I am a huge hip hop fan. Many people perceive hip hop or rap to be “noise” rather than music, but I think it’s more than that. Although there is a not of negativity in rap music, if you can see past the cursing and drug references, you may see what I see. And unlike the socialites who try their hand at singingautotuning, like Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian, most of rappers who make it come from nothing, not million dollar bank accounts.
To gain recognition in the modern hip hop world it is all about developing online presence. The Communication Process is very apparent in this aspect when it comes to hyping new releases for hip hop artists. One of my favourite artists right now, Mac Miller, a 19 year old kid from Pittsburgh just released his highly acclaimed mixtape titled Best Day Ever.
The Sender: Mac Miller. How he encoded his message is whats becoming more and more popular for rap artists. On twitter, Mac and his Most Dope Crew started trending #BDE, #BestDayEver and previously released singles #DonaldTrump and #SheSaid to build awareness and also released the artwork for the mixtape a couple days before the mixtape dropped. Mac Miller used UStream, Twitter, Facebook, Youtube and many other online blogs to communicate the details of the mixtape, however used hip hop blogs and a website he created to deliver it. The receivers were fans and their response and feedback was nothing short of extraordinary. Datpiff.com, a popular mixtape website overloaded after the countdown to download the mixtape was up, which only one other rapper has ever done in the history of the site. As a receiver myself, I think Mac delivered on his promise of that day being the Best Day Ever.