Music has always been a very important form of expression. And that’s even more true in the modern age; with so many different styles and genres, there’s something to appeal to everyone, old and young alike.
Indeed, music as we know it – even since before the dawn of rock and pop – is one of the main tools young people use to assert their identities. But it can also have a significant influence on the way they think.
Visit any inner-city secondary school the impact of rap music is instantly visible. And this influence does not stop with the exaggerated clothing and jewellery in videos and on CD covers.
The stories told by the lyrics in rap music tend to focus on wealth, often attained through ill-gotten means. The message all too often is that crime pays, and pays in a very big way.
The problem is that this get-rich-quick lifestyle is far too alluring to young people, especially in a society that promotes selfishness to begin with. Adding it all together, it should be no surprise that a dangerous pattern begins to emerge.
Why go to school and prepare for your future when you can make it big as a rap star? That’s a question that answers itself for far too many young people today. But the reality is that the music industry is notoriously hard to break into, and the vast majority will be left without qualifications and no hope of a career – which makes crime a very attractive option.
But does the music of today really influence our youth in this way? Do theses songs tell the stories of what happens in the real world? I have to answer both yes and no.
I’m personally a fan of rap music, but I can tell the difference between fantasy and reality – I know when a boast is just a boast. But other artists are also warning people about how violent the streets are. They take a stand against racism, bigotry and stereotypes, stating life as they live it.
The imagery might be more violent than in the music of the past, but controversy has always been a part of popular music. When Elvis Presley was shaking his hips in the 1950s he caused a major problem. The kids loved his music, but adults across America tried to ban him, and even television would only show him from the waist up!
Yet we look back on those days now and think of how silly it was. So will we think the same about today’s rap music in 30 years’ time?
Collins Hekson is a Dublin-based student on work experience with Metro Éireann
