Why young audiences flock to hip-hop music

Hip-hop has always been controversial. Many say that’s the appeal and true art has no boundaries. Others think it promotes a culture of toxic ideologies including misogyny, violence, and degeneracy. When breaking down the influence of rap music and artists who helped push the culture to where it is today, you can’t forget pillar household names like Jay Z, 50 Cent, TuPac, Nas, and so much more.

To understand the impact of hip-hop culture I interviewed someone who experienced it at its birth, my father. Robert migrated to America from East Africa in the 90s when hip-hop was first making its cultural debut and setting in stone the culture it would have a reputation for today, “a lot was happening at once. But I remember listening to Tupac and Biggie’s songs, it was different and fresh. The messaging wasn’t always clean but the point got across. Hip-hop in the 90s impacted my perspective of black culture in America in a positive light because those artists were revolutionary, from Ice Cube down to Foxy Brown and lil Kim.” 

Although rap has its historical beefs, what exactly would it be without those controversies? When Jay Z created I Got Myself A Gun as a rebuttal to Nas’ Ether diss track, or 50 Cents rap beef with Ja Rule, let alone the infamous Hit em Up response to Who Shot Ya… these moments created a solution to drama in a way where the most talented artist walked away with the title of just that. The beginning of hip hop culture has its flaws just like any other genre, but many young people today flock to it for its raw delivery that doesn’t hold back. The appeal is no sugar coating, from the actual songs to the rise to fame. Women like lil Kim, Foxy Brown, Eve, Nicki Minaj, etc… who overcame many obstacles in the music industry to be considered one of the greats today, and most of them were only teenagers when they made their debut.