A poem is nothing more than a composition in verse so any music with lyrics would be one regardless of its depth.
For good or bad, if Britney Spears wrote any of her songs, she’s as much a poet as Robert Frost.
Right. Which is why we need a word to differentiate the good stuff from the bad while acknowledging it’s all poetry. I propose we call Britney a “crapoet” who writes “crapoetry.” Robert Frost can still be a poet. 
That’s a good idea but I’d keep them confined to the same category personally.
I disagree. Songwriting and poetry are two distinct artforms, each with its own history, conventions, and techniques. I can write half-way decent poetry, but I cannot write the lyrics to a song to save my life, even though I have been playing music since I was 7. I’ve found very few people who are equally adept at songwriting and poetry. They are not the same thing. I am not saying one art form is “higher” than the other. It’s a very different technique.
Dahrhgh. Preview, Gad! Preview!!
Nah.
Lyric-writing is pretty much the same as writing poetry. Songwriting involves writing music, which is an entirely different skill. Your poems can be viewed as lyrics lacking a melody line. Writing melody lines (how your lyrics are sung) is again a form of songwriting, and therefore different from poetry. I don’t see any difference in generating a line of verse that fits the decided format of a poem than writing one that fits the rhythm of a melody line.
By this logic we could also claim that the documentary is not a movie form but THE movie form … in America, based on the fact that Moore’s controversial film was the top for a few weeks. Or comic-to-movie based on Spiderman’s success or - well you should be getting the picture.
Rap may or may not have staying power, but we shouldn’t draw a conclusion based on one CD hitting number one.
There’s still good rap being made. Most of the new stuff I listen to, except for OutKast, is not at all popular. The Roots get some radio play, but most of their best songs are not the singles, in my opinion. I’ve never seen a J-Live or Mr. Lif video, but they are both putting out great music.
Aesop Rock, Atmosphere, Listen, Vast Aire, mf doom, etc.
Check it out. It’s dope.
“If it were thought that anything I wrote was influenced by Robert Frost, I would take that particular piece of mine, shred it, and flush it down the toilet, hoping not to clog the pipes.”
- James Dickey, on Robert Frost
Having read (and enjoyed) most of James Dickey, and having also read (and disliked) much of Robert Frost, I’ve got to say that I think Frost gets too much credit. I tend to agree with Dickey’s stance on the issue, really. As far as great modern poets go, I’d say Robert Frost’s accomplishments in poetry are pretty close to Britney’s in modern pop: simple rhymed quatrains with a catchy beat, and three chords, tops. Dickey is no Radiohead, but he’s at least up there with Metallica. Easily accessible, emotional, but still clearly skilled in his art, with one or two more layers waiting beneath if you care to dig.
Oh yeah, and uhhh… [/hijack], in case I forgot to mention it. Carry on. 
Can you post a cite???
When I went to Billboard dot com it said Jimmy Buffet has the number 1 album out in America.
Lloyd Banks? Would that be the brother of Philip Banks, the father in Prince of BelAir??
Oh yeah, Atmosphere kicks ass. I’m listening to God Loves Ugly* right now.
Rather, make that God Loves Ugly.
See, this is why I never code my hand. :smack:
BY hand. I need some more caffeine.
I still disagree. If you’ve had experience doing both, you’d realize that they are different beasts. There may be some overlap, but a good poet is not necessarily a good lyricist, and a good lyricist might not necessarily make a good poet.
Lyrics have different structures than poems, different rhythmic breakdowns (lyrics do not stick, by and large, to conventional poetic meters. If anything, they’re accentual, rather than accentual-syllabic), and a well-defined structure…the most typical being verse-chorus-verse-chorus (bridge-chorus.)
It’s a different discipline to be able to tell a story in 3 minutes, make it suitable for a musical setting (have you ever tried putting something in iambic pentameter to music? Doesn’t really work.), be able to create a lyrical “hook” (usu. in the chorus) around which the song is based.
There is some crossover between the two forms, but they are most definitely two distinct disciplines.
For a somewhat more eloquent explanation of the differences, from the perspective of a songwriter, you can read this little article:
START was about two weeks slow with his post. Lloyd Banks was #1 for the previous two weeks, Jimmy Buffett beat him this week.
Two weeks at number one? Dwear God, people, this stuff matters!
…
I’m not saying rap doesn’t matter, that it’s not a large part of popular culture, or that it’s not a vibrant art form. But let’s find indicators that actually mean something, OK?
I am in full agreement with you there, ultrafilter. I honestly don’t believe that a number one album means anything anymore. Then again, I’m a young guy, so I should say, did a number one album ever mean anything?