Why I think Rap Music Should Be Given Away for Free

I was sifting through YouTube videos, looking for BeardyMan videos (or it may have been something else...I can't quite remember). As I watching one of the videos I skimmed through the comments and read one that was a response to someone talking about music piracy and it said something to the effect of

"artistic piracy? man they can keep rap if thats what you mean."

This got me to thinking. (BTW I checked the history in Firefox. That comment came from this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sbrilFmqVc&NR=1 ) Why should rappers get paid for the "music" they make? Is it because they write socially fueled commentary on how hard it is to be a black man in America's society, being racially profiled and talk about crack addiction? Then yes, by all means, you should be making bank. But this is looking at it from a writer's standpoint. Let's give this a spin around to get a look at the backside.

If you listen to half of today Rap music, and by listen I mean actively listen; don't just put it on to hear the back beat and some guy with a southern drawl and bad grammar skills talk about the girls he fucked after he left 'da' club, you'll find that the majority of the music or "samples" that they use are just that: samples. As a budding musician we in the music world call this PLAGIARISM. The fact of the matter is that the majority of rap artists, and I'm using that word very loosely in this context, do not write or compose the backing tracks to what they rap over.

Now, hold on; before you get your doo rag in a bunch and start bustin' caps in ma ass let me set something straight:
Mos Def is an artist. He at least played bass, percussion and keyboards on some of the track from his 1999 release "Black on Both Sides" album. Granted, he used samples but the point is that the man had some kind of musical involvement in his work. And Mos Def I can respect because not only is he a rapper but he can also SING, rather well too, as shown on Umi Says of said album and also on the jazz record "Songs from the Analog Playground" on the track Creole. He is also an actor who has come out in dramas, thrillers and comedies (The Italian Job, Cadillac Records, Be Kind Rewind, etc.).

-So let me get this straight. You say that rappers aren't really musicians unless they do alot of work in different fields?-

No, not at all. I'm saying that most rappers aren't musicians because they don't have a musical bone in their body. William S. Boroughs and his spoken word album "Dead City Radio." As far as I know, old Billy S. couldn't tell you what the difference was between Tuvan and Mongolian throat singing. If you think about it this could technically be considered a rap album...ok maybe not by your standards, but hear me out. The musicians who came out and wrote/performed the music were utilized the same way that samples and DJs are being used today in rap music: Boroughs asked them to write music, they obliged and spoke words over it. This is essentially rap music, sans the rhythm and explicit use of the word 'nigga' and 'ho.'

-Hey dawg, don' bee heyt-in ahown rep mewsek. Iz mee bee'n mas'elf, 'naaahmehn? Iz laik...ya no, nigguhz bee trah'n tuh heyt ahown rep mewsek cuuhz theyee bee trip'n, naaahmehn?

Hey don't get me wrong! I love listening to old school Snoop Dogg and Bone Thugs as much as anyone else. But from a musicians standpoint, the creativity is raw shit and full of old ideas. There's very few, if not anymore, original and fresh rappers coming out now a days. We seem to be going through a trend where everything must be Vocoded and Melodyne (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melodyne)is a must-have for any rapper looking to try and create screeching noises that they consider singing. I've tried to avoid blatant profanity and bluntness, but FUCK people like Lil' Wayne, Kayne West and any half minded ex-crack dealer who comes out of the hood, calling themselves the greatest rapper of all time. There's no way, pard; they're all dead.

Rappers are essentially writers and authors. Modern day street poets who regale us with tales of promiscuity, the party lifestyle and other useless shit that we Americans eat up, pass through our system, pick it up, mold it into the same thing and eat it again. What sets today's rappers apart from actual poets and writers, aside from grammar skills, is one very important thing

Talent.

Whatever happened to being awarded and praised for being something original and fresh and thought-provoking? I always thought the goal of anything was to be yourself and, especially if you're an artist or musician, give the audience a way to glimpse into your mind and your very soul as a human to see what you're made of. But by the looks of today all we're made up of is Crystal, McDonald's and Sex (I capitalize the word Sex because who hasn't capitalized Sex?) and other things that only distract us but for a moment from the moral squalor and depravity our society has become. I don't get it. Maybe I'm not supposed to. But to those of you with half a brain and who actually sat through this rant with your mind opened and saw all of the facts thrown in front of you...

Would you really spend $14.75 on this?