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Apple Music Renames Hip-Hop Playlist to 'Rap Life'

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Apple Music has renamed its "The A-List: Hip-Hop" playlist to "Rap Life."

rap-life.jpg

Ebro Darden, global editorial head of hip-hop and R&B at Apple Music, will host a companion "Rap Life" segment during his daily Beats 1 show and there will also be a weekly show called "Rap Life" which will feature music from the playlist and cultural discussions around hip-hop, according to Billboard.

The playlist's description:
Rap isn't just a genre. There's a reason it's sometimes simply called The Culture: It's a way of life. And this playlist--formerly known as The A-List: Hip-Hop--is where rap lives, breathes, and moves. Topped today by J.Cole and the Dreamville crew's "Under the Sun," off their Revenge of the Dreamers III album, Rap Life is home to hip-hop's heavy hitters and vanguard--the stars and the songs that speak to the moment and define the culture today. Check back early and often, as our editors update this playlist regularly. If you hear something you like, add it to your library.
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Apple Music has been a leading streaming platform for hip-hop since it launched in 2015, reportedly topping Spotify in engagement for major releases such as Drake's recent projects "Scorpion" and "More Life."

Article Link: Apple Music Renames Hip-Hop Playlist to 'Rap Life'
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2019/07/19/apple-music-rap-life-hip-hop-playlist/
macduke said:
Question: What color do you have to be to perform/record rap music or listen to it?

Thanks.
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Any color & any color. One of the best-selling rap artists of the last few decades was white, that would be Eminem.

The point stands, hip hop and rap are two separate genres, as evidenced by Billboard having different hit charts for both genres with different artists topping both charts.

Renaming “hip hop” to “rap life” is racist whether anybody likes it or not. They’re not the same.
 
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They've been renaming all their "A-List" playlists over the past few months. About a month ago, for example "The A-List: Rock" became "The New Rock," "The A-List: Metal" became "Optimus Metallum," "The A-List: Singer/Songwriter" became "Today's Acoustic" and more.

Were all the other name changes written about on MacRumors? Legit just asking. I enjoy all different genres, including rap.
 
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infiniteentropy said:
They've been renaming all their "A-List" playlists over the past few months. About a month ago, for example "The A-List: Rock" became "The New Rock," "The A-List: Metal" became "Optimus Metallum," "The A-List: Singer/Songwriter" became "Today's Acoustic" and more.

Were all the other name changes written about on MacRumors? Legit just asking. I enjoy all different genres, including rap.
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That’s apples to oranges though. Those renames kept the genres the same and didn’t assume they were interchangeable.

Rock still focuses on rock. The metal change still contains the word metal etc.

Whoever thought up this change is clearly ignorant about music and groups “hip hop” in with “rap” as if hip hop is just another way to say black rap music. They’re not the same genre, not even close.
 
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Bawstun said:
That’s apples to oranges though. Those renames kept the genres the same and didn’t assume they were interchangeable.

Rock still focuses on rock. The metal change still contains the word metal etc.

Whoever thought up this change is clearly ignorant about music and groups “hip hop” in with “rap” as if hip hop is just another way to say black rap music. They’re not the same genre, not even close.
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I agree with your assessment that the name change is sloppy and potentially furthers misinformed interchanging of the two genres. However, it's not just limited to Hip Hop => Rap. I see the same with Singer/Songwriter => Acoustic whatever. Singer/Songwriter _doesn't_ have to be acoustic stuff at all. So with the renaming of these playlists, they are actually pigeonholing a lot of stuff in a sort of backwards stepping manner.
 
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