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How To Rap by Paul Edwards
Reading the cover of this book I was hesitant to read it because of all the books out there that claim to teach me something about Hip-Hop and rapping. I love Hip-Hop and I love the art of rap, but now-a-days people don’t see the art and the technicalities that go into it. Books like to write about the stereotypes of rap. That makes me want to choke someone. So when I was given this book I had a preconceived notion that it was going to be something I would hate... Surprisingly, it wasn't at all. I thought that maybe I would try to write a rap and see if reading this book would help me be a better MC. Unfortunately, I thought wrong and it comes down to the fact that I just have no skill so I'll keep the writing to the experts.
This book contained information about rap that I never knew. I am surrounded by MCs, because of my job and I always have a bunch of questions in my head, like, how do artists rap about the same topics when they never sit and write together, how do people ghost write or how do people learn how to flow, what's written in their rhyme books and how come every time I look at one it just never makes any sense to me, how do they remember all their song lyrics, and how did they make those two words work. Paul Edwards breaks it down in this book. It shows you everything from how MCs write, flow, and what topics they write about. It’s a dummy guide for anyone who doesn't know too much about writing or rap. Paul has artists break down how they come up with ideas, influences and just basic MC information. It’s not only for people that don't know how to rap but for artists to see how others do it. It shows different styles and different ways and even similar ways they write or flow.
I will say that there were some topics that were repetitive but still informative. It caused the book to be slower in some sections. I have a short attention span and I get board easily, so to have a book that kept my attention even through the parts that I thought weren't as exciting, it must of have been good.
After reading this I felt a new appreciation for the ART of rapping. People may not believe rap is an art, because of all the garbage that we have on the radio, but it is, and this book proves it. It shows you what goes into becoming an amazing MC. A good song is about more than just a catchy beat and a dance. It’s about lyrics, content, and flow (sorry soldja boy). This is a great technical book for anyone that does rap or who loves rap or thinks the only rap out there is on the radio. It’s informative and helpful. It might not have made me the next Big Daddy Kane or Tash, but at least I could appreciate more of their talent.