Researching the Rap Genre.

Genre is definable in a number of ways. As a way of categorising texts, a way of defining codes and conventions for a category of a text and a way of setting up audience expectation. There are other definitions of the category and it's a dynamic concept, one which changes over time in a different cultural contexts.

John Fiske, a known genre theorist, describes genres as 'attempts to structure some order into the wide range of texts and meanings that circulate in our culture  for the convenience of both prodcuers and audiences'

With the genre of rap, it first gained popularity in the U.S. in the 1970s as a kind of street art, particularly among African American teenagers. One of the first rap tracks to gain notoriety was in 1979, when Sugarhill Gang released their breakaway hit, ‘Rapper’s Delight. Once they did, numerous rap acts, including Run-DMC and N.W.A., surfaced, and the genre gained more exposure and popularity. It wasn’t just African American male rappers getting in on the act, either: By the 1980s, white rap bands such as the Beastie Boys and female rap bands such as Salt-n-Pepa were reaching the top of the charts as well.

By the 1990s, rap matured from an old-school-style – which was based o­n relatively simple lyrics – to a new-school-style, which was louder and included more complex lyrics. Artists such as The Notorious B.I.G., Snoop Dogg and Tupac ruled the charts during this time, as did Eminem – o­ne of the most popular white rappers of all time.

Rap is part of the Hip Hop genre, and the style is prominent in a multitude of genre's, including soul, dance, pop and rock music. Rap came up in the American society among the black urban youth. It started as a way to criticise the ideology of the American society, and especially the authority and powers that are present in the society. Much of the rap music are arguments against institutions. Often, it contains cultural contradictions that are against the dominant ideology.

Most common ideological discourses in rap are politics, race, gender and sexuality. Even though there is a whole ideology behind rap music, unfortunately the commercialization of it moves this ideology to the background.

With time, the way music has changed is from live instruments into studio made beats. In the beginning, the 'music' was made with live bands, with influences from soul and dance music. As technology has advanced, the genre has moved into more club and dance influences, with music being made with Mixing decks and music software, often utilising samples from actual instruments or anything they can find.

Some audiences, are with the rapper through grass roots connections, for example the same area so they rap about things relatable to the listener. Through codes and conventions, a new fan can pretty much no what to expect with someone in the rap genre, with perhaps one thing subverting normal expectations of the genre, thus making them stand out.