Introduction
Rap lyrics have continuously made a large impact on the lives of people living in the North American ghettos in both positive and negative ways. Rap music, intrinsically has generally created a positive base to which people of the North American ghetto can relate and express their feelings and values towards things like mainstream culture. Kubrin refers to rap music as “The CNN for black America” (2005), it keeps the nation updated with the struggles of the ghetto. Although the notion of rap music being something that has been put out to ultimately represent these communities sometimes plays a complicated role in putting out honest and truthful representations of these communities, rap including gangsta rap and drill music often …show more content…
Gangsta rap and drill music has become almost like a culture in these neighborhoods, it is a norm to be listening and learning from this music and so when rappers are promoting this music it is easily influencing adolescents to behave in this way so they too promote a tough persona (Kirk & Papachristos, 2011). Anderson argues how the street codes that are made more evident and pushed forward through rap lyrics are very influential on adolescent behaviors, and tend to strengthen the street codes, leaving them to continue and become more and more popularized. As Kubrin (2005) states, many of the individuals who usually are influenced and act upon these street codes are usually young males who are racialized and usually belong to the African American community. In songs like J.Cole’s Little Ghetto Nigga he promotes the idea that “So everything we learn came from rappers, not teachers/ Cause if we can 't relate, then how the hell you gonna reach us (J.Cole Lyrics- Lil Ghetto Nigga,, 2016).” This verse is a very informative one, despite the very famous view that Black people or working class people from ghetto neighborhoods do not help themselves, J.Cole here announces that even if they try they cannot, simply because no outsiders know exactly what they are going
Rap lyrics have continuously made a large impact on the lives of people living in the North American ghettos in both positive and negative ways. Rap music, intrinsically has generally created a positive base to which people of the North American ghetto can relate and express their feelings and values towards things like mainstream culture. Kubrin refers to rap music as “The CNN for black America” (2005), it keeps the nation updated with the struggles of the ghetto. Although the notion of rap music being something that has been put out to ultimately represent these communities sometimes plays a complicated role in putting out honest and truthful representations of these communities, rap including gangsta rap and drill music often …show more content…
Gangsta rap and drill music has become almost like a culture in these neighborhoods, it is a norm to be listening and learning from this music and so when rappers are promoting this music it is easily influencing adolescents to behave in this way so they too promote a tough persona (Kirk & Papachristos, 2011). Anderson argues how the street codes that are made more evident and pushed forward through rap lyrics are very influential on adolescent behaviors, and tend to strengthen the street codes, leaving them to continue and become more and more popularized. As Kubrin (2005) states, many of the individuals who usually are influenced and act upon these street codes are usually young males who are racialized and usually belong to the African American community. In songs like J.Cole’s Little Ghetto Nigga he promotes the idea that “So everything we learn came from rappers, not teachers/ Cause if we can 't relate, then how the hell you gonna reach us (J.Cole Lyrics- Lil Ghetto Nigga,, 2016).” This verse is a very informative one, despite the very famous view that Black people or working class people from ghetto neighborhoods do not help themselves, J.Cole here announces that even if they try they cannot, simply because no outsiders know exactly what they are going