Abstracthiphop is a subgenre of hip hop music that has gained popularity in recent years. It features free-flowing vocal techniques, abstract instrumentals, and often references to R&B and soul tropes.

This genre of hip hop is a mashup of styles, with vocalists incorporating different rap rhythmic elements and samples into their compositions to create the overall sound. Oftentimes, the genre incorporates an array of synthesizers and percussion instruments.

Some of the more popular artists in this genre include: Lizzo, Chance the Rapper, Drake, Noname, and many others. These artists are able to blend together different genres of hip hop and make music that sounds like nothing you have heard before.

The genre has also become an important tool for marginalized youth to reflect on their experiences and the problems they face in life. Using an intertextual approach to meaning making, these artists often use their lyrics to convey what they feel about the world around them.

One of the most interesting ways that a rapper can use pitch in their rapping is by reserving a portion of their vocal range for rhymed syllables only. This is done by repressing the pitches of connecting non-rhymed syllables, creating a kind of quasi-tonal resolution that sounds like they are “finishing” the rhymed phrase (Example 6).

Another way that a rapper can use pitch in their hip hop rapping is by exaggerating their declamatory style. This can be accomplished by increasing the pitch of their voice from line to line, or by forgoing the process altogether.