Rap Vs Poetry Essay example -- essays research papers

"When I first started rapping, me and a couple brothers would any sit near my place freestyling while someone beat boxed. I even used to tell all the girls that I was a poet. They seemed to find it a little more than touching than a rapper" (Prince Paul, The Source 16) The lyrics of rappers are very similar to the words of Black poets. It is argued as to wether or not rap is a possible form of poetry. Both discuss similar subjects, deliver in the selfsame(prenominal) style and use the same type of language in their writings. When looking at a meter or reading rap lyrics, distinguishing between the two can be difficult, if not impossible.Both Black rappers and Black poets write about the same subjects. For example the rap group NWA, and the poet Alice Walker, both cover the topic of being from a minority race. Alice Walker states in one of her poems that "there is no artificial satellite stranger than the one im from" (Walker, "Note Passed To Superman&quo t 18-19). What Alice is saying is that the world is strange because people judge others by their skin color. The approach NWA takes is a more assuming one. In the song "Fuck Tha Police", NWA says " Young nigga got it bad cuz im brown / And not the other color so police think / They engender the authority to kill a minority" (NWA "Fuck Tha Police" 3-5). Another common subect between Black poets and rappers is "ghetto life". Nikki Giovanis poem called "For Saundra" is about how she is going to write a poem about trees and blue skies. Then she realized that she was living in a "concrete jungle".      i wanted to write / a poem / that rhymes / but revolution doesnt lend / itself to bebopping / then my neighbor / who thinks i hate / asked -do u ever write / tree poems- i like trees / so i thought / ill write a beautiful geen tree poem / peeked from my window / to check the image / noticed the school yard was covered / with asphalt / no green - no trees grow / in Manhattan / then, well, i thought the sky / ill do a big blue sky poem / but all the clouds have winged / low since no-Dick was elected / so i thought again / and it occurred to me / maybe i shouldnt write / at all / but clean my gun / and check my kerosene supply (Giovanni "For Saundra")What all this is about is simply the reality of the urban ghettos. Gangstarr als... .... To all my brothers in the streets / I go to sleep u feel you have to hustle cause your peeps gotta eat / Makin moves right and exact dont wanna see you layin flat / Dont wanna see ya catch a bullet smutty / If we dont build well be destroyed / Thats a challenge we face in the race of poor and unemployed (Gangstarr "In Memory Of")This song by Gangstarr is about life on the streets and what one must do to survive on the streets. The messages found in theses rap songs and poems are important messages that must be learned to. They mouth about what is happening in society and what we have to do to change it or in some cases stop it.     In conclusion, the lyrics of rappers are very same to the spoken words of Black poets. There can be comparisons made in the style of writing, the subjects, language and the messages behind the writings. All of these similarities make rap a viable form of poetry that is enjoyed and understood by young people in todays society. Todays teenagers, in many cases, would, not read poetry and comprehend the message, but, they would listen to rap and be able to understand the idea the artist is trying to get across.