I get this a lot, and it flatters me, but it worries me too.

Rap is SMART.  The basic thing about rap has always been that it’s clever, quick-witted, expressive and informative.  That’s what attracted me to it in the first place.

I don’t mean no-one dumb has ever rapped, but they don’t do it well.  I guess the tendency for idiomatic language can present some kind of barrier for people who don’t expose themselves to a ton of African-American expression, but that’s just cultural distance - the furthest thing from any indication of idiocy on the part of the performer.

What I recommend is getting familiar with the rudiments - go back to the eighties and nineties and immerse yourself in the language of hip-hop from records by Fresh Prince, KRS-ONE, Gang Starr, A Tribe Called Quest, Def Jef, Blackalicious, Digable Planets, Naughty By Nature, De La Soul, Masta Ace, Nas, Rakim, Divine Styler, and all of the really obviously brilliant artists who make an airtight case for the legitimacy of rap as a forum for great minds to put forth thought.

Oh my god just listen to this right now: