Hip-hop should return to the social activism of the past, in lieu of the lewdness of the present

Poetry is essentially a puzzle, the words have to be moved around a million times until they fit and the message is delivered in a descriptive way.  Rapping is a beautiful platform to recite poetry, except the foundation is slowly fading away.

In the year 2013 we have artists who want to “F*** every girl in the world” and who “Love bad B*****” and that is their “F***** problem.” Where is the substance? Where are the words that will leave us thinking?

Poetry in Hip Hop was a must in the old days you had to have a message and know why you were saying the things that you were. Tupac Shakur was known for his thug style appearance and bad boy attitude but he was also a poet. A poet in his words and in the music he recorded.

“Brenda’s Got A Baby” by Shakur is a song about teen pregnancy. Brenda doesn’t want her parents to know she is pregnant because the father has left her and she has no one to turn to. She tries to sell her body and drugs and in the end throws her baby in the trashcan. This kind of music in Hip Hop brings awareness to the struggles people not only in poverty but also in the world as a whole.

Shakur also has a song called “wonder why they call you B****” expressing that a young lady displays behavior such as promiscuity and using men for money.

Lupe Fiasco, Chicago rapper, has made controversy by not “dumbing down” his lyrics but by leaving his fans with things to actually contemplate on. In his record “B**** Bad” fiasco raps to how women are trying to take the “B” word back but have it offensive only when they seem fit.

To the plain eye it is just a way to get record sells but fiasco wanted to provoke thought on how we can change the way we see ourselves. This is the old hip-hop, the hip hop that has a impact on lives and can maybe change the world.  Rapping is a different version of reciting poetry, lets push to have our music leave us with plenty of thoughts and sweet words of wisdom.