be real: tell your homie they can't rap

Warning: If your friend can't actually rap then skip to the last paragraph.

From an early age we are instilled with the values that if you love something and you work hard at it, then you can be what ever you want to be. Then reality hit and we realized that these dreams can often be just that, dreams. And as Sister Act II put it, "If you want to be somebody, and you want to go somewhere, then you better wake up and pay attention." But for so many, rapping is still that one profession that they aspire to do, and this is not without reason. The money, the cars, the houses, the girls, the new iPhone....... wait that's the movie bullshit you see on T.V. and in the movies. So the best thing you can do for a friend is be real and tell them "You can't rap". And he is some reasons why not they shouldn't get into it

Here's what you can really expect struggle. With any artistic profession "struggle" is one of the first things that they must get accutstom to. The struggle of not having enough money to record the millions of tracks you have in your head, and then deciding whether to record or eat or pay a bill. One must struggle and learn how to deal with struggle before they see any sort of rewards. But is struggle really that bad? Yes and No. Yes, because there will be nights where you might not have a place to stay and are near homeless, also there may be days where you don't eat, and being 'down to your last' is a common theme. No, because there is beauty in the struggle. The friends and comradery that comes with you and your homies all in the struggle together, whether that's sleeping on a friend's couch or floor, or the homies all hustlin up change to get food. For many rappers these are the times they remember the most, going thru the struggle and realizing that they weren't alone, and knowing who really believed in them. Even self-made millionaires often attribute the "struggle" as shaping their behavior for why they became what and who they are.

The competition is fierce. Tulsa has seen a resurgence in the hip-hop scene which has drawn out so many rappers, I can name 10 off the top of my head and thats just the tip of the iceberg. This digital age that we live in has given the average joe the ability to reach millions of people in the blink of an eye, something that prior to the internet and smartphones couldn't happen without a major label backing rappers. There are too many rappers 'throwing up mom's spaghetti' trying to recreate the moment Eminem did in 8 Mile. So sit your friend down, turn on YouTube and type in 'rapper' and let them see how much competition they have. 

Last but not least is rejection. Rejection is a word mostly 'no' is the word that they must be overly familiar with. They will go to their first label meeting and be rejected. They will go to their favorite rap venue trying to get put on a show and will be rejected. They will pass out their mixtape and over-and -over and over-and-over, they will be rejected. But is rejection really that bad. Most salesmen don't actually make a sale within their first month of being on a job, that's why there is a training period for the person to learn how to sale. Most salesman would actually attribute this rejection with helping them in the polishing of their sales pitch and helping them learn what works and what doesn't work.

To sum it all up when your friend says that they want to be a rapper say; 1) There will be a struggle and it won't be easy, 2) The competiton is fierce, if you don't belive me turn on YouTube, 3) You will be rejected, so be prepared. So that's it right? All they need to be is comfortable with all 3 of those and then it will be OK for them to be a rapper? FUCK NO..... This is just the tip of the iceberg, if they aren't actually good, if they don't actually have bars, then throw all this bullshit out the window and tell them. "BRO YOU CAN'T RAP". Your next responsibilty then is to not play any of there songs, not to give them the Aux cord til all there songs are erased off their phone. Give them a book or give them a computer. But truthfully at the end of the day, WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU TO TELL THEM TO NOT FOLLOW THEIR DREAMS. If your a friend they will respect you for your honesty. But who are we to tell someone else not to dream. So many inventions, so many companies, so many dreams would not have been started if someone chose to give up when they were told they shouldn't do it. If its not for them to be a rapper then in due time they will find out. Because as DJay said in Hustle & Flow "EVERYBODY GOT TO HAVE A DREAM".