1. Can’t Identify BeatsIf you’re wanting to learn how to rap there
is a certain order that you need to follow in
order for everything to work together like it’s
supposed to. I’ve noticed quite a few
rappers either skip this step or just don’t
spend enough time on it before moving on.
Consequently they rap off beat and their
lyrics lack structure which makes it nearly
impossible to rap their lyrics the same way
twice.
Being able to count beats is the foundation
you will be building everything else off of. A
house is only as good as the foundation
that it’s built upon so do not rush this step!
2. Can’t Identify DrumsUnable to identify the kick and the snare drums
in a song. This kind of ties into the previous
mistake I just mentioned because kick and
snare drums typically fall in line with the 4
beats in each bar. Being able to identify the
kick and the snare gives you anchor points
and kind of acts as training wheels.
3. Can’t Identify The Structure Of An InstrumentalAnother common struggle for many rappers
who are learning how to rap is
understanding the song structure of an
instrumental. This can cause you two write
verses and hooks in the wrong places and
also cause them to be uneven in length.
Once again this can fall back on not being
able to count beats. As there are 4 beats in
1 bar and typically 16 bars in 1 verse and 8
bars in 1 hook. Being able to count the bars
out will give you a good indication of what
section of a song you are in.
4. To Much Focus Put On RappingYou may be wondering how can someone
put to much focus on rapping? Think of
what happens when your eyes are focusing
on something close up, everything that
you’re not focusing on becomes blurred and
out of focus just like how a camera works.
However when you zoom out of that ultra
focused position you can see everything at
once.
For
example if you come up with a nice flow
to a track and then just haphazardly write
your lyrics then their not going to play well
with each other. When you’re scatting to a
track in theory you’re randomly playing
around with creating different cadences.
Once you’ve come up with a few cadences
that you like you then need to write your
lyrics to the cadence . This can take time in
order to pick the right combination of words
that have the right syllable count to play
well with your cadence.
5. Not Practicing Enoughhere’s the thing, knowledge alone
isn’t going to make you a better rapper you
have to effectively apply it by putting it into
practice on a consistent basis which takes
discipline . Learning knowledge but not
applying it will give you the same results as
being prescribed medicine but not taking it.
Always remember that a hard work ethic will
trump talent alone any day of the week!
#StickTogether
@ethioshiphopcommunity
