Oooo. Daft Punks' "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" is the jam. Nice one, TruthElixirX. :) We can get to Chuck D later too. :classic:

*Speaking of Cat Stevens (Yusuf Islam), well he's not the best example of promoting positive music. He was after all banned from the U.S. for supporting terrorism and promoting anti-government activities.

It is but like with anything else there are different ways to express it. Music is no different. For example!

A lot of rap artists used this bridge to move party goers. The lyrics had a positive message. While the song below was not the first rap song, it was the first rap song to hit the national scene:

Rapper's Delight (click to review the lyrics)

It was over a 15 minute of non-stop, partying record. The rhymes were dropped over the samples of Chic's "Good Times". The lyrics weren't the best but the vibe of the song made you want to get up and dance. It was feel good music...And this is how it all began.

There's much more to the Old School days and if continue onward we can tap into the era of the Conscience and Stop The Violence Movement.

Don't get to excited, first and foremost I'm a metal head. :cool:

Satanist! Hehe. JK. :D

ahaha, word. yea, i grew up around rap and hiphop...i lived in the ghetto as a very small child...lol. so, thats what i adapted to.....:).

actually i am. ;). ive been writing songs and bouncing them to beats since i was younger.

and no, not all rap is about promoting violence. will smith doesnt cuss in his lyrics, or attack anyone. hes a rapper. your thinking of "gangster rap" as freestyles stated. ice cube, nwa, etc....were trying to tell yall that not all rap is the same...alot of underground rappers bring alot of different stuff to the tables, not talking about burning a cat or drive-by shootings. and the people that live nextdoor to my work stand outside all day listening to rock and roll LOUD as can be and start trouble all the time...thats like saying if u watch a friday the 13th movie ur going to turn into jason and murder all. lol. ive listened to the hardest rap and im still the nicest kid....aint change me none. all rock is to me is a guy with loud music saying his girlfriends name over and over....lol. but i dont say that...dont hate on it if u dont understand the culture. period. :)

No, I'm not being generic. Most maintream Rap is vioent. Sure, there might be a few off-shoots from the mainstream, that don't advocate violence (although I have yet to here any that don't).

No, just because it is main stream doesn't mean it is the largest branch. Popular != largest.

You want some? Check out J-5, Public Enemy, Fort Minor, Will Smith, The Roots, need I name more?

No, you go ahead. If I want to listen to talking, I'll just make a phone call. :)

In other words, someone talking over a tune (or sort of tune) ........ :banana:

Exactly, I beat you on one front and instead of admiting it, you just switch to a completely different thing.

I've listened to most everything out there (almost every genre - including oldies ... no not 70s oldies, but 40s, and 50s oldies). I've listened every generation's style of what was considered "rock." I've listened to jazz, soul, rap, r&b, hip-hop, blues, country, bluegrass, instrumental, classical, rock, alternative, christian, gospel, most anything out there - I've listened to or at least sampled. I can't truly say that anything really stands out that has truly made an impact as a song by itself. However, when paired with an emotion, then we have a different outlook. Such as Wind of Change (Scorpions) when the wall came down, things of that nature - that's what makes an impact. It's not the music itself, but the association of the music to the emotion. I'm not an expert on music, but this is my opinion. ~Snarf lol