I got humble and realized about 6 months ago my vocabulary was weak. I proceeded to freestyle with only new words from a rhyming dictionary for 4 hours a day for around 4 months. I got a lot of words in my "flocabulary", what I'm struggling with is how to use them! I didn't realize having words means you can come up with entertaining punch lines.
You can hear it really bad here
https://soundcloud.com/bandit-shady/insane-in-the-membrane
It's like just a clump of rhymes lol.
My current writing style is write the lyrics to the beat in about 30 minutes, record in 30 minutes.
I'm curious if there's a practice regimen I can do to just write better rhymes. I considered just sitting to different beats for 4 hours a day and just writing rather then freestyle. I'm curious what you guys think...
I listen to Jarren Benton, Hopsin, Eminem, Rittz, Tech N9ne and notice a big difference that makes them a lot better is their lines. Sometimes I'm just like "dam! how did they think of that!" and get all jealous lol.
READ ALL OF THIS PLEASE, BECAUSE I SPENT ALOT OF TIME WRITING THIS FOR YOU
What are you trying to do exactly, are you trying to get better at coming up with new words, or get better at making punchlines?
They are two separate things
Also in terms of punchlines I don't really think Tech N9ne, Hopsin are "Good" at punchlines. It might just be what you think a punchline is.
Example : Hopsin to me is more funny, I don't see him as someone who has good punchlines, I see him as someone who just says crazy shit.
Tech N9ne I haven't listened to him in a while, but I used to listen to some of his shit along time ago, he isn't a punchline rapper either, he is more of a fast flow big word type of rapper + he has a hype style where its almost like he is a metal rapper.... but without using rock and roll beats.
Eminem is a mixture, Eminem is like one of the king so using big ass words and breaking down syllables, however Eminem is just DECENT at punchlines. The reason why Eminem seems crazily over powered when it comes to rapping is because he has everything!!!!
PS: Eminem is not my fav rapper, but I am just telling you why he is so above everyone else. He doesn't excel in everything, but he brings everything. Eminem can do anything, he can use big words, he can use punchlines, he can rap about being a homooo, he can talk about licking his own sack, he can talk about shooting people, he can make good chorus's, he is lyrical, he can make dance music, he can make club music, he can make gangster music.
My point, Eminem is good because he is one of the few people who can do everything, for example, 50 cent would sound gay as hell if he was to talk gay, if 50 cent rapped like Eminem nobody would like 50 cent.
Out of all those rappers (Never listen to Benton or Rittz so I can't speak on those) Eminem is the best at punchlines but Eminem is no where super good at them. What Eminem is super good at is A: Using big words and rhyming more than one word, B: Breaking down syllables C: he can do every style and get away with it.
WHAT I THINK
Punchlines and vocabulary are two different things
My vocabulary is just "Decent", but I promise you I would shit on most people with punchlines, but others could shit on me wit big words.
If you want bigger vocabulary the only way to achieve that is by "Learning new words", you can sit at your computer all day 24/7 and you would never learn any more words, why? Because how would you if you don't even know the words, your brain is not going to randomly give you big words that it never learned before, the only way to learn big words is to hear them or see them.
* If you want to learn bigger vocab like Eminem or them guys, then you have to read out of the dictionary, find like 3 new words a day and learn them, you don't have to use them in a rap but just learn them. Even if you only learned 1 word per day that would be 365 new words per year, more words mean more things to rhyme, and more things you can think of.
Punchlines is a different story, there is no secret to get good with punchlines, you don't need to know big words to destroy someone with punchlines, the only way to get good at punchlines is to compare things in the most creative way possible. For example : If you said "Green as Grass" that is a punchline but is sucks because its not creative and anyone can think of it. If you said "Put a red dot in his eye like the ****ing terminator" Lloyd banks said that, its more creative because not just anyone can think of it or it has never been said.
To sum it up
- If you want vocab, you have to read a dictionary and learn new words, there is no other way unless you search words online
- If you want to be better at punchlines you have to continuously write punchlines, the thing with punchlines is there is no easy way to get good at making good punchlines, you have to just do it for along time and you will evolve like a pokemon to just "become better".
At the end of the day you don't have to do what your favorite rappers do, you just need to find your style and improve on what you think makes you "You". Just based on hearing you I would say you sound like someone who would lean more towards rhyming big words, to me it seems like you would want to focus more on rhyming words nobody thinks to rhyme. Unless you don't think that is your style.
Both take a lot of time either way you go
Best example I can use is this:
https://soundcloud.com/icen-3/twin-busters-freestyle
Skip to : 1:00 and listen to the punchlines and vocab and how many words I rhyme, I capitalized the rhymes below in the song.
Yea... Yea... My handgun got a BAG OF TRICKS,
MAG-NUM CLIPS, equip with the lase (Lays) like a BAG OF CHIPS.
If you notice, my vocab is not good at all, its just average, my punchlines are better than most people and sometimes I rhyme better than most people and I will explain why.
Those are only two bars
- In those two bars I rhymed 9 words compared to 2 words that most people rhyme in 2 bars.
Usually people will rhyme Cat at the end of the first bar, then in the next bar end the rhyme with Bat.
The tip is to try to always use at least 2 rhymes at the end of every bar
So the first rhyme the last two words would be Dead Cat, and in the second bar the last two rhymes would be Red Bat. You will always sound better using two rhymes per bar then just rhyming one, for proof of this listen to any good rapper like Eminem, 50 cent, ect, they all do this.
So what I am saying is, you don't have to be good at everything, just make sure you figure out what you are best at and I would stick with that, of course whatever you think you are not good at you could improve it would never hurt but its not a must. For example me, I do not use big vocabulary because its not my style, I am better at punchlines, however someone like you might be better at using big words and rhyming faster.
You seem like you like to rhyme faster and use bigger complicated words and rhyme them.
I am more of a use punchlines at a decent pace type rapper.
ITS NOT THE PUNCHLINES THAT MAKE THEM BETTER
- I can tell you this is a fact, I know what good punchlines are, Tech N9ne and hopsin would get destoryed by someone like Cassidy in terms of punchlines, its not their punchlines that is making them good.
- Tech N9ne sounds amazing because he rhymes a bunch of big worded rhymes that nobody else uses and his flow is on point while rapping really fast.
- They sound good because they use the secret tip I told you, they all "rhyme at least two words per bar".
Punchlines only matter if you have super crazy punchlines other wise you will just have regular punchlines that still make you no different, where as if you improve on something you already think you are better at you will be known for that instead.
MY FINAL TIP
Stick to what you think you are better at, what do you think you are better at then someone else isn't? Take that and improve that, because that is what makes you different. The thing you want to do is take something you are already good at and make you better at it, not take something you suck at and make yourself "Less sucky at it"
For example
I cannot sing like Beyonce, there is NO POINT of me trying to practice singing, even if I go from sucky to less sucky its still a waste of time.
Stick to what you think you are best at and improve on that, find out what you are not good at and decide if its worth improving or if its not worth your time if you know you won't be good at it, like I said I CANNOT SING like beyonce so there is no point of my trying to improve my singing when I will still suck.