It's not a matter of blaming the music. It's a matter of blaming the glorification of the negativity that is celebrated in the music. The music - rap or otherwise - is simply a symptom of the attitudes.
However, I do lay blame at the feet of the artists when they continue to say it's OK to act like total idiots by continuing to mistreat women, do drugs, and act like thugs themselves.
And it's not a matter of being a "role-model" in form; it's that when they act like that, they themselves become part of that statistical problem.
No, I'm no fan of the music in and of itself. My taste in rap certainly falls into what most call "old school." And moreover, at this point, give me a good Jimmy Smith album, or some vintage Wes Montgomery and I'm just as happy. My tastes run the gamut. But when force-fed a continual diet of negative ideas, is there any wonder when negativity is what results from the listeners?
I mean if you hear "Slap that b*tch" from six different artists, back-to-back, 24 hours a day, how long before you think it's OK to do just that?
Anything - when taken to excess - is bad for you...