Alright everyone! I finally get the chance to write a blog entry dedicated to the rappers. I think many of you will enjoy this one too! As I watch many movies, even those I find in my own small library of DVD’s owned, I find several rappers with major acting roles within feature films. There are movies with LL Cool J, Mos Def, Chris Bridges (Ludacris) and even the box office favorite Fresh Prince Will Smith. There are so many more that I would need to just make this weeks’ blog a listing of rappers. But the question is why do rappers tend to become good actors?
There is a need to look at the “art” of rapping and understand the artists’ themselves. I put art in quotations because there are still some skeptics out there who do not catalog rapping with other forms of art. But believe it of not folks, there is a skill set that should not go unnoticed. Rappers have the gift of improvisation at the base level, when they are starting out. The language used is not that used in corporate board rooms across America, but the stories are real, reflecting life as they and their families and friends live it. I can understand it, because I come from very poor beginnings on Chicago’s South Side. Life was very different for me growing up than for my children and many of you reading this blog. But I never starting rapping to express myself and tell of my surroundings. That came easy for many young men and women possessing such talent and developing it. But why do rappers make the mass migration to Hollywood? Well, maybe it’s like any other actors – someone notices a spark and gives them a chance. And then they produce wonderful if not interesting results. I find it amazing to watch Ice-T on Law and Order SVU portraying a police officer. A former gang leader and outlaw can find his way to Hollywood. Tupac Shakur said it best, “For every dark night, there’s a brighter day.”