How to Rap (The Basics and the Secrets)

How To Start Rapping

So you want to be a rapper but you don’t know where to start at, huh?

It’s okay. Smart Rapper has your back.

This article is geared for beginners, but intermediate rappers may find some useful information in this.

1) Learn To Rhyme

Rhyming is crucial in rapping. Duh. You already knew this. I know. But I don’t know how new the people reading this article are.

When you are starting to rap, you are going to need to learn how to write lyrics.

You are going to want to learn how to do basic rhyming so you can start rapping today.

2) Learn Rhyme Schemes

After you have learned to rhyme you are going to want to go a bit deeper and learn rhyme schemes. Basically, it’s just the pattern of rhymes at the end of each line of your raps. If you want to learn how to start rapping this is a must.

I don’t want to make this article too long by explaining all of these things in the article. Therefore, I am recommending you simply Google and find out more about each thing I mention and this article is the template for “How to start rapping”.

3) Learn To Stretch And Manipulate Syllables In Order To Rhyme

They say nothing rhymes with Orange… how about Door Hinge? Learning to stretch and manipulate syllables will open an entirely new world for your writing since you will be able to make words rhyme that don’t even seem like they would.

For those who want to learn how to start rapping, this is HUGE for you.

4) Learn To Count Bars

If you are going to be writing ‘bars’ on a constant basis you really need to understand what a bar is in music. This way you can write lyrics to songs correctly and have no issues when it comes time to record.

5) Start Building Your Rap Flow

As you write your lyrics, start saying them out loud. The best way to consider how to flow is to sing what you are saying. Melodically say your lyrics you have written down. Stretch the ends of words or the beginning to make everything come together. It’s that simple. Over time you will build your own unique rap flow.

Alongside learning how to start rapping, you might as well be building your rap flow too.

6) Find Your Rapping Voice

This is essential! Your rap voice is pretty much what will make people love you as soon as they hear you or just dislike you off the bat. If you have an amazing voice, you almost don’t even need skills. People can fall in love with your voice and style.

While learning how to start rapping you NEED a voice in order to gain fans. So start building it now. PLEASE. Don’t make the mistake of waiting till later.

I have a course on finding your rap voice here.

7) Learn How To Structure A Song

I won’t explain all of that here because there are so many good resources out there for structuring a song. Simply Google “Song Structure” and you will find massive amounts of resources.

This is super important if you want to become a great rapper. Song structure is how everything is arranged in the song. You have the verses, chorus, pre chorus, post chorus, bridge (sometimes called a middle 8) intro and outro.

Will you start the song off with a chorus or verse? How long are the verses? This stuff matters to the listener on a subconscious level. The answers all depend on the type of song and the feeling you are trying to give.

For instance, sometimes its better to start with a 12 or 16 bar verse and lead up to the chorus because it is so big and powerful. If you started with the big and powerful chorus it might take away from the impact of the verse. You’ll understand a lot more when you start arranging songs.

How to start rapping and how to write rap songs go along the same lines. You need to know song structure.

8) Understand Song Choruses Are It’s Life Blood

They are the most important thing in ANY song EVER made in the history of music. You must understand this. Knowing this from the beginning will help you start developing your chorus writing abilities and put you light years ahead of everyone you know that is just starting out.

Choruses are so essential to making a rap career for yourself. If I can teach you how to start rapping the main thing you should take away is that you need to learn how to write rap choruses more than anything.

9) Set A Schedule To Practice Everyday

If you don’t practice…. you won’t get better. It’s really that simple.

I still to this day try to write lyrics for 1 hour a day and I consistently write choruses like a pro. The more you are practicing the faster you will become amazing.

A huge benefit of practicing writing raps is it allows you to have a huge back pile of great lyrics and rhymes you can use in your songs.

10) Learn A Bit About The Hip Hop Culture So You Have The Right Mindset

This allows you to have the right mindset when approaching your writing style and building your career.

I wish I had known that hip hop was a culture or even what culture really was at all when I first started writing and developing.

There you have it, how to start rapping. I hope this helped.

Congratulations! You finished another Smart Rapper article!
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The more articles you read, the smarter you get! At this rate, you’ll be a genius in no time.

– Rob Level