The Online Newspaper of Lakewood High School

Lakewood Times

Lakewood Times

Lakewood Times

    Rap’s Restyling

    Raps+Restyling

    Music, especially rap, has immensely changed over time.  The style, the speed, the rhyme scheme. Rap has changed to adjust to the liking of people as time goes on in many ways compared to Rock or Country music which has stayed the same ever since it was first recorded and performed.

    Eminem has been known as one of the most lyrically talented rappers of all time with his way of building a story through limited time and limited words. For example in a song he released in 2000 called “Stan,” he tells the story in the point of view of an obsessed fan and then changes back to his point of view on it.

    “Stan” being one of his older songs is a lot different than the kind of music he makes now. A song released on his newest album called “Godzilla” is a lot different. The beats to the song are a lot slower, his voice is more auto-tuned to fit new style of rap, and his lyrics are more about showing off what he has rather than talking about his difficulties. This exposes the idea that rap has become a way to flaunt what you have rather than to express your feelings.

    When asked what he thinks about rap now compared to back then, Anthony Adkins, a senior at Lakewood High School, said, “I feel like rap now has more of  a mumble style to it and that the lyrics aren’t as meaningful as they used to be. Rap is losing its meaning in my opinion.”

    Whether it is for better or for worse, rap is changing constantly. Eminem is just one of the many examples of rappers changing their style. To many these changes lead to a loss of meaning which isn’t good for the future of rap.

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