Lil Pump Dumps on Langston Hughes: A Comparison Between Hip-Hop and Poetry Jeremyah Flowers Course: Experiences in Literature Professor: Jason Myers Student: Jeremyah Flowers Essay: Lil Pump Dumps on Langston Hughes: A Comparison Between Hip-Hop and Poetry
Assignment: For this section of ENG 1500, students were able to choose their own topics. They could either expand an earlier discussion board post into a longer paper or develop their own focus and direction, as long as the
paper performed an analysis of at least one primary source hip-hop and/or literary text as well as integrated at least two outside sources.
In his 2011 interview with rocawear, Jay-Z made the controversial statement that “Rap is Poetry.” “Hiphop lyrics,” he explains “not just my lyrics, but those of any great MC, are poetry” (rocawear, 2011). Jay-Z deliberately merged the qualities of great rap with that of poetry sparking a heated debate over whether Hip-Hop could, and should, be considered poetry. The internet went into a frenzy because, while many people either love or hate rap, one thing is for certain: rap does not get nearly as much love as poetry in the world of art and academics. For example, one Quora user asked, “Why is rap so bad?” Eric Oehlr (2022), studio nerd and minor dance music star, responded, “Short answer: because you’re listening to the wrong rap.” Matthew James (2021) claims, “Rap is so bad because it does not fit within your music taste. For those of us who like it, it is not bad.” Others like John Webster (2021) remarked, “I used to love rap now
99.99% of it sucks”; and Philip Harris (2021) wrote a detailed list of his reasons on why he hates rap: Repetitive, BORING droning chanting over a booming beat THAT NEVER CEASES or changes in tempo or volume, vile lyrics - BEAT POETRY, NO NEED to have true MUSICAL abilities such as singing and or playing a musical instrument! You name it, RAP BLOWS… Think about it and discuss amongst yourselves, BUT I HATE RAP. IT SUCKS BIG TIME!!! I cannot tell you to stop listening to RAP CRAP, so go on getting down to those Rap grooves and enjoy the SAME ATONAL CHANT OVER AND OVER AGAIN. It’s your choice just as it is my choice to state that I hate Rap. These individuals show two distinct opinions between rap’s listeners: demonstrating that not everyone thinks rap is as closely related to poetry as Jay-Z. As Harris (2021) illustrates, those who hate rap often believe that it lacks musical integrity. This group fins rap mind87
