Difference Between Hip Hop and Punk
Music genres like Hip Hop and Punk are some of the more popular types of music which has not only inspiredmusicians and the public alike, but also motivated them to create an altogether new lifestyle in accordance with their selected genre. Both Punk and Hip hop are highly popular with young people, particularly teenagers, because of the seemingly carefree and liberated attitude these genres imply. However, closer examination of these musical genres reveals a music that has plenty of meaning and thought on different issues: social, political, and economical.
Hip Hop was born in the streets of New York during the 1970s; the Bronx was well- known for its gang- wars and hip hop evolved primarily to counter enemy gangs in the form of music, lyrics, and graffiti. Hip hop consists of lyrics which are a reflection of the singer’s ideas and thought which are sung in a certain beat, this musical genre is all about self- expression. It eventually became more and more popular with the music no longer limiting itself to audio but fashion and lifestyle as well.
Punk Rock, or simply known as “Punk” also is about self- expression. However, one can say that their music is less narcissistic than that of hip hop. Punk music deals largely with political, social and environmental issues where Hip hop dwells on personal issues and concerns. Also, when hip hop relies largely on vocal percussion, rapping, beatboxing, and DJing, Punk makes use of screeching electric guitars, bass and heavy drums. Punk lyrics are also very thought provoking; it is not superficial at all. It tells about the hardships ordinary citizens go through because of government inadequacies and shortcomings.
In a nutshell, one can deduce that hip hop is different from punk by the fact that hip hop is more on personal self- expression; in punk, their music is an expression of public concern in music form. Also, their instruments differ in the following areas: Hip hop makes use of Scratching, DJing, rapping, and vocal percussion; Punk music on the other hand, makes creative and noisy use of electric guitars, drums, and bass.