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Home | Music Genre | Rap opera
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Like its predecessor, rap opera tells a story through consecutive pieces of music involving the same character or characters. Rap opera may be a purely auditory experience, or it may be associated with a musical, comic book, or other art form. It is a relatively young, spontaneous form, performed more by amateurs and non-profit groups than by professional emcees. When R&B singer R. Kelly was asked on IFC how he defined his "Trapped in the Closet" series, Kelly stated that he described it as a hip hopera or musical opera, but that it's now too long to be called a song. In 2001, MTV debuted a telefilm titled Carmen: A Hip Hopera, directed by Robert Townsend and starring Beyoncé Knowles and Mekhi Phifer. Volume 10 also released an album called Hip-Hopera in 1994. The former is contemporary R&B, not hip hop music. |
