Critics Are Saying that Rappers Are Going Soft

Lately there has been a lot of questioning going on amongst critics regarding rappers going from hard to soft. It really seems as though these critics have nothing to talk about and in the process they are doing a great job of showing how much they don't know about hip-hop. Some critics are saying that because rappers are choosing to record more easygoing music that they have gone soft. Hip-hop ballads have been a part of rap music for a very long time, and just like hard-core records, it's a way for rap artists to express themselves using their art.

Rappers are human beings who experience emotions just like everyone else. Just because someone who usually talks about doing things on the streets in their records goes and makes a song about loving his woman, doesn't mean that he is soft by any means. LL Cool J for example, has always recorded hard-core songs and ballads. He recorded "I Need Love" a classic hip-hop ballad, but also recorded "Momma Said Knock You Out" a classic hard-core rap song. LL Cool J has done this throughout his career and is the longest standing rap artists in history. Obviously rap artists who do both hip-hop ballads and hard-core songs are smarter than those who do not, for the simple fact that spreading themselves out allows them to appeal to a wider audience.

In entertainment, a wider audience equals more money. A lot of hip-hop critics have been slamming Kanye West for singing on the entire album that he recently released. What they fail to realize is that Kanye West is not like other artists out there anyway. He has his own style. His style appeals to people all over the world vs. most other rappers whose music only appeals to people in their region. He is no Usher or R. Kelly true enough, but he isn't trying to be an R&B singer. He is simply using a different avenue to express himself and get his message out. I challenge hip-hop critics to put themselves in the shoes of a person who gives their heart to the world the way music artists do, and see if it doesn't take a strong solid person to accomplish it.

It's funny that the same critics who negatively criticize Kanye West are saying good things about other rappers who are singing on songs such as T.I. and Snoop Dogg. Maybe it's because of Snoop Dogg's well-known status as a gangster or the fact that T.I. got caught possessing machine guns. These same critics are also speaking on the fact that Nelly sings on his entire album when Nelly has always sung on his entire albums. That is his style and always has been. Rap artists can make ballads and hard-core music, when and however they want to, and still not be considered as going soft. Because of what these critics have had to say about rappers going soft, tells us that these critics are either under the age of 14, or they just aren't true hip-hop fans. Anyone who isn't a true hip-hop fan cannot truly criticize it, and that goes for all genres of music.