Research Paper Is Hip Hop Culture Detrimental to the Youth

Research Paper: Is Hip Hop Culture Detrimental to the Youth? Hip hop is one of the urban culture branches comprised of hip hop music, break dancing and graffiti art, which has greatly influenced street slang, fashion and other elements. Many people claim it has a negative impact on the younger generation, as it instils improper moral values. But is it actually as harmful as it seems at the first sight? On the one hand, there is a grain of truth in the allegations that hip hop music focuses on shallow life aspects. Many hip hop songs promote violence, crime, sex and drugs and are full of curse words. What is more, there is a category of rap performers that praise to the skies the expensive possessions, such as cars, clothes and jewellery. In other words, they set the pursuit of materialistic values on a pedestal, which certainly is not an appropriate ideal for the young minds. On the other hand, hip hop culture has helped many young people to avoid taking up the wrong path in their lives. It has shown the youngsters in poor areas that they can develop their talent in music, dancing or painting instead of joining one of their local criminal gangs. For them hip hop is like a guiding star and the lyrics are just a form of giving vent to their feelings of anger or frustration. Moreover, hip hop culture implicitly promotes the healthy lifestyle. Obviously, you cannot rap or dance well when you are a heavy smoker or addicted to drugs.