The Gray Album: The Divergent Paths of Nerd Core and NerdRap

At the crux of hip-hop and nerddom, for me, is Nerd Core — which I appreciate as a black nerd, but also comes at a cross purpose: many Nerd Core artists do a good job of distancing themselves from core hip-hop principals. Many will say nay, others will claim this post is blasphemous and riot the comment section.

Yet I say this: rap is an art form. It has rules based upon rhythms and cultural notions. And the homie Morpheus said it best: [blockquote]”Some rules can be bent. Others, broken.”[/blockquote] There is still something important to note regarding the differences between the two types of Nerd Core artists. At large, Nerd Core focuses on the culture of being a nerd first and foremost. This creates an imperative on highlighting the complex word choices, flows, measures, meters, and cadences typical to ‘nerds’. Stacked with references to video games, computer parts, turn-based strategy, and fantasy novels. Any or all that a convention can offer. The name itself derives from hardcore, most notably given to an east coast response to west coast ‘gangsta’ rap in the mid 90s. Nerd Core seeks to grant asylum to those ostracized for being nerdy, by creating a subgenre in a genre that is one element of an entire culture. I am hereby dubbing the second style ‘NerdRap’ (to make comparing easier, duh!). NerdRap is identified by its adherence to the craft of MCing, the subgenre of rap with close ties to the principal philosophy of hip-hop: peace, love, unity, and having fun. NerdRa…