"There's a lot of stronger issues for Black people that they could talk about," Scientific said.
"There are certain standards and principles by which we must live," the minister countered. Butts said his church is actively involved in schools' curriculum issues, police brutality protests and paying college tuition for students.
The rap artists argued that as an artistic form, rap serves to depict the realities of Black urban daily life.
"Are you asking to keep us from telling the truth?" Cruz asked.
"What's important is you let the people know that you're [only] acting," Renee A. Richardson '96 told the Bulldogs members.
Students interviewed after the debate said it shed light on the emotional issues surrounding "gangsta" rap. "It brought a lot of issues to the forefront that need to be discussed," said Alvin L. Bragg '95, former BSA president.
But others felt that the rap artists had failed to answer some questions.
"They really didn't answer the challenge of replacing negative messages by more positive ones," Johnson said.