Violence In Today's Music

Music is one type of media that has a profound effect on individuals. Over the years, music has changed a great deal, both in its musical sounds and in the lyrics sung in accompaniment to those sounds. Music lyrics are becoming more violent and sexually explicit than ever, and the violent portrayals in today’s music have a notably negative effect on its listeners.
While music lyrics have become much more violent in recent years, the violence in music did not originate in hip-hop, rap, or rock. In fact, many of the acts of violence in today’s music, especially those acts against women, were previously expressed in both folk music and the blues. As far back as the 1920s, singers such as Lonnie Johnson were singing songs about shooting their

lovers for betraying them (Hamerlinck, 1995).
The theme of murdering an unfaithful lover is present in many popular songs from both the past and those of today.

In his song “Little Boy Blue”, Robert Lockwood threatens to whip and stab his lover, and in “Murderin’ Blues”, Robert Nighthawk proclaims that prison would be better than having his lover cheat and lie to him. However, this type of scenario is not limited to the folk and blues. The Beatles’ “Run for Your Life”, is a frightening combination of the same premeditated, homicidal attitudes and threats sung directly to the target along with mentions of stalking (Hamerlinck, 1995).
These violent lyrics have endured in the music of today. Many of today’s genres have even expanded upon the violent acts and imagery. Genres such as hip-hop, rock, punk, and especially rap, portray violence in nearly every song. Perhaps the most controversial and violent of today’s genres is gangsta rap. This form of rap often portrays life for inner-city African Americans as violent and unpredictable. The lyrics of this genre encourage youths to build a reputation for themselves by showing others that they are tough and willing to commit acts of

violence.
Kubrin (2005) studied the lyrics of gangsta rap and its effects on the public. She found that violence was a major theme in about 65 percent of the songs in this genre. Furthermore, she found that the rappers attempt to portray a thuggish appearance and suggest that this is what must be done to gain respect. In the lyrics of their songs, they describe themselves as “hellraiser” (2 Pac; “Hellrazor”), “trigger niggas” (Master P; “Till We Dead and Gone”), “young head busta” (Hot Boys; “Bout Whatever”), “grave filler” (Juvenile; “Back That A** Up”), “Sergeant Slaughter” (Killer Mike; “Snappin and Trappin”), and many other names along the same theme.
In addition to these thuggish nicknames, Kubrin (2005) found that many times rappers will allude to how violent they are capable of being. They describe themselves as being, “A little rough with a hardcore theme / Couldn’t rough something rougher in your dreams / Mad rugged so you know we’re gonna rip / With that roughneck nigga named 2Pacalypse” (2 Pac; “Stugglin’”) There are many more lyrics that suggest a similar violent nature. Rappers will refer to themselves as “a** kickers” or “carrying an extra clip” (Kubrin, 2005).
Kubrin (2005) also found that, to rappers and their listeners, it is not sufficient to simply project a violent nature through verbal assertions, but that it is also necessary to demonstrate toughness through actual acts of violence. It is for this reason that many rappers fill their songs with vivid and explicit descriptions of violent acts that they commit. Often, they will describe, in detail the situations that precipitate the violence, the act itself, the weapons and ammunition involved, the victim, and the bloody aftermath of the crime (Kubrin, 2005).
Though the lyrics Kubrin studied were extremely violent and aggressive verbal and physical actions by listeners were observed, the experiment could not thoroughly prove that these lyrics are the cause of violence. Kubrin found that these lyrics only extend the purview of the street code of violence and respect. “Rappers’ telling the street code in their music in conjunction with the everyday telling of the code by inner-city residents in community research (Anderson 1999; Fagan and Wilkinson 1998; Kubrin and Weitzer 2003) provide two potent sources of local culture—a culture of the streets in which violence is cast as a way of life” (Kubrin,2005). It can be said that instead of encouraging and causing violence, by extending the code it is serving as an interpretive resource. These lyrics are simply a by-product of broader America culture (Kubrin, 2015).
According to a study done by the American Psychological Association (APA), violent lyrics in music increase aggression in thoughts and emotions, and the increase in aggression is caused directly by the violent lyrics (Violent Music Lyrics Increase Aggressive Thoughts and Feelings, 2003). In this study, experimenters from Iowa State University and the Texas Department of Human Services conducted five experiments involving more than 500 college students. The experiments studied the effect of seven songs with violent lyrics by seven artists versus the effects of eight nonviolent songs by seven artists. After listening to the songs, students were given psychological tasks to measure their level of aggressive thoughts and feelings.
During the experiments the researchers recognized and controlled for variables other than the lyrics that may have influenced the results. In three of the experiments they played both violent and nonviolent songs by the same artist, in the same musical styles, an din the other two experiments they measured the level of arousal associated with each song, to ensure that the arousal was not causing the aggressive attitudes. The subjects were also given psychological exams prior to the experiment, to measure their natural level of aggression, and the researchers used this information to control for the natural variable as well.
Their results found that after listening to the violent lyrics of a song, people were much more likely to interpret situations in overly-aggressive ways. For example, after listening to a song with violent lyrics people were much more likely to interpret the partial word h_t as being “hit”. They were also more likely to attribute violent meanings to neutral words such as rock or stick.
Violent lyrics may not have originated in the music of recent years, but today’s lyrics are becoming progressively more violent and explicit in their descriptions of violence. Musical artists of today, portray themselves as tough and violent, and encourage their listeners to do the same. These violent lyrics are having a profoundly negative effect on those who listen to them. They cause people to interpret neutral situations in much more aggressive ways than they would have had they not heard such violence described in the popular music of today.
While violent lyrics are most definitely a major problem in today’s music, there is also another problem that has an equally negative effect.

This is the problem of sexually explicit lyrics. The sexual messages portrayed in the lyrics are often unrealistic and misleading, but children often accept them as fact (Sexuality, Contraception, and the Media, 2001). The issue of teenagers becoming sexually active at an earlier age is becoming an ever more concerning issue. More are admitting to being sexually active and even to having multiple partners. About 61% of high school seniors report that they have had sex in the past, half say that they are currently sexually active, and 21% have had four or more partners (Sexuality, Contraception, and the Media,

2001).
The issue of teenagers becoming sexually active at an earlier age and the frequency, with which they engage in casual, unprotected, irresponsible sex, is becoming extremely disturbing to those that specialize in the well being of children and adolescence. Michael Rich MD, MPH, FAAP of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Public Education said in his address to the United States House of Representatives (2002) “As a pediatrician who specializes in adolescent medicine, I am keenly aware of how crucial music is to a teen's identity and how it helps them define important social and interpersonal behaviors. In fact, one study showed that 24% of high school students ranked popular music as one of their top 3 sources for guidance on social interaction. We often use music to define our beliefs and convictions. We are attracted to music that will confirm and support these beliefs and convictions. Music can truly affirm and confirm a teenager's struggles, joys, sorrows, fears, and fantasies.”
Music is irreplaceable in the life of an adolescent. It is this need for music that makes the disturbing messages conveyed by music lyrics even more concerning. Though there have not been any cause and effect studies done, researchers have found a very strong correlation between the amount of sexual content adolescence are exposed to and their sexual activity (Sexuality, Contraception, and the Media, 2001), as well as adolescence portrayal of violent lyrics.