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At this point it’s very clear that hip-hop runs the world—when “the man” wants in on the action you know you’ve made it—but it’s easy to forget in these days of casual appropriation that rap has always been a very unique form of music. The rebel stepchild of pop does its own thing in its own way. Even if we can’t agree about what’s good or bad about it anymore there are definitely things we take for granted about its distinct culture. And let’s be real, it’s a blessing that there are things Taylor Swift and Katy Perry can’t/won’t/don’t do.
Written by Judnick Mayard (@Judnikki)
Rappers Put Everyone in the Crew On
Sure every rockstar buys his mother a new house when he makes it big. But in hip-hop, it’s like an episode of Oprah and her favorite things—everyone is getting a car! Rappers are expected to bring everyone with them on their way up. Nobody expects Biebz to put his high school friends and buddies from down the block on, but for someone like A$AP Rocky that’s a given.
It’s not hard to trace this back to the fact that this is a genre of music that tells stories of poverty and the will to hustle your way out the hood. Not to mention that the black culture it stems from is centered in the idea of family—genetic and communal. However, this isn’t a list of thinkpieces, so you’ll have to do the work yourself. Just make sure you don’t lose Dylan’s number should his hot fire ever make it past the bodega cypher. You never know when he could turn into the plug.
Hip-Hop Is All About Brands
Rap was the only genre that employed the use of marketing within the music. How can you tell everyone you’re living better now? Coogi sweater now. Rappers' explicit use of luxury brands to signify upward financial mobility created an entire space for those brands to trend within the youth. And they didn’t just stop with clothes; at this point if you make alcohol and a rapper hasn’t mentioned it, you barely exist. Many brands found their second chances when someone namedropped them. And let’s not forget how rappers love mentioning sports, cars, and just about anything worth knowing in pop culture today. But hey, many rappers have been able to turn all that namedropping into actual paper. Not bad for a bunch of kids out the hood.
The Girls Give It as Good as the Guys
Despite its crazy misogynist culture, rap has allowed the ladies to clap back in the same fashion as the dudes. In fact, rap is the ONLY genre where it is acceptable for women to speak explicitly and on equal par with the fellas. Women in rap are often far more raunchy than their male counterparts, and this is the genre where a man gave us the term “ratchet pussy.” It doesn’t make up for all the other shit they have to go through, but the empowerment that I personally feel when I hear Trina’s “N.A.N.N.” verse is something that no other genre could ever really recreate.
Rappers Are Expected to Write Their Own Lyrics
As a genre that was coming directly from the streets to report about the streets, rap has always been the one place where everyone has to write their own lyrics. Where other musicians can proudly tote the fact that other masterful songwriters penned their hits, the focus of rap has always been authenticity. Beyoncé and Rihanna can have Terius write every word (even if the song is a female anthem like “Single Ladies”). Hell, even Marvin Gaye had help writing “What’s Going On,” and no one gives a shit. But if Jay isn’t coming off his own dome, it’s 99 problems. Though we know that in this day and age that’s not really how it always works, the audience’s expectation has never changed.
Albums Have Tons of Different Producers
It’s much more common in popular music now, but hip-hop was one of the first genres to consistently use multiple producers on one artist’s album. As we’ve argued before, back in the days hip-hop had a very “I’m the rapper, he’s the producer” ethos, but thanks in large part to Nas’ Illmatic (as well as Biggie’s Ready to Die) that all changed in the ’90s. By the time someone like Jadakiss dropped his debut album, Kiss tha Game Goodbye, in 2001, nearly every single song on the album had a different producer. “I really think that’s the worst thing for albums ever,” said No I.D., when we interviewed him in 2012. “If you look before the ’90s, you might not find many—if any—albums with multiple producers. It just didn’t exist in the history of music."
Traditionally you had your guy, and ya’ll hit the studio. But with a form of music that has no melodic notes to most of its lyrics, the beat is extra crucial. Why limit your sound to the workings of one person? Not everyone can be Drake and Noah “40” Shebib, and it’s a practice that has since lent itself to many other forms of music because, as it turns out, everyone loves options.
And Tons of Features
A modern rap album without features is pretty rare. It wasn't always like this; back in the '80s most rap albums didn't have as many features. But sometime in the '90s—after Dr. Dre's guest-laden The Chronic—rap albums started piling up the guest verses for a variety of reasons. Nowadays an album like YG's My Krazy Life or Lil Wayne's I Am Not a Human Being II will have nearly a dozen guests on it. "Who's featured on your album?" is a question every rapper gets asked every time they're interviewed on their press run. Guest verses can launch careers; just look at what her epic verse on "Monster" did for Nicki Minaj in the early days of her career. And having high-profile features can help newcomers gain traction—where would A$AP Rocky or French Montana be if they didn't have an all-star cast help turn "Fuckin' Problems" and "Pop That" (respectively) into smash hits? In fact, here's another way to think about it: Taylor Swift’s first four albums had the same amount of guests as French or A$AP's singles.
Rappers Are Expected to Become Label Heads Once They're Successful
If a rapper can’t find other rappers to add to his empire does he even exist? The crew mentality of rap has transformed over the decades from just letting your cousins carry your blunts to the full-blown expectation of having an offshoot label. Though we are generally skeptical of anyone who is not the star in the group, rappers are expected to become label bosses almost immediately upon success. Sure, guys like Rick Ross and Lil Wayne have done a great job turning their vanity labels into full-fledged machines, and that's great. And now you have guys like J. Cole and Drake trying to get their labels popping off as well. Meanwhile, Bruno Mars—one of the biggest pop stars in the country—just keeps doing what he does.
Mixtapes Are a Thing
We're not even gonna get into the whole history of mixtapes (or bring up the fact that it's the greatest misnomer in all of music), but it's important to note how pivotal a role mixtapes play for rappers these days. Hardly any new rapper can just come out and drop a debut album. Instead, they spend years dropping mixtapes that help them secure deals, build buzz, and win fans. Name just about any young, popping rapper right now—whether it's Wiz Khalifa or Drake or Mac Miller—and their fans will point to the mixtape that made them hot in the first place. Although mixtapes have gained some steam in the R&B world in the past few years (especially because Frank Ocean and the Weeknd were able to launch their careers off of incredible mixtapes), they remain a largely hip-hop thing. Case in point: Can you name an Arianna Grande mixtape?