Idea Proposal

Genre 1: Rap music Genre 2: College Essays

Kendrick Lamar’s sophomore album, A personal essay about Kendrick Lamar’s

“Good Kid Maad City” (Or short essays experiences in life
about DAMN. songs, haven't decided
yet.)

Section I: Writers, readers, and aims

1. Who writes in this genre? For what purposes?

Anyone writes in this genre. Often, rap is Anyone can write a college essay. Often,
used to express yourself. they are used to inform, argue, or
describe a story.

2. What are the writer’s goals?

Writers use this genre to gain fame, To inform, argue, or describe a story,
express their beliefs, and take a position amongst others
on social topics

3. What is the writer’s role(s) when producing this genre?

Writers work with others make the lyrics Writers are the people who draft, revise,
and sometimes the beat that makes up and publish the essay.
the song

4. Who are the readers for this genre?

Anyone can listen to rap music Anyone interested in the topic of the
essay

5. Why do they read it or what do they use it to do?

People listen to rap music to entertain Essays can be used in any educational
themselves and can relate to the situation and have a myriad of purposes.
messages hidden inside them.
 6. What are the readers’ role(s) when reading or using this genre?

The readers enjoy the relatability of the Readers can be influenced by the essays
lyrics and the style of the song topic and can be swayed, informed, or
entertained.

Section II: Rhetorical Strategies

7. What rhetorical strategies or appeals are used to carry out the genre’s purpose or
function?

Rappers mostly use pathos and ethos in Essays can use all three of the rhetorical
their songs. Some rap about life in low strategies. Logos is applied when
socioeconomic communities, where they argumentative essays are used to
have firsthand knowledge of the problems discount a claim.
African Americans face, an example of
ethos. Furthermore, by describing these
difficulties, they appeal to pathos.

8. How do writers effectively achieve their aims?

They write good rap lyrics that are catchy They apply rhetorical strategies and
yet have a deeper and relatable meaning citations from reputable sources to back
up their claims or opinions. If the essay is
a narrative, they use creativity to express
a story.

9. How do the genre’s purposes, audiences, and contexts influence the rhetorical
options that writers have?

Rappers often make songs that relate Essays have a wide variety of purposes
about them or their struggles. Often, the and therefore have a wide variety of
audience can relate to this context and options that writers have.
can sympathize with the rapper.

Section III: Form

10. What does the genre typically look like? Consider areas like: design and formatting,
organization/rhetorical moves, language(s) used, style and formality, word choice (e.g.,
use of slang, technical language/jargon, formality of vocabulary, use of first-person
pronouns [I/me/we/us], etc.), grammar (e.g., sentence structure, use of passive/active
voice, etc.), stance or voice (e.g., presence of author’s opinion, use of evaluative
adjectives or adverbs) source use (are outside sources used? if so, how are they cited,
if at all?)

The genre can be simplified as poetry set
to a beat. Raps often rhyme and have a
deeper meaning to them. A lot of slang is
used to express meaning in rap songs,
and sometimes broken or grammatically
incorrect sentence structure is used.
However, plenty of meaning can be
distilled from a single rap song. Some rap
artists collaborate with others to help
make a popular and relatable song. This
is sometimes called ghost writing. Rap
songs commonly have hooks, which are a
catchy refrain that helps to tie the stanzas
together.
Depending on the topic selected, the
structure can change. For more
professional topic or argumentative
essays, language is formal and first
person pronouns are not used. Citations
are typically in MLA format. For narrative
or informal essays of personal stories first
person pronouns are used. Citations are
non-existent in this type of essay. Slang
and informal speech can be used to
express ideas and in conversation.

11. Why does the genre tend to look this way?

Rap has changed over time, but lyrics set The genre looks this way because it is the
to a beat has been the basic format since most efficient way to convey an
rap’s inception. argument, opinion, or story.

Section IV: Process

12. How is the genre typically carried out (written, distributed, performed, etc.)?

Rap is distributed in the form of albums, a This genre is now typically published and
collection of songs, and singles, a release distributed online.
of one song, typically before the release
of an album. Rap can be written by
anyone. It is typically performed by
popular rappers at large concert venues.
13. How long does it take to write? Who is involved? What materials or other technology
are needed?

Rap song can be written immediately in
the writers head, known as freestyling
rap. More often, however, writers work
with others to help create a catchy,
popular song. Computers and technology
are used to create the beats that writers
rap over.
Essays can take days or weeks to
properly write. This process may involve
more than one person as other editors or
reviewers may examine the essay during
revision. Most essays are written online
using computers, however back in the
day essays were written on paper.

14. How is the text distributed to others? Where do people read or use the text?

Most rap song lyrics can be found on the People read essays online, typically on
internet. news websites.

15. What do readers do with the text?

Text helps to clarify the meaning behind Readers gain information and sometimes
the rap song. enjoyment from reading essays,
depending on the subject and style.

16. Why is the genre carried out in these ways? Consider issues like time constraints,
technology needs, etc.

The genre is carried out this way so that it
is largely accessible to everyone. Anyone
can make a rap song or freestyle on a
beat that can be found on the internet.
This genre is carried out this way
because writing a proper, professional
essay is an arduous process that requires
revision and sometimes citations.
Publishing on the internet is the most
common way to distribute essays, so a
computer and word processing
application are required.

Section V: A Genre’s Role within a Community

17. How is the success of this genre measured? Who determines whether an example
of this genre is successful?
 Success is largely measured by how well
the album sells and how many times the
song is streamed on sites like apple
music and Spotify. The Recording
Industry Association of America certifies
songs using gold, platinum, and diamond
if they stream or sell enough units.
Today, page views are commonly a
measure of an essays success. Viewers
who like the essay and share it to others
are the ones who determine how
successful an essay is.

18. What is at stake for the writer if the genre is unsuccessful?

For a casual artist, an unsuccessful song Professional writers can lose their jobs if
is largely inconsequential because it was multiple essays are unsuccessful.
made for enjoyment and fun. However,
for a serious artist who wants to make a
living from rap, an unsuccessful song can
be detrimental to their career. Luckily, it
only take 1 catchy rap song to become
popular.

19. Can you identify any community values that are reflected in this genre?

Values such as low socioeconomic Since an essays topic can be essentially

struggles are a common theme among anything, any community value can be
some rap writers expressed in an essay.

20. Does the genre seem to privilege certain kinds of users? In other words, are some
people more likely to be successful at this genre than others? If so, who and why?

Anyone can become a popular rapper, but Educated, well spoken people are likely to be
one with creative wordplay and catchy beats more successful because they can effectively
and lyrics are likely to become popular. communicate a topic to others.