Gangs and Rap Music

Gangs and Hip Hop music has always been affiliated in conversations about both. A lot of people believe that Hip Hop is completely responsible for the rise in gang violence since Hip Hop was founded. A lot of people even believe that all the popular Hip Hop artists are, or were, in a gang. While Hip Hop lyrics and gang activity have been linked together over the years, they are not as closely related as some may think. The Game, Lil Wayne, and Snoop Dogg are a few of the very popular mainstream artists that do actually have ties with street gangs.

Gangs are usually blamed for most of the violence in the inner cities in America. The most significant gangs exist in large cities and usually include people of minority backgrounds. The Rap industry mostly includes musicians that are in a minority ethnic background. Gang members often listen to Hip Hop and dress in the urban clothing style, which is what Hip Hop musicians usually wear. Hip Hop has produced many songs that are considered violent. Does this mean that Hip Hop music and gangs are directly related?

Gangs have been established many times before anybody ever thought of Hip Hop. So, how would Hip Hop be responsible for gang activity at all? Some people will argue that Rap music have evolved gangs into something even more violent than before. However, I do not believe that the music created by popular artists influences any gang activity. Some artists do display gang affiliation within their music though.

A lot of the mainstream artists lived in the ghettos as children. Most of their lives have been influenced by street gangs in some way or another. Emcees have the tendency to portray their life story on an instrumental. If they lived in the ghetto, then they are definitely going to talk about the things they did, and seen, when they lived there.

Rap music gets an unfair blame when it comes to violent crimes performed in the inner city. In reality, Hip Hop has nothing to do with what goes on in the streets. It may talk about violent crimes but that doesn't make people commit them. The blame should never be placed on music. Call Of Duty displays war scenes and violent acts in the video games. So, why isn't Call of Duty blamed for every war? I hope that analogy paints a clearer picture for all those that still don't believe.

If you would like to learn more in relation to the Rap music genre, check out OH Hip Hop. OH Hip Hop has a mixture of features, like the Latest Hip Hop News. It also has a full Hip Hop Clothing section.