Amalie Davidsen
Opinion Writer
adavidse@unca.edu
Raindrop?
I bet the response to the word raindrop would differ extremely among people. Personally, I would immediately jump into a squat position yelling “drop top!”
I know a whole lot of folks would do the same as me. No matter where I would be — America, Denmark, it does not matter.
I also know a lot of people would look at me weird, maybe with a raised eyebrow, maybe with a hand pushed into their side, thinking raindrop what?
What does matter is the American hip-hop movement consisting predominately of African-American males creating rhymes with their words and beats with their flow of life experiences, currently inspiring artists all over the world.
Migos, 21 Savage, Future, Kodak Black, YFN Lucci, the list of artists is long. Rappers have their own different swag and style, but share a common love of storytelling and beat-making in their music and creativity.
When Future drops a new song, when Migos dabs to a new beat or when Desiigner’s “Panda” appears on the radio, people around the world start dabbing to the tunes of American lyrics; slang they most likely do not understand.
Though there is no need to understand the exact words because the beats and emotions in the music speak their own universal language, many people relate despite their own life story.
When I went to church a while ago, the pastor spent a lot of time labeling rap music as the “words of the devil.” With all respect, I could not help but to laugh a little, because in reality these young rappers are taking over the world.
The tunes appear everywhere, uncensored or censored, at basketball games, on the radio, in commercials and in YouTube memes. If the pastor is right, we all speak the words of the devil.
I am aware the majority of rap music might not be appealing to the elderly part of the human population, and some would probably refer to present rap music as noise or trash, but once in awhile I catch my father jamming to the tunes of Young Thug while working.
It does not matter whether you agree with me or not, what matters is the movement is real and influences people outside America.
In this way, we all live in America. After all, I have seen with my own blue eyes how people unite to the tunes of American hip-hop.
It is beautiful. Back home, Muslims, Christians and atheists are together “hittin’ dem folks,” dabbing on that beat and laughing along with the words of American slang they do not even understand.
