Vegetarianism is defined as the practice of following plant-based diets (fruits, vegetables, etc.) with or without the inclusion of dairy products or eggs, and with the exclusion of meat (red meat, poultry, and seafood); although there is also a wide spectrum of categories that fall under this label as well (pescetarian, vegan, ovo vegetarian, etc.).

Because so many rappers glorify carnivorous ways within their music, non-meat eating ones are considered rare. Biggie rapped about eating a T-bone steak, cheese eggs and Welch’s Grape. Jay-Z told the ladies that it would be hard to go back to Hamburger Helper once you get used to filet mignon. Drake also told about how he likes lobster and shrimp and a glass of Moscato.

There is sometimes an obsession with food within rap music because to eat is a basic part of life. Once there’s an exhaustion of the topics of money, girls, material possessions and street life, then a creative rapper has an open field of things to talk about. The idea of eating or not eating mammalian flesh doesn’t always top the list of frequent subject matters but for the few times it has, it has served the artist’s image well. And, as a sidebar, A$AP Rocky did not state his eating habits hoping his fans would conform to that way as well. It was a simple statement of: this is what I do and it works for me. For a rapper to know his influence and use it (even if subliminally) to encourage something beneficial is a great move.

Other famous rapper vegetarians include: Andre 3000, RZA, KRS-One, GZA, Common and Mos Def (to name a few). They all have spoken about their eating habits within some of their lyrics and it’s given them more mainstream exposure, in that circle, in some respects. However, there are not a lot of “younger” rappers that embrace the vegetarian lifestyle, or if so, they do not publically acknowledge it. What is a negative drawback of being a vegetarian rapper? In real talk, it is nothing negative about it at all. The music industry is at a peak of originality and reform and being rare is supposedly cherished. Thank you A$AP Rocky for just being yourself. I may not be a rapper but I’ll eat asoybean burger in your honor.

Sources:

www.vegsoc.org

http://nahright.com/news/2011/12/16/video-asap-rocky-interview-w-angie-martinez/

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Kimberly Nishell is a freelance writer and author of the novella, Apple Sugar Spice. Her novel, Rich Predicaments, will be published in 2012. Find more music and literature musings at her blog, http://www.kimberlynishell.blogspot.com.