Black Star’s Mos Def and Talib Kweli are Black Star is a typical gangster rap album. It is biased towards the African American community and sings about what it means to be African American in New York. This album is different because it talks more about the difficulties of living in high poverty areas. Although it does show multiple times that the African American community is discriminated against. This album also brings up the important issue of violence in hip hop multiple times. They sing about Biggie and Topock being shot. Then they say that it is a dangerous industry, but the rewards make it worth it. Another thing I noticed is that the singers don’t swear as much as most rappers. This could be because he doesn’t want to set a bad example for the young people, and start them swearing from a young age. It could also be to have people take his message more seriously. If some people hear a lot of swearing they stop listening, but if they understand the message they might help out.

            Because this is a gangster rap album, their message reaches many more people. People don’t have to agree with their message to enjoy the beat and rhythm. This is more typical now with rap spreading through all ethnicities. People are listening to it because the music is easy to dance to. Eventually these people will realize what the rapper is trying to say, and they may decide to help out low poverty area near them.

            Overall I enjoyed the album. I understand that some rappers need to get being discriminated against, and I believe it should be stopped. I also know that rappers live a dangerous lifestyle. He also has songs that are meant to be danced to. The combination of these messages, the rhythm, and the way the album is presented makes for a very enjoyable album.