Friday 24 November 2017

Are Rappers . . . Secret Oulipians?

As it's been getting darker and colder over the last few weeks, and the whole premise of leaving the house looks like a scam designed to entrap the dimmest and most ingenuous of suckers, I've been getting quietly addicted to the Vox Pop channel on Youtube, which deals with musical matters of a technical nature in a fun and informative way.  All of the micro-essays contained within are worth your time, but the video below - on rhyme in hip-hop - remains the stand-out, as it suggests an unexpected point of comparison between the most dextrous language-centred experimental formalists of the late 20th century, and the Oulipo.  (See what I did there?)  Honestly, it's really interesting viewing.  Oh, and a brief warning: for any poets who've not heard Kendrick Lamar's 'Rigormortis' before, be warned: it will most likely make you question the value of the entirety of your paltry literary oeuvre, and most if not all life-choices attendant thereon.  But I think an existential doom-spiral's a price worth paying.  Enjoy! 

S @ G&P

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