Did RAP destroy popular music?

[HappyGilmore]

Im sure people thought rap was a passing fad 30 years ago. I see it being around a long long time.

[Psycho Circus]

Example of good rap:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0urHkJmcZY4
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Example of bad rap:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRcnnId15BA
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[claws]

Ugh. I was exposed to "Candy Shop" (full blast) on a daily basis for weeks in a car pool at my last job. Damaged me pretty good 

[66Crush]

I think there are good young rock bands out there, but they are simply not being promoted and pushed. There is no outlet for them any more. They are thousands of bands out there social networking and in competition for fans. There are so many of these bands that they  get lost in the shuffle now more than ever. There are jems out there, but it takes a lot of time and trouble to find them. Youtube has so many garbage videos of kids without any talent whatsoever taking up space and taking it away from the people who are talented. Everybody wants to be a star and "American Idol" makes everybody think they can be, that it's easy as long as you look good. Not everyone is blessed with ascetically pleasant features. Modern technology has cluttered the marketplace with far too many choices. Auto-tune has made it possible for those with no concept of pitch to be lead singers. We must stop the madness!

[AndyC]

And the huge overemphasis on singing. Not suggesting a great singing voice isn't important, but singing is about the easiest part of making music. You need no special equipment, and although lessons can be valuable, you really don't need training. While practice helps develop vocal control, there are no skills to be mastered over years of study and practice. If you're blessed with good pipes and a good ear, you can sing. Add some good looks, confidence and stage presence, and you can be a big star.

Compare that to so many past stars of popular music, who sang, played at least one instrument, and wrote their own songs. That's hard. Nowadays, the star can get up and sing, and leave all of the hard stuff to working musicians with far more training and skill, who get less credit and less pay for it.

In the past, kids who dreamed of being a star felt the need to learn an instrument, form a band, write some original songs. Today, they think they can just sing a few bars of somebody else's song to the right people, and the rest will fall into place.

What kind of screwed up, topsy-turvy system is that, where the folks with actual musical ability are treated as essentially tradesmen, and the fame, fortune and credit go to somebody with a cute face and a reasonably good voice?

[Flick James]

What kind of screwed up, topsy-turvy system is that, where the folks with actual musical ability are treated as essentially tradesmen, and the fame, fortune and credit go to somebody with a cute face and a reasonably good voice?

Not unlike the film industry. The actor gets all the attention and the people who made it all happen are the tradepeople. That's show business, friend. Ain't nothin' gonna change that.