Gen Z & Rap: Us and the world

In our first explainer, based on the aboutpeople survey for Eteron that explores Gen Z’s relationship with rap in Greece, we unpacked the findings related to rap and trap.

In this second and final part, we’ll explain how rap helps Gen Z make sense of the Greek reality.

The survey was conducted between May 5–9, 2025, on a sample of 520 individuals aged 17–29.

For most Gen Z listeners (41.9%), rap serves as a form of emotional release, while 28.8% say they use it as a way to escape daily life.

However, a significant portion (26.9%) say rap helps them understand Greek social reality, 55.3% believe it influences how they perceive social issues, and 36.8% say they listen to rap specifically for its social or political lyrics.

An overwhelming majority of listeners (70%) said rap has helped them better understand the issue of police violence.

In contrast, 45.6% view rap’s (mostly negative) references to the police unfavorably.

So, while awareness of police violence appears to be on the rise, the audience remains divided when it comes to lyrics that criticize police conduct.

Exactly the same share (70%) said that rap has helped them better understand political system corruption.

As with the police, most references to the political system in rap are predominantly negative.

However, in this case, Gen Z tends to view lyrics that “go after” the system—highlighting its corruption or the inequalities it produces—positively.

An even larger share (72.8%) said rap has helped them understand issues like poverty, rising costs, and social inequality, while fewer than half (43.1%) said it has helped them grasp “issues of male identity.”

This suggests that Gen Z sees rap as an alternative source of information*, especially in a landscape where traditional media rarely give space to such issues.

*”Rap music is black people’s CNN” – Chuck D, Public Enemy.

Storytelling and political commentary are seen as rap’s most positive traits by 22.5% and 18.4% of Gen Z listeners, respectively—though topping the list is authenticity, at 26.9%.*

Women tend to value social commentary more (25.3% versus 11.7%), while men place greater emphasis on authenticity (28.4% versus 25.3%).

* Authenticity has always been a cornerstone of rap—a key reason artists break through and stay relevant.

A significant portion of Gen Z in Greece says that rap helps them understand,or even influences, the sociopolitical aspects of their daily lives.

However, 49.1% say they remain unaffected by the political views of the rappers they listen to, 36.3% say they’re influenced a little, and just 11.6% say they’re influenced significantly.

Rap in Greece, as reflected in the research, is not seen merely as a musical genre, but also as a cultural domain that carries political, social, and ideological weight, perhaps more so than other genres.

This is due both to its widespread popularity and to its form, which relies heavily on verbal expression, making it a text-driven genre by nature.

The political system and poverty (primarily), along with police violence (secondarily), appear to be the main concerns—and the issues that Gen Z seeks to better understand through rap music.

At the same time, these are also some of the core themes of rap’s subject matter, historically.

“This alignment is anything but accidental and should prompt reflection among those who view rap and its audience with skepticism,” concludes the study’s author, Kostas Savvopoulos.