A BRIEF:
In this unit i am going to be focusing on Mumble Rap, researching and producing information on my research trail, on this specific topic. I am going to find out the history of Mumble Rap and current information and facts about it. I have chosen this topic in particular as it’s a fairly new genre of music, and i personally find it interesting on how rap has evolved over time.
To find the information on this topic i used reliable online sources, such as, videos, interviews, documentaries and blogs.
The following information is the research i have found:
WHAT IS MUMBLE RAP?
Mumble Rap is a genre of music in which the last couple of years have seen a rise in alternative styles of Rap in Hip-Hop. A new generation of ‘mumble’ rappers are rapidly making a name for themselves. Sometimes conflated with “emo rap” or “SoundCloud” rap. Artists like, Future, Lil Pump, Lil Yachty, Lil Uzi Vert and Cardi B are just a few of the scene’s biggest stars, leading the new wave of rap culture to the forefront of the music charts. “Mumble rappers” tend to talk about drugs, money, jewelry, designer clothing, and partying. Rappers often add ad-libs such as “yeah”, “aye” and “uh” to the end or start of their lines. This has been named the “aye” flow. Currently one of the largest subgenres within hip hop
THE HISTORY OF MUMBLE RAP:
.Historically, Hip-Hop has had its fair share of trends and styles shaking up the scene. Artists such as Das EFX and Fu-Schnickens rapped in a similar style years before the term was created.New movements like this tend to spark excitement and debate with the artists and fans across the board.
THE POSITIVES OF MUMBLE RAP:
On the one hand, though Mumble Rap is less dense than traditional Hip-Hop, lyrically and instrumentally, rappers like 21 Savage, Migos, Lil Yachty, Lil Pump, Travis Scott and tons more are soaring through the charts. And this wave has gotten so widespread come 2017, this may just be the future of the biggest genre of our generation. This newer genre is lyrically unintelligible yet melodically complex, and extremely catchy. Though Mumble rap was named rudely due to the lack of clear lyricism, this genre has diversified throughout all of Hip-Hop, and become a major piece of todays Hip-Hop sound. There is a lot to like about mumble rap. Firstly, it is easy to listen to, but some may say that the lyrics are meaningless and promote bad things such as drugs etc.. This is the case for various mumble rappers and many of their songs, yet a lot of artists, such as JuiceWrld do tend to ‘mumble’, yet have very deep and meaningful lyrics. For example:
In this song JuiceWrld sings on rappers who have died early due to drugs, murder etc.. which has become a lot more common in modern rap. This song in particular is about ‘LIL PEEP’ & ‘XXXTENTACION’.
“I’m not a huge mumble rap fan but I think some songs can be catchy and fun. I like the fact that mumble rap puts an emphasis on the beat more so than the lyrics.”
“Just because a rapper isn’t as lyrical as you’d want them to be doesn’t mean they’re mumbling. And just because a rapper is a lyrical beast or superconscious doesn’t mean they don’t, at times, mumble”
THE NEGATIVES OF MUMBLE RAP:
Whereas on the other hand, The sub-genre has recently received a huge amount of backlash from artists and listeners. A lot of artists and fans of this particular sub-genre tend to pick on its alleged lack of lyricism, which is where the name ‘mumble rap’ comes from, supposedly coined by Wiz Khalifa. Musicians such as J.Cole,notably one of Hip-Hop’s biggest rappers , is heard dissing mumble rappers in his 2016 hit ‘Everyone Dies’. He says: “A bunch of words and ain’t saying s***, I hate these rappers, especially the amateur-8-week rappers, Lil “whatever”, just another short-bus rappers”. Many Mumble Rappers names now begin with “Lil”, for example, “Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Peep, Lil Pump”, and so on. This is seen by as an act of laziness by their audience and other artists in the industry.
In this song Eminem disses one mumble rapper in particular ‘MACHINE GUN KELLY’, as you can hear by his dark, lyrics you can feel his views towards mumble rap in particular.
“This is hysterical, this mumbling rap style… as I think it has to be appreciated only in a purely humorous entity. It is almost like a mixture of the rebirth, thanks to synthesised hip hop, in my opinion”
– Sarah Boon
:Mumble rap sounds like the lazy way to rap. It sounds like – compared to the other non-mumble rap- less effort goes into writing and delivery dexterity and lyric content. And it almost always comes with autotune. The producers are almost always the ones who do the best work on the song.”
“It’s bad. Like, really bad. It shows no talent or technique whatsoever and merely encourages people who continue to deem rap a non-legitimate form of music.”
Much like the East-West coast divide in the 90s, modern styles of rap clashing over conflicting style is no first for Hip Hop culture. Some think its lack of structure appears ‘idiotic’ and reflects the genre as a whole negatively. Even some of the biggest artists such as Eminem have expressed their dislike for Mumble Rap. Eminem has long been critical of rappers who don’t write their own rhymes, and his longtime collaborator “Rick Rubin” recently said that he seems “frustrated” by the rise of this genre. On his new surprise album Kamikaze, he addresses both issues, sticking up for the more traditional view of hip-hop that his own music represents. On many songs on the album, Eminem expresses his views on the new wave of rappers, and appears to be over the influx of “lil” rappers who’ve dominated the charts in recent years. While he continues to cape for favorites like J.Cole, Big Sean, Drake and Kendrick, the rapper draws lines in the sands when it comes to mumble rappers. For example he rhymes, “Lil Pump, Lil Xan imitate Lil Wayne I should aim at everybody in the game/ pick a name”.
Additionally, in an interview Snoop Dogg also states how the majority of mumble rappers all sound the same.
The History Of Mumble Rap 