hip hop lyrics
Rhymes over beats
Hip hop lyrics are the words to rap songs—the verbal component of hip hop music.
The term encompasses everything from party rhymes to dense storytelling to social commentary.
Hip hop lyrics are distinguished by their rhythmic complexity, wordplay, and often intricate rhyme schemes: His hip hop lyrics reference everything from Proust to prison.
The phrase usually implies the written or printed form rather than the performance itself.
- rhymesMatching word endings
- barsRods, taverns, or measures
- flowUnbroken forward movement
- double timeAccelerated pace or pay
- versesLines of poetry
trap beats · freestyle · battle rap · mic · cypher · spitting · ad libs · wordplay · punchlines · metaphors · street poetry · slang · braggadocio · storytelling · cadence · delivery · call and response · swagger
- song typeslove songs, breakup songs, ballads, lullabies, wedding songs
hip hop lyricsinstrumental
Serving as means
beat · backing track · production · samples · turntablism
hip hop lyricsGregorian chant
Monophonic Catholic liturgical music
hymn lyrics · plainchant · country lyrics · folk ballads · hymns
hip hop lyricsinstrumental
Serving as means
instrumental music · beats · instrumentals · backing track · musical accompaniment
lyric, hips, hops, hopped, hopping, hopper, lyrics, lyrical, lyrically