The Worst Thing About My Favorite Genre

Since the sixth grade, hip-hop has been my favorite genre of music. As a suburban white kid growing up in Minnesota, I thought it was fascinating to hear about people living a life so different than mine, especially when many of the artists I admired were young like myself. My sheltered life shielded me from the violence, drugs, and sex that so many of my favorite artists rapped about. But what I’d come to learn was that they weren’t just making music about those topics; that was their reality, they personally dealt with those issues.

When I woke up on Sunday morning and read about Juice Wrld’s death, I was sad but also unsurprised. Although he had just turned 21, Juice Wrld already had two hit records, and it was clear that he was just scratching the surface of his potential. This is common in the rap world, young artists rise to prominence quickly, and hip-hop fans are treated with watching them grow and evolve as artists. But unfortunately, many amazing artists in this genre are lost too soon. It happened to 2Pac and Biggie in the ’90s, and it still happens to this day, as you can see with Lil Peep, XXXTentacion, Mac Miller, Nipsey Hussle, and Juice Wrld.

Part of what makes hip-hop so appealing to me, the dissonance of my life versus the lives of rap artists, is why the genre loses so many talented artists so young. The drugs and violence they rap about consume them. And they know it too. Mac Miller talked about overdosing way back in 2014 on the song San Francisco, “Suppose I’ll die alone from an overdose of some sort.” Similarly, Juice Wrld rapped on the song legends, “What’s the 27 club? We ain’t making it past 21.”

It isn’t a coincidence that young rap artists are dying from the very lifestyle they talk about in their music; their music reflects their life, and that life might not be a very sustainable one. Many rappers come from a rough upbringing, one where they are surrounded by gang violence, guns, and drugs. Even when they make it out of their childhood neighborhoods, it’s hard for them to fully escape the life that they were brought up in. They don’t know anything different.

When you cut deep into this issue, you’ll get conflicting views on what the cause and solution are. Some people will point to lyrics glorifying popping pills, partying, and needless violence. That’s probably part of the problem to some extent, but as established earlier, art reflects life. Without reflecting on their lives in their music, are artists betraying themselves? Because that shouldn’t be the fix here. What needs to happen is to get these talented artists out of that dangerous lifestyle, to abandon the very things that they’ve gotten famous for rapping about. Unfortunately, that’s a hell of a lot easier said than done.

I think that we all need to take a step back and consider mental health and the relationship that hip-hop has with it. Hip-hop is a predominantly black genre; it’s been that way since the beginning. Unfortunately, African Americans are 13% less likely to receive treatment for mental health each year than the average American. With that statistic in mind, it isn’t a surprise that many rappers have spoken out against therapy. The late Prodigy once said, “Hip-hop is our therapy. I can’t see myself sitting here talking to somebody like, ‘Hi, we’re going through this and this.’ Like, what are you going to tell me? There’s nothing that you could tell me. My experience told me more than what you going to tell me.”

That type of attitude towards seeking help for mental health is hurting artists in hip-hop. Due to that kind of thinking, mental health is something that’s not openly discussed much; most artists would rather keep those issues to themselves. Of course, there are exceptions out there, like Kid Cudi, who have been open about their struggles with mental health and have helped raise awareness for their fans and peers.

We need more artists to take a stand and promote mental health and healthy living. Instead of seeking refuge in drugs and gangs, rappers need to turn to therapy and self-help. Education from their peers is a must; if we can get more artists like Kid Cudi, Logic, and Chance the Rapper championing mental health and healthy living, this genre will be in a much better spot.

The worst thing about hip-hop is the frequency in which promising artists are lost. It’s hard to grow attached to an artist who can be gone in the blink of an eye. Juice Wrld rose to prominence in 2018, a little over a year later he’s gone. It’s unbelievably sad. I’m tired of losing young, talented artists. It doesn’t have to be this way; other genres don’t experience this kind of loss so frequently. Hip-hop needs artists to step up and help show that there’s another way, a life worth living outside of the drugs and violence. Stay safe out there.