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Uses and Gratification Theory is a theory in communication formulated in 1974 and in which is credited to Jay Blumler and Elihu Katz. This investigates the reasoning behind people's consumption of media. In this theory, researchers gravitate towards the effects of the usage of media and its impact to the meeting the demand of users in terms of their social and psychological needs. In this theory, we focus on the why people consume media rather than how media consumes people. Let us now dive into the possible motivations as to why many young Filipinos enjoy listening to Pinoy Rap music.

For Generation Z's, like myself, it is such a blessing that we get to have a broad access to a wide variety of media through the power of the internet. For music lovers - again, like me - I could go all day listening and subscribing to music that fit my taste. Although I have a diverse appetite for music, one thing that I look for in these artpieces would be the story within the song over its beat. With rap music, I get to learn about the struggles of the artists, their wisdom, and be motivated with their confidence and artistry. This generic, and at the same time enjoyable sophisticated crafts make it enjoyable to listen to. The fact that I speak the same language with Pinoy artists and with awareness to the life and struggle in the Phippines only makes it more related not only for me but apparently to millions of Filipinos that subscribe to our rap artists, which makes it gratify the need for reassurance and motivation that makes us persevere to attain a better life. Moreover, the lifestyle that is associated with these artists in terms of fashion and swagger, makes it more appealling to the youth. With the rising number of teens that have heard about them, and do what they do, it has become a collective identity that some individuals just cannot afford to miss out. This being said, the waves that rap music has been making, mostly in social media, has impacted many and have instilled hiphop culture to a majority of listeners. Curious onlooker soon become consumers of this Popular Culture and some may like it and some may move on to the next trendy thing. It's safe to say rap music is reaffirming and motivating, or maybe purely entertaining to its frequent or first time listeners. To me, one thing is for sure; Pinoy rap satisfies my cognitive, diversion, and identity needs.

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I am Mike Lester Villa, a 1st year student from BS Management Accounting from the Mapua Malayan Colleges Mindanao. I am an avid fan of musics of all type from classical to hiphop, wether it be Western or Eastern music. I enjoy Pinoy Rap mainly Flow G, Skusta Clee, WGK, JRoa, Gloc 9, Abra, and Loonie. I also endulge myself in watching Filipino lifestyle vloggers such as Slater Young and Kryz Uy, Erwan Heussaff, Cong TV, and Ninong Ry. Other Philippine Pop Culture interests of mine are Karaoke, noontime shows like EatBulaga and It's Showtime, and lastly, historical Filipino movies like Heneral Luna and Goyo. I like to spend most of my time learning from the popular music, vlogs, and movies I subscribe to.

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Featured in this photo is rap artist Archie "Flow G" Dela Cruz, in the recent and first-ever Spotify KALYE X Stage live at the 9th Wish Music Awards.

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Pinoy Rap has always marked itself as one of Filipino's top genres. It started its rise in the 90's as it was introduced to mainstream media by the trailblazer Francis Magalona, later followed by Andrew E., and others. It continued to ascend in the following decades, primarily targeting young audiences. In the recent years, Filipino rappers like Al James, Shanti Dope, Nik Makino, and Flow G rose to fame together with the continuous internet literacy of the young generation. Mobile apps like TikTok, YouTube and Facebook made it possible for these artists to reach a majority of Gen Z's. As of February 2024, the most recent track "We Made It" by Nik Makino & Flow G has gained 28 million views on YouTube and 19 million streams on Spotify. Moreover, artist Flow G's biggest song "Rapstar" has over 67 million streams on Spotify and approximately 113 million views on YouTube - some would even say he is "goated with the sauce."