Nas-Hip Hop is Dead

People often fuse Hip Hop and Rap into one genre of music, while others beg to differ. Many define Hip Hop as real music and Rap as just songs people come up with when they are bored or have nothing to talk about. Hip Hop artists include people like Common, Mos Def, Jay-Z, and Talib Kwali. Rap artist are people like Lil' Wayne, Gucci Mane, and Soulja Boy. There is a clear difference amongst these artists' lyrics. Hip Hop songs relay a message while most Rap songs talk about how to make the most money, have the most swag, or how to get the most women. In his song Hip Hop is Dead, Nas tries to point out how different Hip Hop and Rap really are. Nas believes what people define as Hip Hop today is not Hip Hop. Real Hip Hop is starting to be replaced by Rap. Nas is trying to slow or stop this transition. In the video, Nas uses the eight points that make visual arguments effective that were mentioned in Chapter 10 of Essentials of Argument. Point 1: The beginning of the video pulls the viewer in by making a statement that many would find a little absurd. Point 2: Nas establishes common ground by placing situations in the video that many are familiar with (drug dealers, gangs, etc.) whether or not they have been in those situations themselves or just knowing that these situations do occur. Point 3: Nas evokes an emotional response by showing what seems to be wrong with the "new" mentality of Hip Hop.Point 4: Nas uses the police to represent people against Hip Hop while people who are for it still try to listen to it even though it is illegal. This part of the video proves the importance of Hip Hop to people. Point 5: Microphones have always been an icon of music in general. Nas displays these icons by hanging them from the ceilings in various parts of the video. Point 6: One symbol used in the video are the headphones that the police destroyed. The headphones symbolized Hip Hop, and its destruction once the police had crushed them. Point 7: The video is selective because it focuses on one major point, which is the destruction of Hip Hop. Point 8: People can interpret the video in different ways. Some agree with Nas' opinion of Hip Hop while others disagree with his views.