Country music and Rap music are two different genres of music. Despite their musical distinction there are resemblances in the concerts and shows the artist put on along with the themes they share. There are also many distinct differences between them. I have attended both types of concerts and seen how two totally different artists put on their shows, yet there are still somethings in common in both shows. Do I have a genre I prefer more? Yes.
Before a country concert, there are people in the parking lot tailgating, which is parking your car in the parking lot and binge-drink the day away hours before the concert starts, and barbequing. At a rap concert, most people just arrive a few minutes before the show and go to their seats ready to dance to the music. Most country artists are Caucasian while most rappers are African-American so they each tend to draw different crowds. Although there are numerous Caucasian people at rap concerts, there are not many, few, African-American people that attend country concerts. There is also a difference in the age of the assemblage at each show. Rap concerts tend to be mostly younger people while country concerts attract people of all ages.
There are several different settings for these artists to produce shows. It seems to be that most rap concerts are mostly held at indoor venues such as basketball stadiums, indoor theaters, or football fields; Superbowl games. Some country concerts are held inside, but the majority of them are held outside at outdoor amphitheaters. Also, many country artists perform at fairs and carnivals during the summer. At country concerts, you have to bring lawn chairs or buy lawn chairs just to have a place to sit if you don’t have a truck to set up for the concert. Rap concerts are inside mostly so people don’t have to bring chairs unless it’s held outside, but most people stand and dance to the music. At country and rap concerts both sell merchandise throughout the place they are doing their show whether that’s during or after the show. The ticket prices might be a little different depending on who is doing the show, but in general, a rap concert is more expensive than a country concert.
Obviously, the type of music is the biggest difference between the two shows. The musical instruments are very different. Usually, the only thing you find at a rap concert is a disc jockey (DJ) on the stage spinning records. At a country concert, there is a huge number of musical instruments all different sizes being used. Some artists play their own instruments, but most of them have bands that play for them. The bands usually consist of a drummer, a guitar player, a bass player, and a keyboard player. Sometimes there is even a violin, banjo, or a harmonica. The actual music during a rap concert is mostly upbeat that usually consist of kick drums, snares, and hi-hats. Before technology came out updated, rappers used to have a person beat-box, which is the imitation of the drums with your mouth, and rap to the rhythm and speed. But nowadays, during a rap concert, there is always a person at the soundboard to control the volume, bass, and speed of the track.
In the country versus rap battle, country stars and rappers mine similar themes: a strong sense of pride, the benevolent badass holding court; an even stronger sense of place, country folk, and city dwellers. They both have a penchant for smoke and booze shindigs, the party vibe in full effect. They also excel at constant self-referential defenses of their genre. In-country music, when they talk about the truck and the bottle of Jack and the girl, it’s the same as in hip-pop, when they talk about the block and the cars and the party. These are people talking about their feelings, how they live. Country singers and hip-hoppers know where they’re from and won’t let you forget it. Country and hip-pop are both entrenched in the party. They usually party amongst themselves. Both country and rap tend to represent a marginalized part of society, often representing a less than favorable socioeconomic class.
Many people think that there are absolutely no similarities between country and rap. Well, these people are wrong, country and rap are becoming more similar to the new genre of country, country-rap. This genre may bring fans of rap to the countryside of music and vice-versa. While I like both genres of music I connect more with rap music and it’s easier to listen too. With different stereotypes that come from listening to these two types of music may lessen there willing to listen to a completely new genre of music. Both genres of music have been criticized for what the songs contained within. Country music and rap music have their differences, but they have numerous similarities to one another.