music/Hostyle_Gospel_The_Illinois_militants_called_to_be_servants_not_hiphop_stars/55636/p1/|website=Crossrhythms|access-date=March 14, 2015|archive-date=March 11, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150311024756/http://www.crossrhythms.co.uk/articles/music/Hostyle_Gospel_The_Illinois_militants_called_to_be_servants_not_hiphop_stars/55636/p1/|url-status=live}}</ref> Aside from [[Christianity]], the [[The Nation of Gods and Earths|Five Percent Nation]], an [[Islamic]] [[Western esotericism|esotericist]] religious/spiritual group, has been represented more than any religious group in popular hip hop. Artists such as [[Rakim]], the members of the Wu-Tang Clan, [[Brand Nubian]], [[X-Clan]] and [[Busta Rhymes]] have had success in spreading the [[theology]] of the Five Percenters.

===Literary technique===
Rappers use the [[literary technique]]s of [[double entendre]]s, [[alliteration]], and forms of wordplay that are found in classical poetry. [[Simile]]s and [[metaphor]]s are used extensively in rap lyrics; rappers such as [[Fabolous]] and [[Lloyd Banks]] have written entire songs in which every line contains similes, whereas MCs like Rakim, [[GZA]], and Jay-Z are known for the metaphorical content of their raps. Rappers such as Lupe Fiasco are known for the complexity of their songs that contain metaphors within [[extended metaphor]]s.

===Diction and dialect===
{{Original research section|date=November 2018}}{{one source|section|date=January 2016}}
Many hip-hop listeners believe that a rapper's lyrics are enhanced by a complex vocabulary. Kool Moe Dee claims that he appealed to older audiences by using a complex vocabulary in his raps.{{sfn|Kool Moe Dee|2003|p=224}} Rap is famous, however, for having its own vocabulary—from international hip-hop slang to regional slang. Some artists, like the Wu-Tang Clan, develop an entire lexicon among their clique. [[African-American English]] has always had a significant effect on hip-hop slang and vice versa. Certain regions have introduced their unique regional slang to hip-hop culture, such as the [[Oakland, California|Bay Area]] ([[Mac Dre]], [[E-40]]), [[Houston]] ([[Chamillionaire]], [[Paul Wall]]), [[Atlanta]] ([[Ludacris]], [[Lil Jon]], [[T.I.]]), and [[Kentucky]] ([[Cunninlynguists]], [[Nappy Roots]]). [[The Nation of Gods and Earths]], aka The Five Percenters, has influenced mainstream hip-hop slang with the introduction of phrases such as "word is bond" that have since lost much of their original spiritual meaning. Preference toward one or the other has much to do with the individual; GZA, for example, prides himself on being very visual and metaphorical but also succinct, whereas underground rapper [[Daniel Dumile|MF DOOM]] is known for heaping similes upon similes. In still another variation, 2Pac was known for saying exactly what he meant, literally and clearly.

Rap music's development into [[popular culture]] began in the 1990s. The 1990s marked the beginning of an era of popular culture guided by the musical influences of [[Hip hop music|hip-hop]] and rap itself, moving away from the influences of [[rock music]].<ref name=":02">{{Cite news|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/05/1991-the-most-important-year-in-music/392642/|title=1991: The Most Important Year in Pop-Music History|last=Thompson|first=Derek|date=May 8, 2015|work=The Atlantic|access-date=November 13, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=November 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116043258/https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/05/1991-the-most-important-year-in-music/392642/|url-status=live}}</ref> As rap continued to develop and further disseminate, it went on to influence clothing brands, movies, sports, and dancing through popular culture. As rap has developed to become more of a presence in popular culture, it has focused itself on a particular demographic, adolescent and young adults.<ref name=":4">{{Cite journal|last=ANDREWS|first=VERNON|title=American Studies 111: Hip-Hop Culture Coming Soon to a Classroom Near You?|date=2006|journal=Australasian Journal of American Studies|volume=25|issue=1|pages=103–114|jstor=41054014}}</ref> As such, it has had a significant impact on the modern vernacular of this portion of the population, which has diffused throughout society.

The effects of rap music on modern vernacular can be explored through the study of [[semiotics]]. Semiotics is the study of signs and symbols, or the study of language as a system.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Key Themes in Media Theory|url=https://archive.org/details/keythemesmediath00laug|url-access=limited|last=Laughey|first=Dan|publisher=Open University Press|year=2007|isbn=978-0-335-21813-4|location=England|pages=[https://archive.org/details/keythemesmediath00laug/page/n66 54]}}</ref> French literary theorist [[Roland Barthes]] furthers this study with this own theory of myth.<ref name=":12">{{Cite book|title=Key Themes in Media Theory|url=https://archive.org/details/keythemesmediath00laug|url-access=limited|last=Laughey|first=Dan|publisher=Open University Press|year=2007|isbn=978-0-335-21813-4|location=England|pages=[https://archive.org/details/keythemesmediath00laug/page/n68 56]–59}}</ref> He maintains that the first order of signification is language and that the second is "myth", arguing that a word has both its literal meaning, and its mythical meaning, which is heavily dependent on socio-cultural context.<ref name=":12" /> To illustrate, Barthes uses the example of a rat: it has a literal meaning (a physical, objective description) and it has a greater socio-cultural understanding.<ref name=":12" /> This contextual meaning is subjective and is dynamic within society.

Through Barthes' semiotic theory of language and myth, it can be shown that rap music has culturally influenced the language of its listeners, as they influence the connotative message to words that already exist. As more people listen to rap, the words that are used in the lyrics become culturally bound to the song, and then are disseminated through the conversations that people have using these words.

Most often, the terms that rappers use are pre-established words that have been prescribed new meaning through their music, that are eventually disseminated through social spheres.<ref name=":22">{{Cite journal|last1=Maurer|first1=David W.|last2=High|first2=Ellesa Clay|date=1980|title=New Words: Where Do They Come from and Where Do They Go?|journal=American Speech|volume=55|issue=3|pages=184–194|doi=10.2307/455083|jstor=455083}}</ref> This newly contextualized word is called a neosemanticism. Neosemanticisms are forgotten words that are often brought forward from subcultures that attract the attention of members of the reigning culture of their time, then they are brought forward by the influential voices in society – in this case, these figures are rappers.<ref name=":22" /> To illustrate, the acronym [[YOLO (aphorism)|YOLO]] was popularized by rapper, actor and RnB singer [[Drake (musician)|Drake]] in 2012 when he featured it in his own song, ''[[The Motto (Drake song)|The Motto]]''.<ref name=":32">{{Cite web|url=http://www.xxlmag.com/xxl-magazine/2012/12/drake-wants-royalties-for-yolo/|title=Drake Wants Royalties for "YOLO" – XXL|website=XXL Mag|date=December 25, 2012|language=en|access-date=November 15, 2018|archive-date=June 16, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190616062423/https://www.xxlmag.com/xxl-magazine/2012/12/drake-wants-royalties-for-yolo/|url-status=live}}</ref> That year the term YOLO was so popular that it was printed on t-shirts, became a trending hashtag on [[Twitter]], and was even considered as the inspiration for several tattoos.<ref name=":32" /> However, although the rapper may have come up with the acronym, the motto itself was in no way first established by Drake. Similar messages can be seen in many well-known sayings, or as early as 1896, in the English translation of ''La Comédie Humaine'', by [[Honoré de Balzac]] where one of his free-spirited characters tells another, "You Only Live Once!".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://quoteinvestigator.com/2012/05/24/live-once/|title=You Only Live Once – YOLO – Quote Investigator|website=quoteinvestigator.com|date=May 24, 2012|language=en-US|access-date=November 15, 2018|archive-date=August 8, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240808235104/https://quoteinvestigator.com/2012/05/24/live-once/|url-status=live}}</ref> Another example of a neosemanticism is the word "broccoli". Rapper [[E-40]] initially uses the word "broccoli" to refer to marijuana, on his hit track ''Broccoli'' in 1993.<ref name=":5">{{Cite news|url=https://www.hotnewhiphop.com/happy-50th-birthday-e-40-the-king-of-slang-news.39583.html|title=Happy 50th Birthday, E-40: The King Of Slang|work=HotNewHipHop|access-date=November 15, 2018}}</ref> In contemporary society, artists [[DRAM (musician)|D.R.A.M.]] and [[Lil Yachty]] are often accredited for this slang on for [[Broccoli (song)|''their'' hit song]], also titled ''Broccoli''.<ref name=":5" />

With the rise in technology and mass media, the dissemination of subcultural terms has only become easier. [[Dick Hebdige]], author of ''[[Subculture: The Meaning of Style]]'', merits that subcultures often use music to vocalize the struggles of their experiences.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Key Theories in the Media|last=Laughey|first=Dan|publisher=Open University Press|year=2007|isbn=978-0-335-21813-4|pages=72}}</ref> As rap is also the culmination of a prevalent sub-culture in African-American social spheres, often their own personal cultures are disseminated through rap lyrics.<ref name=":4" />

It is here that lyrics can be categorized as either historically influenced or (more commonly) considered as slang.<ref name=":4" /> Vernon Andrews, the professor of the course ''American Studies 111: Hip-Hop Culture'', suggests that many words, such as "hood", "homie", and "dope", are historically influenced.<ref name=":4" /> Most importantly, this also brings forward the anarchistic culture of rap music. Common themes from rap are anti-establishment and instead, promote black excellence and diversity.<ref name=":4" /> It is here that rap can be seen to reclaim words, namely, "nigga", a historical term used to subjugate and oppress Black people in America.<ref name=":4" /> This word has been reclaimed by Black Americans and is heavily used in rap music. [[Niggaz With Attitude]] embodies this notion by using it as the first word of their influential rap group name.<ref name=":4" />