link between rap and violence? ( analytic)

The issue up for discussion is about if rap and violence have any direct links between them. One study done, which was found in the book called, a review of the Literature and Issues for Future Research, concluded that there was no correlation between music and the increasing crime rates. The study takes its course by first looking that the listeners of each type of rap, which include hardcore and soft rap. The researchers also look at the listeners to heavy metal, which has the many of the same characteristics as rap. The researchers found that there was a difference between the listeners and the music. The people who listened to heavy metal were mostly working class white youths, while rap was listened to by the urban black youth. The collection of data collected from researchers concluded that there was a connection between the races and the type of music that was listened to but that there was no link between rap and violence. The researcher’s opinion on the issue was that even though heavy metal and rap are mostly the same, the races make it easier to put blame of the influence of violence on one type. They concluded that, “assaults on rap music are part of a long-standing sociologically based discourse that positions black influences as a cultural threat to American society,” This quote expresses that, because of the old prejudices against blacks in our society, it is easier to point the fingers at the them because of what has been done and said about them in the civil rights era. They believe that the lyrics of rap are not necessarily the reason why crime increased but that it is easier to blame the black race because of the prejudices from past generations.
The other half of the argument expresses that there is a direct distinction between rap and violence in the communities. An example that was shown in this argument had to do with a school shooting. A teacher named Debbie Pelley, who taught the shooter, did research for the investigation that had to do with what influenced the killer. The killer’s peers told investigators that the shooter changed when he started listening to Tupac and Bones ~N~ Thugs. These hardcore rappers have some of the most explicit lyrics. While looking at the lyrics, many adults were shocked at the vulgar things said in the lyrics. When Pelley asked the students what they thought the music was about, they all agreed, “the theme and message of this music (rap) is that killing and being on death row is cool”. This shows that the black population express messages directly in their music and because music has impacted the listener’s minds, the society worries that the listeners who don’t understand the urban black lifestyle, will think that violence and certain negative experiences are okay to have. Although the rapper’s aren’t trying to send this message but to express their life and make it relative to how they lived, those who don’t know the reality behind the music might take the messages This side of the argument believes that, because music is so impactful to its listeners, the glamorization of violence would negatively affect the listeners and that is what has caused the rise in crime rate.