The pros and cons of Rap Music Rap music is a black cultural expression that prioritizes black voices from urban America, and it is a form of rhymed storytelling accompanied by highly rhythmic, electronically based music. It is a form of expression that finds its roots imbedded deep within ancient African culture and oral tradition. While most rappers tend to be black, white affluent youth is raps strongest market. Raps strongest selling points are that the music can be a uniting force for white and black people, a forum for creative expression, and a media for communication of positive messages to a varied and impressionable audience. The weakest aspects of rap music are that its lyrics have a propensity to be violent in nature, and are correlated to violent crime, and that it reinforces harmful health messages related to sex and drug abuse. Rap music has become a universal form of art. Rap music has spread into the suburbs where affluent white youth are among its greatest supporters. In a world where racial segregation is rampant, an understanding of the perspective of other races is crucial in bridging the gap between the races. Rap music contains all the trials and tribulations of the African race including oppression, police brutality, poverty, and so on. If white young people have gained an appreciation of the struggles of black life, maybe the first step toward racial unity has already taken place. Rap music is a release of creative expression. Rappers express their feelings and thoughts of resentment towards society and politics through their lyrics. James Gilligan M.D. states that youth and maleness are among the determinants of violent behavior. Youth, maleness, blackness, and poverty are descriptions for the bulk of the rap artists of today. With these four factors stacked up against rappers, it is probably best that rap music exists as a way for these young men to express their anger in a song instead of on the streets. At the same time, music is important to teenagers identity and helps them define important social and subcultural boundaries. Rap music can also be used as an effective means of communication. Rap brings together a mixture of some of the most complex social, cultural, and political issues in contemporary American society. It currently reflects a diversity of opinions, lifestyles, and feelings. Because its listeners are diverse and receptive, positive messages can be sent and received easily to people of all backgrounds. Will Smith, for example, is a rapper who has consistently produced music with inspirational significance, and has publicly announced that he will never make gangster rap. Even notorious gangster rapper Tupac Shakur has made positive songs, one of which is Hold Yah Head Up High which praises black women and the role they play in African-American society. These positive songs can be influential on its audience. According to John Leland of Newsweek, "rappers should be success stories. They are young men, usually of humble beginnings, who through sheer talent and hard work rose to the mansion on the hill. These are complex and creative individuals. Rap musicians are often idolized by their fans, and their rise to fame often takes on a fairytale quality. Their stories can motivate their listeners to also work hard and believe in themselves. One weakness of rap is that its lyrics usually suggest violence and other unlawful acts for a solution to problems. Many believe that the positive portrayal of violence and sex in rap music has negative effects on its listeners. Due to this widespread perception, many studies have systematically examined rap music for evidence of its negative effects. Violent crime increased by over 500 percent during the three decades ending in 1990. There may be a host of factors contributing to this social pathology, but "violence in the media" is almost certainly one of them. To date, no studies have documented a cause-and-effect relationship between sexually explicit or violent lyrics and adverse behavioral effects. A possible explanation for this lack of finding is that teenagers often do not know the lyrics or fully comprehend their meaning. For example, in one study only 30% of teenagers knew the lyrics to their favorite songs, and their comprehension varied greatly. Rap music video formats are popular among children and adolescents. When music lyrics are illustrated in music videos, their potential impact is magnified. In addition, music videos are self-reinforcing: if viewers hear a song after having seen the video version, they immediately "flash back" to the visual imagery in the video. Music videos represent a relatively new art form, and often contain an excess of sexism, violence, substance abuse, suicides, and inappropriate sexual behavior. With 70% of American households receiving cable television, most teenagers have access to Music Television (MTV) and VH-1 and watch an average of a half hour to 2 hours of music videos daily. Content analyses indicate that up to 75% of concept rap music videos (those involving a theme instead of a concert performance) contain sexually suggestive material. More than half of rap videos contain violence, which often includes acts committed against women. Women are frequently portrayed in a condesc ending manner. Alcohol and tobacco use are also glamorized. As with music lyrics, teenagers ability to comprehend and interpret music videos may vary widely and may represent an important variable in their potential impact. A handful of experimental studies indicate that rap music videos may have a significant behavioral impact by desensitizing viewers to violence and by making teenagers more likely to approve of premarital sex. In one study, eliminating access to MTV decreased the frequency of violent acts among teenagers and young adults in a locked treatment facility. In some cases lyrics communicate potentially harmful health messages. Such lyrics are of special concern in todays environment, which poses unprecedented threats to the health and well-being of adolescents. Pregnancy, drug use, AIDS (and other sexually transmitted diseases), injuries, homicide, and suicide have all become part of the landscape of everyday life for many American teens. One can see, therefore, that rap music has its benefits as well as its drawbacks. It can be positive for its listeners and also sometimes negative. If used properly, rap music can have some exciting possibilities for racial understanding, creative expression and effective communication; however, most rappers have followed the existing trends for popular culture with the use of sexual and violent messages in their art, which can sometimes be harmful to society.