One of the great things about rappers and rap music is the use of vocabulary. Words can be used to convey a message, from political uprising to telling a story about a nightclub adventure. However, lyrics as of late have drifted to a common zone, where most rappers tend to sound the same with the same content and flow, and even in some cases, the same persona. What is missing? There is a lot missing, but one thing that really stands out is the lack of dissing directed at other rappers.
Sure, there is some beef in rap music but not nearly as dope as it was in the earlier days, which to me, was much more interesting. So what can be done? Beef. Take your beef with other rappers and start making diss records just to battle that other person.
Beef Origins
Who could forget all those old school beefs between rappers and groups, such as BDP vs MC Shan? LL Cool J vs Kool Moe Dee? These were some of the best rapper beefs to ever happen, and what came of it? Dope records. These rappers would be battling each other on diss records that seemed to not only make them more popular, but rap music itself.
BDP and MC Shan were battling because they both claimed hip hop started in their respective cities, and LL Cool J and Kool Moe Dee started beef because Moe Dee thought he was being disrespected by LL and that he stole his style.
What came about from just these two famous beefs were some of the best rap disses ever. One rapper would come out with a diss record, then it seemed like everyone on the planet was just waiting with anticipation for the other rapper to drop his response! This would go on for a while until there was either a clear winner or they decided to settle their beef, or the battle simply died down.
Real Beef
Although these rappers were battling each other on records, the main thing to remember is simply that - it was on records. There were no actual confrontations where each party was trying to physically harm one another, unlike today. Sure, society has changed a great deal and nowadays if rapper A says something about rapper B, they don't take it to the recording booth and let their frustrations out. Instead, they wait until they see the other person at a club and physically attack them, and maybe even have shots being fired.
This is obviously the wrong way to do it, and even though we're in a much more violent society, by doing this sort of thing it not only makes them look ridiculous, but it has a serious impact on hip hop, the record labels, the record sales, the fans, promoters, the list goes on.
Start Beef
What I'm saying is that rappers should take their beef and put it on a single then release it and use the beef as a way to promote yourself. It seems plainly obvious to me that this would bring tons of attraction, from the media to social networks. I don't recommend starting beef with another rapper just to further your career, but what I mean is, if you have beef with someone, handle it with your voice and make it count. Don't turn to violence, you just look stupid.
Diss records are long gone but it's up to today's rappers to bring it back! Throwing in little subliminal messages in your song doesn't count either, I'm talking about full-on diss records, where the entire song from the vocals to the music is specifically made to diss.
Tim Dog vs. Compton
Tim Dog was an east coast rapper in the early 1990's that decided to make a name for himself by attacking everyone from Compton, and made "Fuck Compton". This is exactly what I just mentioned NOT to do - start beef to further your career. Check it out:
Tim Dog didn't do much after that, I'm assuming it was because he thought that one song would catapult him to super-stardom. What ended up happening was an onslaught of Compton rappers dissing him, but my favorite is Compton's Most Wanted with "Who's Fucknig Who". This is a perfect example of how to make a song directed right at one specific artist:
Conclusion
So to all you rappers out there that have beef with another rapper, take it to the studio and drop some serious vocals over a serious track and tear them apart! If you want to stand out and stand up for yourself in the rap game, that's how it's done.
