Well, despite your pleas and my (perhaps) better judgment, I'm not letting this pass without having a say. I'm deeply disturbed that you would dismiss an entire genre of music as non-music because you don't happen to like it. Rap music is not dwindling in popularity; according to the most recent Arbitron ratings, the top three radio stations in the metropolitan Washington DC area are the three rap stations. Furthermore, rap music is a means of expression developed by a group of people who were oppressed and suppressed by the dominant white culture for so long. Are you telling me that artists like Lauryn Hill (and the rest of the Fugees), Tupac Shakur, and many more can be cast aside as not having any merit? Have you even read the (deep and poignant) lyrics to some of these songs? All in all, to be completely honest, I find your "critique" disturbingly racist. With exceptions like Eminem (a brilliant, if disturbing, lyricist), rappers tend to be African-American -- while the quizbowl circuit is dominated by Caucasians. Would it really be such a bad thing for all of us to look at what else is out there, culturally, and not automatically dismiss it because we can't identify with it immediately? Kristin Hamlin Who has not lived in the ghetto, but has had her eyes opened by listening to the words of those who have
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