Gangsta rap is a fantasy of (mostly) masculine power: fighting danger, drinking and smoking pot at will, getting laid effortlessly, defying authority, getting rich without being chained to a desk. But listen I do, because why would I want to deprive myself of the music? I myself have been known to climb mountains and play the electric guitar, and the fact that GZA is directing his ire specifically at me makes listening to the Wu a complex experience. If you’re a teenager wanting to annoy your parents, there’s no better method than to blast the Wu-Tang Clan, especially if your dad is a mountain climber who plays the electric guitar. It’s also dramatically more offensive, but that’s part of the allure. It has grittier beats, denser and more ambitious rhymes, more pointed political and social commentary, and darker humor. So why is gangsta rap cooler than Will Smith or Drake? The big thing is that gangsta rap tends to be musically stronger and more creative. It boils down to the fact that the suburbs are lame, and hip-hop is cool. So I think I have some pretty good insight into why white kids in the suburbs like hip-hop, especially of the gangsta variety. As an adult, I’m more centered and confident, and have resumed loving it. As a teenager, I succumbed to rockism, probably due to social pressure from our racist society, and pretended not to like hip-hop anymore. My social circle included very suburban white kids and very urban nonwhite kids. I attended a very fancy school, but traveled there by public bus and/or subway through other tough neighborhoods. I lived in a posh little corner of an otherwise pretty tough neighborhood. My experience growing up was an odd blend of the city and the suburbs. I’m not from the suburbs, I’m from New York City. However if you are still looking for more information then you can contact us through one of our preferred contact methods.A followup post to White People And Hip-Hopįirst, a little on my background. Hopefully that has clarified things for you and as was previously mentioned if there is something that you aren't sure whether you need or not it's usually safer to leave cookies enabled in case it does interact with one of the features you use on our site.
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