Of course, you might be thinking, "Why listen to rap? It's just some dude talking over a beat."  You may feel that it's easy to dismiss rap as a crude, repetitive form of music that does nothing but cause headaches. But really rap music isn't about hitting the right notes, or keeping the right beat; it's about having something to say. Rap has become the poetry of the streets, performed by talented and creative people who wish to speak out about society's problems.

Being a style that came out of the black urban ghettos, rap was and has been a powerful way to express the anger and injustice felt by the black community. However, nowadays rap is not limited to black performers and audiences are open to anyone who has something to say.  More people are listening.

Rap has also grown in several directions being entertaining as well as enlightening. Rap no longer is solely about themes of injustice, but now also includes themes like power, greed, love, and just plain having fun. Some artists have recognized that rap doesn't always need to be heavy, but can also be an exciting style of music to dance to. Furthermore, rap music has also gained a level of technical quality focusing on new rhythmic patterns to explore and different musical ideas and effects that create an excellent background behind the lyrics.

If you still aren't convinced that rap holds any quality to it, give it a try for yourself. Try to come up with some rap lyrics that can rhyme and have a good rhythm to them. You'll find it's harder than you'd think. It often takes a lot of practice to speak rap lyrics clearly without easily tiring out. To hear a rap professional at his or her best is to truly witness a master of language and speech, one who is able to speak quickly, smoothly, and loudly, without ever running out of breath. Many times you'll even find rap battles, where rappers are forced to come up with lyrics on the spot which, if the rappers are any good, can be very impressive to watch.

So if you're into speaking your mind and listening to what others have to say, don't be fooled by the mere lack of singing and give rap a try. You might find that it is one of the most powerful, energetic, and emotional styles of music out there today. Singing can be overrated anyway.