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Need Rap/street slang in screenplay

I

Inarius

It's kinda embarrassing question. Along with my Sci-Fi story, I'm writing a screenplay about a rap singer. I don't live in US, and I don't know people from there, so nobody can help me with the Afro-american slang. And that's important. I know a few things of course, but there's a black character who talks much, so I need him to be like a real guy from the hood. Where can I get slang idioms or something like that? I wanna make it real.
 
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Inarius said:
It's kinda embarrassing question. Along with my Sci-Fi story, I'm writing a screenplay about a rap singer. I don't live in US, and I don't know people from there, so nobody can help me with the Afro-american slang. And that's important. I know a few things of course, but there's a black character who talks much, so I need him to be like a real guy from the hood. Where can I get slang idioms or something like that? I wanna make it real.
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I might be wrong but rappers dont sing they rap. Second, it depends on what region or city the rapper is from. Every part has different slang and then there's the type of rap he's making. Even if he's from the hood does it mean he's going to be rapping about drugs etc or is he a political rapper or a rapper who makes party songs?

Personally, I don't think you should be trying to make this movie since you don't have much knowledge of this topic. Even using urban dictionary or whatever isn't going to be the same as actually knowing people who are like the character your movie's about. Just my opinion though.
 
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South Side Dreamer said:
I might be wrong but rappers dont sing they rap. Second, it depends on what region or city the rapper is from. Every part has different slang and then there's the type of rap he's making. Even if he's from the hood does it mean he's going to be rapping about drugs etc or is he a political rapper or a rapper who makes party songs?

Personally, I don't think you should be trying to make this movie since you don't have much knowledge of this topic. Even using urban dictionary or whatever isn't going to be the same as actually knowing people who are like the character your movie's about. Just my opinion though.
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The story is about a guy, who uses a very unique (cheating) method to become a famous Rapper. Most of the story is when he is already on top. He himself is white, but there are 2 major Afro-American characters. One of them is the producer of protagonist, the other is his good friend.

What he Raps about does not matter. And he certainly doesn't rap about politics or drugs. The story is not about that, it's about a guy who cheated to become known, and now fights to prove himself that he is really worth of what he has. For example - he feels guilty and pathetic when a fan asks him for an autograph.

So it's a drama of internal conflicts, not "an everyday life in a hood". And it's even close to "8 mile".
 
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Inarius said:
I didn't say there is no meaning in his songs. I say this is not important to the story.
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Well, then what is he going to rap about? Perhaps if his raps relate to his situation, it could show the relationship between his passion for music and life. You'll notice in almost all films about rap, the themes and ideas being spoken about actually relate to things that person/character felt/feel strongly about. Refer to 8 Mile and the documentary, Tupac Resurrection.
 
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ChimpPhobiaFilms said:
Well, then what is he going to rap about? Perhaps if his raps relate to his situation, it could show the relationship between his passion for music and life. You'll notice in almost all films about rap, the themes and ideas being spoken about actually relate to things that person/character felt/feel strongly about. Refer to 8 Mile and the documentary, Tupac Resurrection.
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First of all, I was advised not to write the lyrics for his songs (and of course not complete songs), which makes sense. If I sell my script, it will undergo changes, and the producer might put another song.

In my story situation, I think my character should Rap about success, about achievements, about "fight the world to get what you want" stuff. Because the character himself is a man who believes that "results justify the means". And yes, he's got passion for music. For example, his girlfriend broke up with him because of his obsession with Rap (before he becomes famous).
 
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So the black character who you need to figure out slang for is the producer or friend? It's not a rapper. Does he have to use street slang? All black people don't speak like that. Some of us do. Some of us don't. I could see if it was the rapper because these days that's almost expected but for the other characters it's not necessarily a must in my opinion. It's very easy to spot in movies when people who do not speak like that try to incorporate street language into a script. It does sound like you could be setting yourself up for more trouble than you need in a first script.
 
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Okay, hold on. I think there's something a lot of us haven't thought of just yet.

His story has a black character. Not plural. A single black character.

That means that this black character will be speaking and interacting with people who don't speak urban street slang, or whatever you wanna call it.

EDIT: I just read the post that states that there are two black characters. Nevertheless, the following logic still applies, as they'd be interacting with him one-one-one.

In my daily life, in which I interact with black people, pretty much all damn day, absolutely none of them speak to me (I'm white) in urban street lingo.

You know how there's a different way you speak to your parents than there is for you to speak to your friends? For me, this is true today, even at the ripe old age of 38. It's perfectly normal for people to change their speech patterns, based on who they're talking to.

My point being -- it would be really weird, and disingenuous, for a black person to speak using heavy urban street slang, if there are no other black people around for him to speak to. Black people are quite capable of turning one particular style of speech on and off, just like the rest of us do on a regular basis.

So yeah, I would advise that you just not use it. It would probably come off as a broad stereotype and offensive.
 
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time2focus, Cracker Funk, FantasyFilmProductions, hm ok. It makes it easier then.

Yes, there are two black characters. One is the producer, a man of around 40. Another one is between 20-25, protagonist's good friend.
 
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I don't know your story, so I'm just saying what's coming off the top of my head, but I would think that the 40-year-old producer would speak regular-ol' English. The younger friend might use some slang, but you should probably limit it, not just to avoid being offensive, but also just for ease of writing the screenplay. Maybe you limit yourself to throwing in a maximum of one or two slang words.

You could throw in one or two simple things, like instead of saying "No", he says "Nah" (that's a very common thing, and not just black people do that). You might also use the word "ain't". Just don't go overboard with it.

Also, if the section of your script that calls for urban street lingo is limited to a couple pages, I'd be glad to look over it for you. I'm certainly no expert; I'm an old white guy, after all. But I do communicate, quite frequently, with people who use that type of language, so I've got at least a little bit of insight.
 
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Inarius said:
The story is about a guy, who uses a very unique (cheating) method to become a famous Rapper. Most of the story is when he is already on top. He himself is white, but there are 2 major Afro-American characters. One of them is the producer of protagonist, the other is his good friend.

What he Raps about does not matter. And he certainly doesn't rap about politics or drugs. The story is not about that, it's about a guy who cheated to become known, and now fights to prove himself that he is really worth of what he has. For example - he feels guilty and pathetic when a fan asks him for an autograph.

So it's a drama of internal conflicts, not "an everyday life in a hood". And it's even close to "8 mile".
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What he raps about does matter because that will determine who he hangs out with. Not all black people come from the hood so are his friends going to be from there? If you're going to write this screenplay, I seriously think you should figure out what type of rap your main character does. The type of music he does is going to show things about him.
 
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Cracker Funk said:
Okay, hold on. I think there's something a lot of us haven't thought of just yet.

His story has a black character. Not plural. A single black character.

That means that this black character will be speaking and interacting with people who don't speak urban street slang, or whatever you wanna call it.

EDIT: I just read the post that states that there are two black characters. Nevertheless, the following logic still applies, as they'd be interacting with him one-one-one.

In my daily life, in which I interact with black people, pretty much all damn day, absolutely none of them speak to me (I'm white) in urban street lingo.

You know how there's a different way you speak to your parents than there is for you to speak to your friends? For me, this is true today, even at the ripe old age of 38. It's perfectly normal for people to change their speech patterns, based on who they're talking to.

My point being -- it would be really weird, and disingenuous, for a black person to speak using heavy urban street slang, if there are no other black people around for him to speak to. Black people are quite capable of turning one particular style of speech on and off, just like the rest of us do on a regular basis.

So yeah, I would advise that you just not use it. It would probably come off as a broad stereotype and offensive.
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But slang is part of the rap/hip hop scene isn't it? So his black characters would have to speak like that to his main character.
 
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Cracker Funk said:
Yes, and that's why I later recommended that the younger of the two black characters might use some slang. I just feel like he's walking in dangerous territory here, so perhaps discretion would be wise.
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Absolutely wise. If you're having to cast around for examples of how a character would talk (rather than maybe just some specifics), that suggests you don't actually know your characters all that well. And one of the maxims of writing is write what you know. Of course, research can go a long way, but you would need to research street slang for a specific area, as it can vary from country to country and even region to region. The last thing you want is for your video to become a YouTube meme under the title "Token black character FAIL!" :)

What I would suggest is write the characters just using the normal register/slang/speech patterns of young people wherever the movie is set. Then you can go back and 'embellish' it with particular black street-slang specific terms if necessary... but chances are, it will read just fine by this point. And if the script is produced, the actor may well have his own take on the lines' authenticity too.
 
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maz said:
...the actor may well have his own take on the lines' authenticity too.
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I was just thinking this. With this type of genre, the actors may well be prepared/expected to improvise a number of their lines. A good actor, who is in the character, would likely know where and when their character would use certain slang terms. This could/should add an air of authenticity and allow the dialogue to flow more fluidly.

Still, don't be afraid to have your character speak as you truly feel they would.
 
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The main character is not from the "hood". He was not arrested 9999 times and never used drugs. Yeah, his life is a ball of shit. His mother is dead, and his father is a jobless alcoholic. He is poor, of course, and has to work a lot. He just loves rap and wants to be a rapper. Such people exist, too. You know, not every rapper was a big criminal in the past.

His black friend is a little bit "badass", but he's not a trouble of the police too. He is a funny guy, but can be also very brash.

The producer is a harsh and forthright man, devoted to Rap business. He always speaks truth about everything, and always speaks when he's got to say something.

Cracker Funk said:
Also, if the section of your script that calls for urban street lingo is limited to a couple pages, I'd be glad to look over it for you. I'm certainly no expert; I'm an old white guy, after all. But I do communicate, quite frequently, with people who use that type of language, so I've got at least a little bit of insight.
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The script isn't written, yet. But thank you. I would appreciate that.

South Side Dreamer said:
What he raps about does matter because that will determine who he hangs out with. Not all black people come from the hood so are his friends going to be from there? If you're going to write this screenplay, I seriously think you should figure out what type of rap your main character does. The type of music he does is going to show things about him.
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Suppose I determine what he's going to rap about. How do I show it in the script? Write lyrics in dialogue every time the character raps?

P.S.
Here are some dialogues of that black friend:

Code: 
		             CURTIS
                You forget that it’s a business!
                Producers and record companies 
                wanna see you feed their wallets. 
                If they ain’t see you can do that, 
                you’re out.
and
Code: 
			     CURTIS
		Man, I know whatcha saying’, but 
		you beat your head against a wall!
		Even Jessica takes hard your
		obsession with it.

No hard slang here. What do you say?
 
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Inarius said:
The main character is not from the "hood". He was not arrested 9999 times and never used drugs. Yeah, his life is a ball of shit. His mother is dead, and his father is a jobless alcoholic. He is poor, of course, and has to work a lot. He just loves rap and wants to be a rapper. Such people exist, too. You know, not every rapper was a big criminal in the past.

His black friend is a little bit "badass", but he's not a trouble of the police too. He is a funny guy, but can be also very brash.

The producer is a harsh and forthright man, devoted to Rap business. He always speaks truth about everything, and always speaks when he's got to say something.



The script isn't written, yet. But thank you. I would appreciate that.



Suppose I determine what he's going to rap about. How do I show it in the script? Write lyrics in dialogue every time the character raps?

P.S.
Here are some dialogues of that black friend:

Code: 
		             CURTIS
                You forget that it’s a business!
                Producers and record companies 
                wanna see you feed their wallets. 
                If they ain’t see you can do that, 
                you’re out.
and
Code: 
			     CURTIS
		Man, I know whatcha saying’, but 
		you beat your head against a wall!
		Even Jessica takes hard your
		obsession with it.

No hard slang here. What do you say?
Click to expand...

I'm not sure I'd agree with "takes hard" (it sounds like something written in the 16th century), and the tenses in the second snippet especially seem a bit off.

I don't think anyone is suggesting that your characters are criminals, and there's no reason they should be. But if they are poor, chances are they share the streets with criminals, and also the slang.

If you are not confident writing hiphop lyrics (and that's understandable, it's an artform all in itself) then maybe you could just describe the subject/tone/general sentiment of each rap, and hope the producer casts a talented actor/rapper to fill in the blanks. As hiphop performance is also an artform, you would probably need such a performer for the role of the rapper, and he may well be more comfortable with his own lyrics anyway.

It's not a perfect approach, but I would say it's probably going to make a better impression than a bunch of lame lyrics stuck in there.
 
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