Rap & Ecstasy By Melissa G.

"Our movies and TV shows and music do affect what is cool-and what isn’t whether it is clothing or dancing or language. And while…accountability will always lie with the individual, we as an industry must recognize the role we play in influencing context and environment". (Zelnick) In other words, media can influence what is the right way to dress, talk, maybe even what to consume for some people. In the article, What's the Rap About Ecstasy, explains that during the 1990s to 2000s ecstasy was the most popular drug. Then around 2001 rap artists started to write song about ecstasy, but there was other artist who already sang about the drug before they did. Many of the rap artist talked about this drug in three different ways. One of the way they use to talk about it, was how they felt good when they consumed the drug and sometimes they mixed it with alcohol. The second way it was incorporated into their songs was how people offered them the drugs and suggested that it would make them feel better. Lastly, they wrote song about how ecstasy and other drugs were bad and recommended they should not consume it. One artist even explain how when he took ecstasy he felt violent.

Youth were the ones who listen most to rap music according to the article which then drove them to this statement,“public health experts became particularly concerned about the rising rates of ecstasy use among youth in Europe, America, Australia, and elsewhere around the world”. This means many youths were listening to rap music and this influenced many youths to start consuming this drug. In the article they also state in a "study found that young urban women who watched rap videos regularly were 1.5 times more likely than their peers to have used drugs and alcohol during a 12-month period". This gives us an example of how rap music influenced a youths' actions.

In another research done, only 4% of the youth who were asked if they felt music influenced their behavior agreed it did. While the other “72% said music influenced the way they felt”. This explains how a big percentage of people who were asked if music influenced how they act and they disagreed. On the other hand, a low percentage of youth asked said that music did influence how they behaved.

In my option, I don't agree that what music lyric say will influence many people on what they do, say, or consume. If this was the case the government would have done something to fix this. I listen to rap and rock music which are some of the genres that may talk more about drugs and alcohol and I don't smoke, drink or do drugs. People might not believe this but it's true and this is why I don't agree how a song can make you take bad decision, but at the end of the day it's your decision you take.

Do you think music influence how a person might act?

Do you think it okay artist talk about it and recommend using drugs?

Does music influence who you are?