Arthur Baker said, "I remember being told `Someone's gonna make a fortune out of this rap thing' and thinking `no way'," ("Rap Quotes" 1). Arthur Baker was one of the most noticeable and widely-emulated of the first hip-hop producers ("Arthur" 1). Little did he know what the negative effect that this form of music would have on today's youth. With violence and drug use rising, one must wonder, "What's the cause"" Though hip-hop is definitely not the only cause, it doesn't help. With some minor changes in artists' lyrics and persona, today's youth wouldn't be subjected to negative views of society, but rather the positive side of life. Hip-hop has a negative effect on today's youth and something must be done about it.

What is hip-hop? Webster defines hip-hop as, "a subculture especially of inner-city youths whose amusements include rap music, graffiti, and break...