I Challenge You...

[Al B. Sure!]

to the rap detractors, if it's so easy and don't require any intelligence/talent, shouldn't be a problem and you should be able to produce a pretty good verse or half verse (just 8 short lines is cool) in only a few minutes. no need for any metaphors, similes, alliteration, or anything... just rhyme words together to whatever topic you want to.

a few rules though... your lines should be about 12-16 syllables long and you should have a rhyme rate of at least 5 rhyming syllables per line.

what's considered rhyming? in rap, it's true, pure rhyming isn't used as much as assonance... but the consonatal sounds need to be similiar. for example, pop and rot rhyme in rap because they have the same vowel sound and similiar hard consonatal sounds (-p and -t). Dam and cat though do not rhyme in rap because the consonents of -m and -t do not have similiar sounds even if the vowels are the same.

just to inspire you or have some idea what i'm expecting, here's two verses from "Doo Rags" by Nas... not the best song but still solid lyrically.

Pushin drop-tops, Stacy Lattisaw tapes, the 80's had us all apes
Youngest guerillas up to bat at home plate
That was a uncanny era, guns in my pants
Yeah X-Clan hair, with dreads at the top of my fade
Homicide and feds on the blocks where I played, b-ball
That's when I wondered was I here for the cause, or be-cause
Cause Ray Charles could see the ghetto
Was told to stay strong and I could beat the Devil
Cause yo, I used to play Apollo balcony seats
Watchin niggaz swing razors in the front row, then out in the streets
The car show, 560's, chemical afros
Acuras pumpin Super Lover Cee and Casanova
Live chicks be, asses bustin out of they clothes
Wearin lip gloss, big door knockers pealin they earlobes
So where them years go? Where the old gold beers and cheers go?
But now them shorties here though, so


Political thugs in shark suits persuade us to pull triggers
in army boots, yellin "Join the armed forces!"
We lost the Vietnam War, intoxicated poisons
Needles in arms of veterans instead of bigger fortunes
There's still a lot of naked crawlin in the corporate offices
War in the ghetto, we crabs in a barrel, they torture us
They won't be servin the beast too long
The murderers wearin police uniforms, confederate flags I burn
Beat Street breakers were dancin to the music I chose
And Peachtree Atlantic crackheads was tootin they nose
in frozen corners of Chicago, loaded up Llama's children
with fo'-fo's, and double-revolvers
We devil incarnates, headed for jail
Where Shell gas company in South Africa be havin us killed
Your paper money was the death of Christ
And all these shorties comin up just resurrect your life
It's like a cycle

so go ahead... take my challenge if rap is such an inferior artform...

[C0ckney]

yo yo yo my niggers
westlife, eastenders
kthxbye

[chequita guevara]

Missy n' Timbaland are the best thing out there today. You can take all your East Coast and West Coast foo's a forget 'botu 'em. All I need is my Dirty South!

[Al B. Sure!]

that did not even rhyme...

[Buck Birdseed]

Just dirty south? How can you live without Screw, Crunk and Ghetto-tech?

[chequita guevara]

So! I ain't takin' your challange, foo. I ain't dissin' hiphop. I love it.

[Az]

I would, but I'd make a fool out of myself. Not because I'd suck, but because I'd accept the challenge. The wall of cynicism is too high.

[Nubclear]

Rap sucks mother****** ass
it just doesn't have enough bass (NOTE: I don't care.) (uhhuh)
yet it appeals to both lad and lass
cause its words are kinda crass (uhhuh)
mother******* listen to this 'diety'
and end up losing their identity (uhhuh)
cause they all are goin through puberty
and are forced to bend to the centrality (uhhuh)
Rap sucks mother****** ass
it just doesn't have enough bass (uhhuh)
yet it appeals to both lad and lass
cause its words are kinda crass (uhhuh)
and soon everyone will be part of the mass
sitting on their collective mother******* ass,
listening, to rappers sass.
(uhhuh)

Please don't lynch me because of these horribly contrived lyrics. it is hard to create art when your starting base is the antithesis of art. *Insert wink smiley here*

[Al B. Sure!]

buck... i dont know how you like that computerized sounding hip hop... you found that **** hot but the fact is, rap is best to the jazz or funk. it gets your ass more pumped and it's something head nodding with rhythm that got them kids all spitting... bah. the point is, producers like Alchemist, Havoc, Premier, Pete Rock, Questlove and some others make beats that sound smooth and perfect even if they're heavily sampled.

(and by Crunk, you mean crunk music? if so thats southern as i dont know what)

[Al B. Sure!]

Tassadar:

simple monosyllable rhymes and you repeated the same lines (bass [as in the opposite of trebel or soprano) and ass don't even rhyme)... try again...

how puberty and centrality rhyme aside from the -ty... i have no idea

[Immortal Wombat]

albert speer has challenged us to rap
so i'm sitting at my keyboard an' i'm typin' out some crap
cos he says it aint that easy to produce lyrical rhymes
and that surely the effort is worth some minutes of our time(s)
im not that fond of rapping but i respec' those that can do it
or something along those lines. oops i think i mighta blew it
ah who the **** cares, not enough cussin' in this song
to be a real rapper you gotta ****ing **** that **** along
i'm comin' to the end now so with a bit of luck
i'll be able to finish this lyrical **** with a bitch ho nigga ****

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by Comrade Tassadar
Rap sucks mother****** ass
it just doesn't have enough bass (uhhuh)

etc.

Bass is pronounced base when referring to music.

[Buck Birdseed]

Originally posted by Albert Speer
and by Crunk, you mean crunk music? if so thats southern as i dont know what.

Sure it is. So's Screw. I suppose both could be considered part of Dirty South though they're both more specific, being localised entirely to Atlanta and Houston respectively.

[mrmitchell]

Rap is okay. But is it really that much more than just memorizing what words rhyme with "ho", "motha****a", and "nigga"?

(If I'm bored later I might try your challenge. But the rest of the OT proves to be more interesting. )

[Al B. Sure!]

again... notice how Nas rhymed...

"Pushin drop-tops, Stacy Lattisaw tapes, the 80's had us all apes"

'Stacy' rhymed with '80'... 'Lattisaw' rhymed with 'had us all' and 'tapes' rhymed with 'apes'

Immortal Wombat began to get the hang of multiple syllable rhyming towards the end but i think he might have done that accidentally (ie- BIT of LUCK and NIGga F---)

[Nubclear]

Originally posted by Albert Speer
Tassadar:

simple monosyllable rhymes and you repeated the same lines

Hey! At least mine has some effort!!!!! *Insert rant smiley here!*

It's your turn Speer, to do some real art. Hmm...Let's start off simple. Write me a six paged story, about anything of your liking. No double spacing. The only time I wish to see one big fat space is when your introducing a completly new idea (eg, the end of a chapter).

Che: ............
.........
.........
Rap allows the bending of the pronouciation of words. *Insert cute smiley here*

[MichaeltheGreat]

Originally posted by Comrade Tassadar
Rap sucks mother****** ass
it just doesn't have enough bass (uhhuh)
yet it appeals to both lad and lass
cause its words are kinda crass (uhhuh)
mother******* listen to this 'diety'
and end up losing their identity (uhhuh)
cause they all are goin through puberty
and are forced to bend to the centrality (uhhuh)
Rap sucks mother****** ass
it just doesn't have enough bass (uhhuh)
yet it appeals to both lad and lass
cause its words are kinda crass (uhhuh)
and soon everyone will be part of the mass
sitting on their collective mother******* ass,
listening, to rappers sass.
(uhhuh)

Please don't lynch me because of these horribly contrived lyrics. it is hard to create art when your starting base is the antithesis of art. *Insert wink smiley here*

I hereby officially declare Tass to be the winner.

Although I like rap when I want something to put me in the mood to knock off a liquor store or take a baseball bat to someone to give him an attitude adjustment.

[MichaeltheGreat]

Originally posted by Immortal Wombat
albert speer has challenged us to rap
so i'm sitting at my keyboard an' i'm typin' out some crap
cos he says it aint that easy to produce lyrical rhymes
and that surely the effort is worth some minutes of our time(s)
im not that fond of rapping but i respec' those that can do it
or something along those lines. oops i think i mighta blew it
ah who the **** cares, not enough cussin' in this song
to be a real rapper you gotta ****ing **** that **** along
i'm comin' to the end now so with a bit of luck
i'll be able to finish this lyrical **** with a bitch ho nigga ****

And we have another winner!

[Al B. Sure!]

Comrade:

I'll have to go to work soon and i won't get off til after midnight but i'm off tomorrow and i'll get around to that for you. story about anything at all? it'll take more time than half a rap verse though so give me a little bit of time

(damn i kind of wish i saved my creative writing folder from all those English classes in high school though)

[Al B. Sure!]

MtG:

one they did not follow the criteria (what happened to those 5 rhyming syllables per line)... second, their verses could not hold a candle to Nas'

for someone as learned as you i honestly would've expected you of all people to have an open mind... you are a prejudiced man despite your intelligence

[Immortal Wombat]

so i rewind and begin again
won't make the same sorry sin again
make some multisyllabic rhymin' schemes
with a classic rap with classic crimin' themes
so i'm makin' up words who cares? not i
i'm rapping this pretty much on da fly
tryin' to keep the pace, run the race
so to make my rhymin' really ace
i hafta resort to stealin' from linkin park
still thinkin' fast
look! a radio mast!
lets blow that **** up



hmm, ok. so 12-16 syllables is somewhat different from what I usually write, which is 7-10 syllables usually. And this tails off towards the end, I somewhat lost a thread of where to go and say and whatever. Got me some alliteration in though, and I'd like to see Nas use "multisyllabic" in a rap.

[mrmitchell]

The ol' prejudiced line doesn't work on MtG.

[Al B. Sure!]

started out alright though i dont know about repeating "again" like that... rhyming schemes... crime in themes (how about that) was better but then you stopped multiple syllable rhyming after that...

[Al B. Sure!]

i missed the alliteration... where is it at?

[SlowwHand]

Let's cut to the chase. Rap sucks. End of story.

[David Floyd]

AS, here's an idea, why don't you post a political position that you have, and defend it using consistent logic. Have a basis for your position, and make it internally consistent.

[Nubclear]

Originally posted by Albert Speer
second, their verses could not hold a candle to Nas'

And I'm willing to bet your story won't hold a candle to glorious writers, such as Li Qi.

Not that Nas'(?) is even on the same level as Li Qi. There is a 100 difference between 0 and 100, but there is a 200 difference between -100 and 100.

Glory to China!

[Al B. Sure!]

damn David i'm already writing a story for Tassadar... this is getting too much work for me... especially since this thread is clearly not being seen with an open mind.

[David Floyd]

I think the point is that writing a good story or presenting a justified and internally consistent political/philosophical position requires more intelligence than finding 20 words that rhyme.

Could I do that? Theoretically, sure. Am I inclined to do so? Not really - it's not a true measure of intelligence any more than any of the other challenges here are (although the other challenges are more indicative of intelligence than rapping).

[Al B. Sure!]

Tassadar:

his name is Nasir shortened to Nas... that little punctuation ' is placed after people's names and before an additional 's' to signify ownership... when a name ends in 's' however or a noun is plural, we place the punctuation after the last 's'