Rap Music (Past, Present and Future)

Rap and R&B clearly dominate mainstream music at the moment, "Love The Way You Lie" by Eminem featuring Rihanna was the biggest song of 2010 and since then those two genres have been on the rise...

Back in 2010 the biggest genre of music was contemporary R&B (what is generally referred to as pop) and it's a genre that's only enlarged it's grip on the charts. As it's risen, so has rap music. This makes sense due to the fact that many of the biggest hits of each year have been songs that combine both genres. The rise of rap music has brought forth a sort of new wave. This has been trap music, a type of hip hop that originated in the 90s and has had a metamorphosis of sorts in mainstream music these past years.

It's usual flares from its Chicago origins have shifted to more minimalistic drum beats, rapid high hats and sparse synth lines seemingly borrowed from Electronic Dance Music. The "rappers" are often unconventionally white with no hip-hop culture or background. They usually make their songs themselves, without needing to access a record label or producer unless they get successful enough. This seems usual enough but because of SoundCloud, YouTube and other Social Media they can become uber-successful in the mainstream without going through the difficult process that a white rapper like Eminem had to. More recently the songs breaking into the Top 100 have been of a slightly different sound, with faster tempos and much more aggressive lyrics about explicit topics. Artists like Post Malone, Gucci Mane, Cardi B, Migos and Rae Sremmurd are all still experiencing major success but there are more and more SoundCloud rappers like XXXTentacion and Lil Xan exploding in the US and looking set to dominate the rest of 2018 in the UK too. More exclusive to the UK is the grime scene of hip hop with emerging stars Stormzy, Bugzy Malone, Giggs, Wiley, J Hus and so many more constantly possessing massive chart hits. One of the biggest hit songs of last year was of course "Barking" by Ramz, so far his only hit. It's both grime and R&B with a slower tempo as was the trend in 2017. My opinion on trap is generally negative, I already see it fading although it looks to be replaced by more aggressive, disrespectful and braggadocious SoundCloud rap. Trap has had a short run in which it's become extremely oversaturated. It may have influenced some great songs like "DNA" by Kendrick Lamar and "Sober II (Melodrama)" by Lorde but its a genre I'll be glad to see not quite as in the forefront of mainstream music.

On Friday 13th April, perhaps an unlucky day for Trap music, "No Roots" by Alice Merton broke into the UK Top 100. Does this signify the start of a more alternative pop trend with real instruments once again? Her sound is not one that's been familiar to the mainstream these past years...

This was the first post of my new sequence 'Past, Present & Future' where I'll look at an artist, band, genre or trend and its/their history, current state and directions for the future. My other sequences are reviews, monthly recaps and my playlists on Spotify and Deezer (Loganjbest). I have 3 playlists that are updated weekly: Song of the Week (Mondays), My Weekly Top Ten (Fridays), 2018 Best (Whenever Necessary). I have additional playlists that are updated irregularly like my Synthpop favourites.