So you want to rap?

[Yelling At Cats 10]

So, you want to learn how to rap?

 

Well so does the thousands of other bronies / aspiring vocalists and musicians. Everyone wants to rap these days it seems, yet everyone runs in circles asking mundane questions about rhyming, flow, and generic lyricism. So what makes you so special to the music community? Well, hopefully you'll discover that while reading this. This is a very (rather brief) lesson on rapping, and I'll try to give my experiences and techniques in for understanding.

 

Ready? Let's begin.

 

WHAT THE HELL IS RAP MUSIC?

 

There's many sects and styles of rap, so this question is very generalized. Rap is a very cultured, different, vibrant class of music with a wide spectrum of starts such as Notorious B.I.G.; Tupac; Slaughterhouse; Hopsin; let's just say there's a lot of good rappers. However, what sounds good to you is completely subjective.

 

Think of rapping as a colloquial language -- we'll get into that in a second. I highly recommend listening to a lot of rap and the examples I provided before you move on. Get comfortable. Here we go bitches.

 

WHAT THE HELL IS LYRICISM?

 

Lyricism is basically a colloquial language, meaning that A LOT of it is metaphorical, and can be exaggerated at points. Read up on this to grasp the concept more.

 

Knowing this, think of it like you're giving a speech in poetic form; you want this essential speech to be meaningful and send a message, whether it's a good or bad one. Meaning is VERY important in your lyricism. For this, I will provide two examples. One of an actual artist, and an example made by me.

 

Heather Nicole was written by Hopsin to apologize to his girlfriend after the bad stuff that happened between him and her got out of hand. He vented emotionally in the song and frankly, it speaks for itself as an example. The message is precise, and the lyricism clearly shows this.

 

I will write a simple 8 bar example on this set of emotion in relation to my Everfree mishap, because I'm still upset about it and the message that I am conveying is IMPORTANT to me.

 

Sometimes guys I just feel like shit, I wanna punch out of my life and quit

I try to be funny, but that doesn’t hit, I try to speak out and all I get is spit

I gave you gifts now the hand is bit, I gave you my heart and my heart got ripped

I’ve been holding the knife so long to my wrist but suicide is something that I can’t commit

 

And I can’t admit that I wanna fit in but those silly thoughts never set out well

I try to be strong for those who lay around me; even though I know that my life is Hell

I am awkward and I do act silly, and yes I even messed and fucked myself

But no matter all this I would never try to push it all away from me and on someone else

 

I know I messed up at Everfree by being unprofessional, and in these 8 bars I vent out how I feel. The lyrics explain this and it goes together like I am speaking to you directly.

 

All in all, lyricism is a key factor.

 

DO MAKE LYRICS THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO YOU. PHRASE THEM CORRECTLY AND MAKE SURE THEY FIT LIKE PIECES IN A PUZZLE.

 

DON'T MAKE LYRICS THAT DON'T MAKE SENSE, AND DON'T MAKE LYRICS THAT MEAN NOTHING TO YOU.

 

WHAT THE HELL IS CADENCE?

 

Simply put, Cadence is not to be mistaken with Flow (we'll get into this later) as it is simply infections on your voice and the swing if your lyrics.

 

Think of it like singing a song. You notice how the rhythm accounts throughout the verses and how they seem to fit snugly in the metronome? That's cadence.

 

Let's say you had a BPM of 60. You wouldn't want to rap at 60 BPM would you? Fuck no you wouldn't because that's slower than a snail buried in concrete. What do you do? RAP AT 120 BPM. You double-time it buddy. It's the same as doing a song at 160 BPM; you have a choice: rap at 160 BPM or cut the rhythm in half and rap at 80 BPM. It doesn't work on all cases and it relies on the beat that you're working with, so remember that.

 

Simply put, think of Cadence as another word for Rhythm.

 

DO UTILIZE TIME CHANGES AND USE A METRONOME REGARDLESS FOR YOUR CADENCE. MAKE SURE TO HAVE IT FIT SNUGLY AND ON TIME WITH THE BEAT.

 

DON'T TRY TO ALIENATE THIS CONCEPT. IT IS IMPORTANT AND ESSENTIAL.

 

WHAT THE HELL IS TONALITY?

 

Tonality is the byproduct of emotion in your lyrics. Feel sad? Good, now sound sad in your lyrics. Every syllable in your song should inflect the message and story you're trying to convey to the listener.

 

It's as simple as that. Here's a exercise I like to do for tonality.

 

I practice my emotions. If I feel sad, I write 8 bars. Angry, 8 bars. Happy, 8 bars -- you get it just go do it already.

 

DO HAVE REAL, RAW EMOTION IN YOUR SONGS.

 

DON'T FAKE WHAT YOU FEEL. IF THE EMOTION ISN'T IMPORTANT TO YOU, DON'T DO IT.

 

HOW THE HELL DO I RHYME PROPERLY?

 

Okay, I get this one a lot. Questions like these and various others are actually really simple to answer.

 

You don't.

 

Rhyming is heavily dependent on what you're comfortable with. It depends mostly in the structure of your song and how you wish to carry it out. All I can advise on this is to have consistent end-rhymes, meaning that the rhymes at the end of each of your bar are concise, structured, and not awkwardly placed.

 

For example, let's use Guncakes for reference:

 

Drop through the back door, trouble's stewin'

Got a new batch of cupcakes brewin'

It's a little true that we're good at screwing

Colts and mares with the stuff we're doing

 

Hey, hey, sec, this gun won't budge

Colt 45 is in the fudge

You may wanna settle just a little grudge

Wink wink, nudge nudge, and hey, we don't judge

 

Now, what I like to do for my rhyming is organizing it. If we were to represent the rhyming in these 8 bars with letters, the end rhymes would look like:

 

A

A

A

A

 

B

B

B

B

 

THAT IS CONSISTENCY AND STRUCTURE. It doesn't matter if you have it as AABB, ABAB, or whatever. Keep it consistent. Don't do something like ABBB or ABCD. It rarely works.

 

As for the actual rhyming, this goes hand in hand with tonality and the inflections of your voice. You can make words rhyme together such as please and ease, quick and admit, and so forth. They can be blurred together with pronunciation. This is called 'rhyming close words or syllables' and A LOT of rappers do this. Remember that words that rhyme perfectly are called PURE RHYMES and words that rhyme a bit or sorta rhyme are called IMPURE RHYMES.

 

DO KEEP A SOLID STRUCTURE FOR RHYMING AND TRANSITION IT WITH EASE.

 

DON'T BE SLOPPY WITH YOUR END-RHYMES AND DON'T KEEP AN INCONSISTENT, JITTERY STRUCTURE FOR YOUR END-RHYMES.

 

 

WHAT THE HELL IS FLOW?

 

Flow is basically how your words and rhymes go together. I hear so much pseudo-interpretations about it 'coming from the heart' and other vage definitions that make it seem like a religion based off of Scientology.

 

Stop that.

 

Flow is basically the rhythm of your vocals. Think of it like another, more dynamic instrument to your beat. It's like Cadence and Lyricism got drunk with Rhyming and hooked up with the folks over at Bronycon, and well, they had an orgy. A balls-deep orgy.

 

For practice, get a

and spit fucking syllables at it. Speak gibberish. Go da-da-da-da-da-da at whatever rhythm comes to mind. I know, you'll look like a god damned idiot who's speaking in tongues but IT JUST WORKS AND IT HELPS SO MUCH.

 

After you get the flow down, work on your lyrics! I'm sure many can attest to hearing me do this when I'm working on songs. It's a good practice and technique to have for perfect your flow.

 

DO MAKE YOUR LYRICS FLOW TOGETHER, MEANING THAT THEY HAVE PROPER TRANSITIONING FROM ONE VERSE TO ANOTHER. MAKE IT WORK. USE A METRONOME TO PERFECT FLOW AND MAKE SURE IT IS ON TIME.

 

DON'T BE STUPID AND MAKE A FLOW THAT DOESN'T FIT WITH THE RHYTHM OF THE BEAT. BE SMART AND REALLY LISTEN IN.

 

HOW DO I KEEP COOL AND STAY REAL?

 

In rap, especially in this fandom, I see people who always try to be something they're not. For example:

 

 

For the love of the flying spaghetti monster, stop this at once! Don't EVER try to act like something you're not. You're supposed to let creativity flow through you and channel yourself into it. This hippy crap basically means you must be honest with yourself in your rapping. Know your strengths, weaknesses, limits, and improve upon them. Don't ever rap to impress people, and never be something that you're not.

 

 

THIS GUY GETS IT. YOU BET YOUR ASS DUMBFOUNDEAD KEEPS IT REAL. START DOING IT.

 

It's all about being relaxed and having fun with what you're doing. Once you rap to impress people or 'rank up' in any community, you need to stop.

 

Keep it real and you won't end up like this:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUni2qUugtk

 

ALRIGHT, BUT HOW THE HELL DOES IT ALL COME TOGETHER?

 

Notice how the rhyming, flow, and general lyricism comes into play with ALL OF IT. Everything here is essential for a proper rap. Fellow KOLT member Rhyme Flow is

.

 

Hopefully what I said has helped you pick up the pen and write some rhymes down. If it hasn't, please call our 24/7 toll-free line at 1-800-IAM-DUMB.

 

No, but seriously. Post your questions, techniques, and concerns in the thread. If you have anything of value that you think should be added this post, let me know via PM and I'll consider it.

 

Now get the hell out there and rap, you sexy animal.

Edited October 20, 2012 by Yelling At Cats

[Rainbow Skywalker 642]

I think you might possibly just have one too many "WHAT THE F___"s in your post there buddy. If you read the forum rules it says not to have too many of those, even though a couple are fine.

[Yelling At Cats 10]

I think you might possibly just have one too many "WHAT THE F___"s in your post there buddy. If you read the forum rules it says not to have too many of those, even though a couple are fine.

 

THE MAN IS KEEPING ME DOW-

 

Edited. Sorry for the language. Didn't mean to let all of that slip. Hopefully the thread is acceptable now.

[Titan Rising 2,156]

I think you're forgetting the most important style of rap: Enka

 

Yo yo

Me and I, from my mouth the lyrics flow,

Gettin to know

the soulless stranger that's in my heart forever sown.

You and he, two strangers runnin through the trees

So sad, this Enka rap's got nothin on Killer Bee's

 

YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Edited October 20, 2012 by Hollowshield

[butter scotch 79]

I think you might possibly just have one too many "WHAT THE F___"s in your post there buddy. If you read the forum rules it says not to have too many of those, even though a couple are fine.

 

Despite the fact that it's now a minor swear and that I have no authority on this forum.

I would still say that it's a bit in your face? Maybe not repeating wiht the "what the hell" every time...

Edited October 20, 2012 by butter scotch

[Arcanel 3,041]

@@Yelling At Cats,

Umm. hi YAC! And I guess wecome to the forum! Also, don't worry about being upset...I think anybody would. But to get back on topic, just two things.

 

1. Don't you think you're a little too hard on the guys who are just joking? I mean, I don't think most of the musicians (Octavia would be an example) would try to professionally do rap, unless they felt super confident. I think those would first look pointers before doing so.

 

2. I don't think I would learn rap (or if anything, not now. I'm not a musician, I just love drums for now), but there's something I was always a bit bothered. Sad rap songs I think I only recognize by lyrics and never by voice. I always confuse it by a more angry tone than an actual sad tone. Could you give me some examples on what a sad rap song could be?

 

 

Despite the fact that it's now a minor swear and that I have no authority on this forum.

I would still say that it's a bit in your face? Maybe not repeating wiht the "what the hell" every time...

 

Haha, I don't know YAC, but I hear he tends to be quite aggressive with his words. Don't worry he just likes to express things a lot.

[khaine21x3 789]

I live in a religious apartheid

It sure ain't my type

They banned my little pony

Prosecuted all the bronies and all my homies

But I ain't intimidated

As it's fated for me to start a revolution

And exterminate all those who refuse to accept evolution

Even if it meant desolation

Or ending up in isolation

better than living a life of prostitution and endless prosecutions

In this place of institutionalized hate

and with that being said

I await

The day of the revolution

[Yelling At Cats 10]

Example of sad rap?

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73MZsBcpNdM

 

I love this song because it's so surreal. Hopsin's a huge influence for me, though. I always recommend familiarizing yourself with an artist.

[Arcanel 3,041]

Example of sad rap?

 

http-~~-//www.youtube.com/watch?v=73MZsBcpNdM

 

I love this song because it's so surreal. Hopsin's a huge influence for me, though. I always recommend familiarizing yourself with an artist.

 

Well, I think it's ALWAYS better to familiarize yourself with an artist, because by doing that, you can take on a style, and plan your..."base" and start building your own style, if I knew something about it. And also, thanks, that was a great example for me. I guess...I tend to stereotype rap a bit, and say that most of the songs tend to represent other...what would you call it...negative thoughts, like anger, revenge, jealousy, arrogance etc. but that's probably a mistake by me. That, and I don't normally hear that much rap in the first place. I'd proably familiarize with it better if I listened more to it, but it's not my favorite music genre per se (although that song I liked quite a lot, and another one called Empire State of Mind).

 

When did you start with the whole rap (and for the bronydom) thing YAC?

[Skullbuster 1,906]

hey @@Yelling At Cats, any tips on voice projection and stuff like that? im working on a rap song, and the people ive shown my recordings to said that i need to work on a few aspects of my voice and theyve said ive mumbled a bit, if you'd like i can PM you what i have of my song and tell me what you think

[Yelling At Cats 10]

hey @@Yelling At Cats, any tips on voice projection and stuff like that? im working on a rap song, and the people ive shown my recordings to said that i need to work on a few aspects of my voice and theyve said ive mumbled a bit, if you'd like i can PM you what i have of my song and tell me what you think

 

Be confident in your lyricism and voice. Rap has a very big habit of being cocky, meaning that you should project it like you're hot stuff.

 

If you have the confidence to spit a rhyme, you have the voice. I will recommend practice voice acting to get a range of emotions though.

[TheFlowerPoison 20]

I'm here at Octavia's hall

rappers always talking about how "they needed to ball"

they obviously don't get it at all

rap is something that supposed to convey emotion

all this hate to each other caused by a vocal witches potion

using vulgar language in raps isn't needed at all

no wonder the popularity of rap it starting to fall.

 

how was that @@Yelling At Cats,

[Commander Urdnot 2,680]

Thank you for the offer, but I know how to rap

You gotta make the rhymes stick like tree sap

If your verses lose meaning, then you sound like crap

You gotta crank out lyrics fast as lightening-zap

 

People think it's easy to be a rapper

I find it easier to be a military sapper

Sorting through a word-field is just like a mine-field

Gotta move quick, but don't forget to yield

 

Choosing two words, red or blue?

Choose the wrong one, and it's over for you

Sounds like bomb-squad cutting a wire

That's because the situation is just as dire

 

Who ever said that rapping's a game

Needs to get out, because their lame

They don't understand how serious this is

Because it ain't a game; it's serious business

 

Check it.