bts appreciation for hip hop; a thread that discusses their song hip hop phile in length as an example for their appreciation towards hip hop - thoughts from a Black army <3

well let’s start with the obvious... bts have a problematic past and as a Black army it does hurt however i personally feel they have grown a lot and have changed. i’m making this thread to highlight their appreciation for hip hop which is present in the song hiphop phile

background about me so you know my positionality. I’m a bisexual Black women in college and I study American History and Politics with an emphasis in African american history :) i’m not an expert but i have learned and lived a lot as a Black person

hip hop phile is a masterpiece. bts literally have a hip hop song dedicated to their appreciation of hip hop as a genre and a culture. namjoon opens the song posing the question “why do we love hip hop”

he answers by referencing iconic hip hop artists (jay z, nas, etc) and songs that he listened to and analyzed, he saw how other artists found a voice in the genre and learned from that +

towards the end of the verse namjoon says he was “free on the beat, seven years ago or now it’s the same, this is the most me” implying that the way he best expresses himself is through hip hop and rap as a medium/art form

namjoon is describing a huge element of hip hop culture and that is “to be free” - in a creative, structural, and social sense. hiphop was formed with this freedom in mind and his rap praises and proves that

hobi also describes his journey finding and appreciating hip hop he opens his first line “yo ma hiphop enrollment? i felt it with my body” i think this line is a great opener to how he doesn’t see hiphop as a trend but rather as a lifestyle and culture (cos that’s what it is)

he goes on say “entrusting the beat with rhyme and my tongue it shows prominence” this line does two things. 1)the relationship he feels with hip hop - one of trust 2) he is using using elements of hiphop. he is bragging a lil bit, he’s saying he feels important when he raps

note - the element of bragging in hiphop came to be because Black people were never deemed important so we had to spread the message of our importance to ourselves... that message is still very prevalent in rap today :)

hobi goes on to show respect to rappers he has personally looked up to and than sets his own position. “i’m still inexperienced as i write my resume” this is a powerful line because once again hobi adds in a huge culture aspect of hip hop which is respect+

he raps “breaking down my namelessness... they helped me get to where i am...” this is him showing and paying respect to great hiphop artists, he goes on in his bar saying+

“expressing it with their bodies, biggie, tupac, nas, i found out more about myself. hope hope world” he is saying that hip hop was an outlet to learn from and express himself with and it’s an inspiration to him. it’s apart of his hope

he ends his verse saying “now my life melts with hiphop” (after naming several other artists like kendrick, jcole, kanye). ultimately this verse shows me that hobi sees hiphop as an extension of himself as an expression <3

yoongi opens with one of the most incredible lyrics to describe his relationship with hip hop. “hip hop has found me, just like a child looks for his mother” - this line to me describes a relationship of looking for a sense of comfort and finding it+

he goes on to say that is came to him naturally when he was in elementary school. he goes on to rap “even if people held me down and warn me, hip hop persists in me and completely turns me inside out” hip hop was there for him, while people held him down+

and told him not to think about it, he had an strong sense of passion for it because it was natural to him. he continues to rap “the young me used to write 16 bars on the corner of my textbooks thanks to that i threw away my secure life” +

he is saying that creating music was his dream and hip hop as a genre and a culture helped him gain the courage to make that jump. he than goes to describe the work and effort he has made into his art and into hip hop. yoongi ends his verse with+

“everyone asks me what is hip hip? than i confidently answer, my everything... if loving this culture is a sin, i’ll die over a hundred times” yoongi shows how hip hop influenced his life and led him to his dream but he also makes a vow to care abt the culture too

the chorus of the song is perfect. vocal line showcase their strong tones as they sing the lyrics “i’ll be down for your rap” a dedication to hip hop culture and genre.

they also sing the line “it makes me feel the real me” which expresses how hiphop has been a tool of self expression for them.

overall this song is a love letter to hip hop culture. this is why i say bts are rappers. they understand the culture of hiphop, the work ethic that needs to be in place to call yourself a rapper, and the heart you need to have to maintain the culture so stan bts for good rap <3