Inside the Hidden World of Ghostwriting (Exclusive Interview)

There's a reason they call it ghostwriting. Although many of your favorite lyrics weren't written by the rapper who delivered them, the nature of the business demands absolute confidentiality from those who actually devised those dope rhymes. As part of our continued mission to bring you inside access to hip-hop's often hidden inner-workings, I set up an email interview with Jesse, the founder of one of the game's leading ghostwriting services, RapRebirth.com. Below Jesse talks about how he became a ghostwriter, the joys and pains of the business and says that approximately 60% of the hip-hop you head everyday has involved a ghostwriter.

RefinedHype: How did you become a ghostwriter? Are most ghostwriters also working rappers?

Rap Rebirth: Growing up I listened to a lot of hip hop. Lyrical artists like Nas, Rakim, Slick Rick, A Tribe Called Quest, Canibus, Black Star, Jeru the Damaja and Ras Kass especially inspired me. I used to study their lyrics for hours, breaking down rhyme schemes, looking at how the verses were built, and looking into their cultural references. I was listening to so much hip hop that I couldn’t help thinking of lyrics myself. Words would just came to me throughout the day at school. I started writing and sharing it online. Malcolm Gladwell says it takes 10,000 hours (around 10 years) to become expert at something. I started when I was 12. By the time I was 22 I could write in the style of any rapper on any subject. Friends started encouraging me to start a business ghostwriting and make some money off my hobby. At the time I was studying Entrepreneurship at USC so it made sense. I read books on web design and web marketing and jumped in. Rap Rebirth was born. Slowly, client by client, I built a business.

I’m not a rapper myself but a lot of ghostwriters are. The most well known examples are Skillz and Sauce Money. A lot of up and coming rappers ghostwrite on the side to bring in extra cash. In groups there’s usually one guy who can really write and he ends up being the lyricist. Of course it goes the other way. Jay-Z ghostwrites for a lot of mainstream acts. Same with Lupe Fiasco, Eminem, Rhymefest and Pharaoh Monch. Nas famously ghostwrote Will Smith’s “Getting Jiggy With It”.

RefinedHype: What distinguishes a good ghostwriter from a bad one?

Rap Rebirth: A good ghostwriter really listens to their client. They ask a lot of questions and push for details. You want to make sure your expectations line up with the artist’s. Multiple revisions take time away from new business and can be avoided with good communication. Integrity is also key. Some ghostwriters will recycle lyrics from other projects, or they’ll oversell and under deliver. A lot of rappers come to me disappointed with a past writer who gave them half assed lyrics. I believe you should always try to wow your client. Give them the very best you have. At the end of the day happy clients are repeat clients and will bring you referrals. Of course the cardinal sin for ghostwriters is to break confidentiality. There’s a trust you have with a client that must never be broken.

As far as skills go there are different factors. It’s 40% lyricist (you have to be good at what you do), 20% businessman (you’ve got to market and sell), 20% actor (you need to take on the persona of someone else when you write for them), and 20% psychologist (you’ve got to understand someone and their motivations to write as them).

RefinedHype: What percentage of the music we hear would you estimate is ghostwritten?

Hip hop is one of the few genres where the artists you hear recording write a lot of their lyrics. That said, a lot of hip hop is ghostwritten. It’s hard to know how much ghostwriting occurs since it tends to be secret. I’d estimate 60% of the lyrics you hear coming from rappers are collaborations with another writer of some sort. Probably half of those are purely ghostwritten. Plus even rappers known for writing their own stuff get input from people around them.

RefinedHype: Is it difficult to watch a track you've helped write become popular without getting any of the credit?

RapRebirth: Yes. It’s exciting and heartbreaking at the same time. You root for your clients to succeed. You want them to make it big. And it’s a great feeling to know people are appreciating your lyrics. But a part of you also wishes you could tell people “that’s me.” That’s part of the job though.

RefinedHype: Last words?

RapRebirth: Even after years of ghostwriting in hip hop there’s still a belief held by some that it’s wrong. Some people think that if a rapper buys lyrics from a writer they’re less authentic. I understand some of the thinking behind this but I disagree. Even if a rapper doesn’t write all of their lyrics they’re still the driving creative force behind a project. Think of a movie like Star Wars, or in this case "The Empire Strikes Back". George Lucas didn’t write the script. The script was written by Lawrence Kasdan. But no one thinks of him when they think of that movie. They think of George Lucas. And rightly so because it was his concept, his story, his characters and his creative vision. The same is true in hip hop. Rappers are the storytellers, directors, and the actors. Ghostwriters are the screenwriters who help them take their vision and put it on the page. It’s still the rapper’s life, viewpoints and experiences. Ghostwriting is a collaboration that creates a product larger than its components. Without ghostwriters a lot of great hip hop would never have been made.

For to learn more about RapRebirth.com, including information on hiring their services or working for them, click here.