Rap does appear to have it's detractors in the over 40 crowd. I am amazed that people can still say "rap isn't music". I think the biggest issue is that "rap" isn't like the music that they are accustomed to. There are definite rhythms and musical patterns taking place and the emphasis is on the word.   What most people are considering "folk" is nothing more than two or three chords and a singer warbling on a few scattered notes.   Many field recordings of songs offer a drone like rendition of the supposed "song". Do we question whether that is music?

Personally I think that rap will be around for awhile. This isn't an overnight phenomenon. Rap music can clearly be indentified as "rap" going back to the 1970's, but it goes much further.    You can hear it's roots in the music of the Georgia Sea Islands - listen to some of the game songs like "Hambone" and you will detect the similarities.

A few weeks ago on my radio program I played a cut from the new Alan Lomax Songbook collection.   Woody Guthrie gave an introduction to "Do Re Mi" that consisted of a few lines of rhyming. I am sure you would call it poetry, but if you hear the inflection that Guthrie was giving it really reminds one of today's rap music. I have no doubt that Woody and Lead Belly, if they were coming up today, would be using the styles of rap to get their messages heard.

Ron Olesko