Top 5 Tips On How To Rap Better Than Everyone You Know

How To Rap BetterHow To Rap Better Than Everyone You Know

We all want to be better than everyone we know.

The fact that the person who writes the most and practices the most can be better than their friends at rapping is one of the things that makes rapping so fun.

I used to practice every single day writing raps and practicing how to say them in battles so that when I went to school I was prepared to take on any of the 200 black kids that would call me out for being white.

It paid off.

In this article I am going to give you the top 5 tips that I have learned to be the best tips for becoming a better rapper than everyone you know.

1. Practice (Duh, right? Read Below.)

This is going to seem really obvious and that’s why I am starting with it. You have to practice. It is just human nature. You may have heard me mention the book ‘Mastery’ By Robert Greene on Smart Rapper a bunch. I have read this book numerous times. In the book it shows you people in history like Charles Darwin, Benjamin Franklin, Albert Einstein, Mozart and Leonard da Vinci became masters of their craft through consistent practice and dedication to their craft.

It really instilled in my mind the fact that becoming great at anything is truly about your practice. That is why I set time aside everyday to practice. Books like ‘The Slight Edge’ teach you that every tiny little bit adds up in the bigger scheme of things. So when you practice even just a little bit, you are becoming great in the long run.

For instance – If you practice 10 minutes a day on your rapping and lyric writing and it makes you .1% better as an artist everyday. That means after 100 days of practice you are now 10% better. It’s ‘The Slight Edge’ that you have over other people. The Slight Edge that ever so slightly makes you better and better and better.

In the book it mentions a lady who could have spent 5 years of her ‘Free Time’ learning 1 skill set that she could have mastered instead of doing time wasting activities. It would have been that ‘Slight’ difference that would have made her great. Instead she sat around doing things that did nothing to make her better.

The old saying ‘Practice Makes Perfect’ is not just a corny saying. It is the truth.

“The more I practice the luckier I get.” – Arnold Palmer

2. Listen To More Rap Music

This one is easy. If you want to get better at rapping… you need to listen and absorb MORE RAP MUSIC.

What I recently started doing is choosing 1 rapper a week to listen to and study. The next week I will move to another rapper and absorb their entire catalog. What I used to do was listen to every album that was released into the main stream 1 time through. This way I could absorb the artist content, style and type without storing too much of their style in my mirror neurons. I didn’t want to listen to an artist so much that their style started showing in my rap style.

On Smart Rapper I have mentioned numerous times that whoever you listen to, you will sound like. This is pretty obvious if you look at the articles I wrote about it.

The reason I am trying this new method is because I want to absorb a bit more of these artist styles and unique factors. I figure maybe a deeper listen of an artist entire catalog will allow a stronger absorption of their ‘Better’ characteristics that I can mold and make stronger with my personal creativity and growth. I am already extremely versatile. That’s why I can and have written songs for 15 year old pop artist all the way up to super star trap rappers.

Notice how I consistently am trying to evolve myself by trying new methods of learning. Lets get into that next.

3. Keep Evolving

Notice in number 2 I mention a new way that I am trying to continue growing. I have been writing raps for 15+ years and I still feel the need to grow. This is because there is no reason to ever stop growing. You don’t want to become stagnant. That is why rappers fall off. You have to be yourself and stay up with the times at the same time. Notice how Jay Z did that perfectly. The beats change and his chorus types change but his rap style stays very similar or slightly evolved or even suitable for the times. He is a smart man and he is at his level for a reason.

If you don’t stay evolving you suddenly become a rapper that complains about how it is all changing and now it’s terrible. The same rapper who was just the one releasing terrible music just years before but wasn’t smart enough to continue evolving.

You need to try new methods of growth. I went through stages from building rap flow, writing only punchlines, writing only multi syllable lines, building my speed rap ability, building my melody abilities and chorus abilities. The growth is never ending because the music industry and game is never ending. You need to understand that in order to be GREAT or above average you have to find new ways to push yourself and new ways to get better and stand out.

Be smart…. I write these articles to make you a smarter rapper. I don’t approach things like all of these other sites because these other sites are run by people who aren’t even trying to succeed in the music industry. If you want to make it, BE SMART! Test and try new methods to make yourself grow.

Eventually I release courses in full detail with day to day activities you can do to grow each individual aspect of your music style.

4. Build Your Confidence Levels When You’re Alone

What good is being a great writer if when you perform it out loud to people you sound timid and weak. Sick lyrics need to be said with passion and confidence so people BELIEVE what you are saying when you are in front of them.

Often times when I listen to tracks my fans send me that they want feed back on… I am usually telling them that they need to say what they are talking about on the tracks with more confidence.

Imagine I am saying to you that “Wow, You’re Good.” but I say it really sad sounding in a weak voice and almost under my breathe while making a depressed looking face. Seriously, imagine that really quick. Does it even make you feel good? Do you feel like what I said was honest and that I really think you’re good? I mean… maybe, a tiny bit.

Now imagine I am smiling and full of energy. Now imagine me saying “Wow, YOU ARE GOOD!” – The whole dynamic changes. The entire feeling it gives you changes. You believe it more and you are pumped up that someone said you were good. The way you present something (especially lyrics) is 90% delivery, energy and passion. The same way that a large majority of interaction with other human beings is 93% body language and 7% what is actually said. Everything from your look to your tone of voice.

Note: That percentage varies in some circles but that is the rule of thumb and I know you understand what I mean.

So in order to build your confidence you need to practice saying your lyrics out loud every day when you are 100% alone and no one can hear you. After you do it enough alone and realize that it is no big deal then you won’t have any issues doing it in front of other people with just as much intensity and passion.

Don’t over think this. I used to absolutely hate rapping out loud or even recording when I KNEW people could hear me because I was so self conscious. When I used to live with my ex girlfriend, I would only record when she was at work because I felt like she was judging me when I was recording and she could hear me. I had to get over that. It took YEARS but I got over it. You may feel the same way and that is why I am mentioning this. Just practice and believe in yourself and build your confidence one day at a time.

5. Make It A Competition – Because It Is

If you want learn how to rap better than everyone you know than you need to keep yourself driven to grow faster and smarter than them.

Make it a competition in your head so that it is fun and exciting to practice, learn, evolve and grow. Turn it all into a game. When you mentally put yourself into a state where you are competing, you will make sure to keep pushing yourself to be better than your peers.

Who is going to get to a higher level faster? Then you look for short cuts, which usually is bad, but if you look for SMART SHORT CUTS such as taking rap courses or learning directly from someone already better than you grow faster.

I was always told, if you want a job done fast, find a lazy guy. He will find the fastest way to get a job done. Then fire the lazy guy, hire an efficient guy and show him what the lazy guy found out. Now it will be done FAST and efficient. Cool huh? It’s about being smart!

You have to trick your brain into wanting to learn more and absorb more to grow as fast as you can. Start learning and molding your brain into the understanding that you need to follow all of the steps above. All of your struggles and growths are mental. Trust me I have been there and climbed out.

As always I wish you the best of luck. If I did it, you can surely do it too.