Quote (Menace)
is poetry etymologically speaking rapping is poetry and poetry is hard to understand even in her most abstract form
The problem here is that poetry speaks for itself. It needs no beat to set the mood or any pre-recorded voice to set the emotion. It simply speaks for itself. Poetry sometimes does not make sense. The reader is intended to interpret the work according to their own understanding and relate according to their emotions. What makes good poetry, is vivid imagery and striking word combinations, by through their definition can set the mood or tone. So not all poetry is intended to make sense upon first read. So the question here is, does all of this apply to hip hop? Sure it does, if people are willing to understand it and properly put it to use. But the problem is that most rappers simply don’t do it right. Besides that fact, the beat and their delivery sets the mood and tone, undermining what the imagery and striking word combinations are supposed to do. So I assume that this is why most people view it as nonsensical word complexity. And in a way they are rightly justified.
Generally, I think what the rapper says means something to him or her personally, but that’s the kind of contrived mentality that they should avoid if they are seeking to produce truly exceptional work.
Quote (Menace)
some raps need to be studied closer if they sound too complex that doesn't mean they are LOL you always twist peoples words
Yeah this can be true too. Sometimes it does depend on the listeners intellectual ability to break down all the various forms of figurative language or allusions (this is often where people get lost in a song).
Quote (EmSeeD)
he tries to rap complex but really he's not saying anything
Yeah I think there is a wall that our language hits when it comes to expression, especially with rhyme. There are only so many rhymes possible and only a few words that will perfectly describe what you want to say. The key is getting this in the best combination. If you can't get the proper combination then your lyrics become a scrambled mess of incoherent madness that seem to make no sense. That's why word maps are very effective. Edgar Allen Poe used word maps to write his stories and that's why his writings are considered a masterwork of description and imagery. Wordmaps are kind of a forgotten device, but they can also be applied to rapping. The more complex your rhyme pre-design is, the clearer and simpler it will sound. It's a very difficult thing to do. That's why most rappers fail to do it.
