And yet I suppose from a purely artistic level hip hop became about the spoken rather than sung word. Artists like Elvis and The Beatles would try to sing like black artists but when they were done singing they didn’t walk around trying to talk like them too.
I personally believe that the greats emulated black artists because black people by and large are born with a natural sense of rhythm and ability to dance.
Of course, there are exceptions to that rule, and I don't wish to promote stereotypes, but I do believe that white artists mimic black ones because its a shortcut to sounding genuinely gifted on the mic or playing an instrument.
However, when the sung word becomes the spoken word it might seem disingenuous to rap like that and then not talk like that. You see the same thing in country actually where singers not from the South try to emulate that accent in their singing but then try to talk like that too in order to pull the act off.
Actually, I've never really thought of it like that. That's a brilliant observation.
I sometimes wonder what Eminem (for instance) would sound like if he didn't "talk black?"
Did he make a habit of copying black culture, and it just became how he spoke?
Is it unfair for me to single him out? He profits off the mimicry of his supposed black idols, just like Elvis.
If you caught a wigga at sunday dinner with their parents you'd probably hear a much whiter style of language and dress.
That's part of what makes them corny.
