Lifestyle, Opinions

Spectacle: Killer music, a heavier censorship law is needed

Almost everyone has listened to a song where they didn’t know what the lyrics were saying. Or, many people are guilty of singing along too. Hip-hop music has been the center of controversy ever since its birth. Some of the lyrics can have a negative on impact the minds of our young generation. It has ultimately even led to higher crime rates and deaths in many cities across America.

Music is soul. It has become a part of our daily lives. Music is everywhere. Hip-Hop music has been around for over 40 years and it is embraced as a culture or lifestyle. However, the birth of “Gangsta” rap as a genre stemming from Hip-Hop came during the 1980s. This type of Hip-Hop music reflects the poor lifestyles of young African-American kids growing up in areas known as the “ghettos” all across America. Therefore, there are a few that have taken this lifestyle and voiced it for the world to be heard through music.

These “Gangsta” rap artists talk about how they grew up and what they did in their music. They talk about stealing cars as bonus points to becoming accepted, using guns to kill or for protection from other gang members, and selling drugs on their streets to make money. What these artists don’t realize is the fact that their lyrics actually influence young kids growing up in these neighborhoods where they are exposed to this lifestyle.

Therefore, crime rates are slowly on the rise again. According to ABC News, the crime rate across America went up %15 last year. However, for awhile the crime rate was slowly falling. The LAPD, Los Angeles Police Department, considered Los Angeles the gang capital of the world since there are over 450 active gangs in the city. However, even cities like this have seen a decline in crime rates lately.

Plus, not all of these so called rappers have the intention of influencing kids to commit crimes. Some of this music actually reflects the lifestyle and talks about success in order to make it out of their poverty stricken lives. It is hard for some people to see the metaphor behind some of these rappers and what they represent. There a few that can actually be seen as heroes to people growing up in these neighborhoods. Some rappers go out to their communities and give back by giving money to those in need or buying essential necessities for those they grew up together with.

But music like “Gangster” rap is still playing on radios, YouTube, and iTunes today that not every city is seeing a decline in crime rates. Chicago has now become the murder capital of the world. According to statistics gathered by the FBI, Chicago has the highest homicide rate at 500 reports surpassing big cities like New York and Detroit. Both of these cities have been at the top of the list for highest murder rates before.

Chicago now holds the record of 500 homicide reports in one year. The FBI claims that %69 of the reports came at the hands of guns. Many of these rap songs talk about using guns to kill so is it hard to see the analogy?

The music industry needs to keep a closer watch on putting out this type of music for the people. Especially with youths, they must have better censorship laws so young kids will not be able to listen to songs that are vulgar and talk about killing people or selling drugs instead of going to school. Music like this should only be available to adults or teens 18 and older.

One Comment

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    This is incredibly racist. Crime rates have been on a downward trend for over a decade now. To attribute false statistics to a genre of music is despicable, especially with no proof, data, or statistics to back up your claims.

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