protorap

P3R1O1T1O1R1A1P3

A form of proto-rap — Performance art forms that served as precursors to rap, especially those that feature rhythmic spoken or half-sung lyrics.

Scrabble 12

Meanings

nounprotorap (countable and uncountable, plural protoraps)

plural protoraps

  1. alternativecountableuncountableAlternative form of proto-rap.

    It features a protorap (talking in rhythm) over a sleazy, sax-dominated arrangement.

    2017, Edited by M. L. Liebler, Heaven Was Detroit: From Jazz to Hip-Hop and Beyond, →ISBN
    3 more examples

    The ideological criticism I wish to pursue here (as always, there are other possible avenues of exploration) takes its cue from this theological declaration and pursues it in relation to another protorap song of the era, one that also is directly related to the nature and purposes of this film, namely: Gil Scott-Heron's "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised."

    2005, Carolyn M. Jones, Theodore Louis Trost, Teaching African American Religions, →ISBN, page 233

    As a protorap song, Dylan's rant ratchets uncannily with the track, the words frequently dissolving into the beat.

    2012, David Dalton, Who Is That Man? In Search of the Real Bob Dylan, →ISBN

    He couldn't hope to compete with his friend Nolan in the vocal department, so he delivered his vivid ghetto narratives as protorap spoken word, laying a dishevelled blueprint for filth and uproar on outings such as 'Bacon Fat' and 'Jail Bait'.

    2014, Kris Needs, George Clinton & The Cosmic Odyssey of the P-Funk Empire, →ISBN

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

protorap. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/protorap

MLA

“protorap.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/protorap. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “protorap,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/protorap.

Source: protorap on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.