As much as I hate misogynist, violent and outright raunchiness in many rap songs, I confess — some rap songs actually inspire me!
Last week, I was in my weekly workout class where I do 1 hour of weights and cardio with a class of about 20 strangers. I take my pre-workout 10 minutes before class, then I get about 20 minutes into the class after doing burpees, push ups and squats with a 40 lb bar on my shoulders and my body doesn’t care how much pre-workout I drank - it’s ready to shut down. Maybe that’s my brain protecting me - but it seems just at the right time, after a class full of pop songs, I hear the perfect rap song. I tune all the way in. It becomes my hype man and my personal trainer.
THE LYRICS
The lyrics definitely get a hold on me. The egotistical lyrics give me a boost of confidence and the positive self-talk curbs any negative emotions that would have convinced me to stop my workout. If the song says “I’m the Queen of the world and can conquer anything”, In that moment I believe I am too and I accomplish my mission. I conquer the workout. It’s the mind over matter that rap music proves to be very effective. When I hear “All I do is win, win, win no matter what”, the song is speaking to me. I respond and focus on winning. When I hear a rapper say “I started from the bottom now I’m here”. I think of all the obstacles I’ve overcome and it inspires me to go harder.
THE BEAT
There’s something about a good ‘Future’ song — minus the misogyny, crime and drug references — my brain gets triggered, releases dopamine and it boosts my mood. I turn into Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Laila Ali and Serena Williams all in one. Not only does my workout performance increase but the lyrics remind me how “Life is Good” and I imagine me splurging like Future speaks to in the song — spending $100,000 for the cheapest ring on a mans finger.
MUSIC IN GENERAL
The power of rap in my life could come from my music roots since I have played instruments since elementary school, I’m from the rap music capitol — Atlanta, GA, I sang in a music group and my brother was a rapper and music producer. Also, culturally I’ve been exposed to rap music since I was a teenager. My brain has been trained to respond to rap music in a hyper-sensitive way. Clever lyrics, melody, and the right tempo gets my foot tapping, head bobbing and spirit moving every time.
In the beginning of rap, it was all about fun then the lyrics got more violent and misogynist. From then on I became more selective about what I listened to and paired back on rap music a lot. I got more familiar with conscious rap and that became my love. The Roots, NAS, Poor Righteous Teachers, etc. No matter what — I still love a good beat and good ego boosting rap lyrics to get me through hard times and a hard workout.
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