Week 7:  Hip-Hop

Hip-Hop music (also called Rap) is a style of music that emerged in the 1970s in the primarily Jamaican, Carribean, and African American neighborhoods of the Bronx (New York City).   It became a vehicle for expressing the experiences of urban minorities in the late 20th century.  Record players were used to play music at parties.  The person in charge of changing the record disc was called the "Disc Jockey".  DJs developed a technique of isolating a small sample of a larger piece of music by physically stopping and starting the record needle over and over again.  The repeated section established a distinct "beat" that partygoers would take turns "rapping" to - speaking rhymes to the beat.  Early rap focused on anti-drug and anti-violence, as a response to the factors that were troubling these urban communities at that time.  Hip-hop music became part of a larger sub-culture, practiced through four elements: rapping (MCing), scratching (DJing), breakdancing and graffiti art. Hip-hop music was not professionally recorded or played on the radio until 1979. Before that, rappers performed on the streets or made tape recordings at parties that circulated through the neighborhoods.  Hip-hop incorporates many styles drawn from jazz, soul, rhythm and blues, rock, country and even classical music.  In all forms of hip-hop music, the artists utilize rhythm and spoken word to communicate feelings about the social, economic and political realities they face in everyday life.  Hip-hop has now surpassed rock as the primary popular music worldwide.

• Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five (est. 1978): GFFF performed locally at parties until signing with Sugarhill Records in 1980. They were the first rappers to call themselves "MC's" (Masters of Ceremonies) and their use of turntables and the DJ breakbeat were influential in establishing the genre.  The term "hip hop" is accredited to group member "Cowboy", who would skat sing rhythms using the words "hip" and )"hop". Listen: Freedom

• Sugarhill Gang (est. 1979):  The Sugarhill Gang was the first group to commercially record a rap song and to have a rap song on the Billboard Top 40. Up until this point, rap records were informally recorded and distributed locally in the neighborhoods where they were created. The Sugarhill Gang widened the national audience for rap music. Listen: Rapper's Delight

• MC Hammer (b.1962): MC Hammer (Stanley Kirk Burrell) is a rapper, dancer and record producer.  He is known as an innovator and forefather of "pop" rap, a rap style that blends pop/rock style production and structure with catchy melodies and the rhythm-based lyricism of rap. Listen: Can't Touch This

• Rakim (b.1968): Rakim is one of the most influential rap artists.  He is known for pioneering the use of different styles of rhyming and elevating rap songwriting from improvisational rhymes to practiced, metaphorical and intricate lyrics.  He also is attributed to creating "flow" (the way a rap rhyme slides over the rap beat beneath it without taking away from the beat or instrumentation) in rap music.  Listen: The 18th Letter

• *LL Cool J (b.1968): LL Cool J is a rapper, record producer and actor.  He was one of the first rappers to achieve a mainstream audience and took "old school" rap into "new school" rap by mixing rap with rock "riffs" and musical arrangements.  He was the first rapper to appear on American Bandstand, a music performance TV show that aired from 1952-1989. Listen: Mama Said Knock You Out

• *Ice Cube (b.1969): O'Shea Jackson Jr (Ice Cube) is a rapper and actor.  He and another artist, Dr. Dre formed the "gansta" rap group N.W.A., popularizing songs with themes of social and political justice, casting light on the experiences of urban black neighborhoods dealing with police brutality and gang violence. Listen: How We Do It

• Queen Latifa (b.1970):  Queen Latifa is a rapper, singer and actor. She was the first hip hop artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.  She r)eleased her first album at the age of 19 rapping about issues that black women face.  She also is an accomplished jazz singer. Listen:  Inside Out

• Tupac Shakur (1971-1996): Though his career was short, Tupac is considered one of the most influential artists of the genre.  He utilized his lyrics to speak about the experiences of black America in regard to social justice, economic disparity, violence, being treated as cultural outsiders and institutional racism. Listen: Changes

• Missy Elliot (b.1971): Known as the "Queen of Rap", Missy Elliot has received acclaim for her experimental sound and carefully crafted vocals.  Her music often centers around feminist themes, gender equality and body positivity.  Listen: Get Ur Freak On

• Eminem (b.1972): Emimem (Marshall Bruce Mathers III) is credited as being one of the most influential rappers in the world by breaking down race barriers in the genre and pioneering the success of white rappers.  His music is acclaimed for its poetic lyrics, complex and syncopated rhyming, use of melody, and skill of delivery.  Many of his songs touch on the struggles of the American underclass.  Listen: Lose Yourself

• Lauryn Hill (b.1975): Lauryn Hill is a rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor.  She is credited for breaking down barriers for women in the rap genre and pioneering melodic rap and neo soul. Listen: Everything is Everything

• Beastie Boys (est.1981): The Beastie Boys were originally a punk band from Brooklyn, NY, but transitioned into hip hop and rap rock, though elements of their punk roots remain. They blended a mix of rap, funk, techno, latin and jazz that hugely broadened rap's audience to mainstream America. Listen:  

• Run DMC (est.1983): Run DMC is one of the pioneering groups of "new school" hip hop (hip hop lead by drum machine with rock elements and raps moving past the "party" of the 1980s and into social and political commentary). They are credited for bringing hip hop to the rock mainstream audience through their collaboration with Aerosmith on "Walk This Way" in 1986. Listen: My Adidas

• Salt-N-Pepa (est. 1985): SNP was an all-female hip hop group from New York City. They were the first female rap group to receive a Grammy Award (1995) and the first female rap group to hit multi-platinum status in record sales.  Listen: Break of Dawn

• Outkast (est. 1992): Outkast was the duo of Andre 3000 and Big Boi.  They were known for their positive, intricate lyrics, catchy melodies and incorporation of diverse styles including jazz, funk and techno. They popularized Southern hip hop (hip hop that came from the southern US), moving the genre away from the "East Coast" (New York City) and "West Coast" (Los Angeles) rap scenes. Listen: Hey Ya

• Lil Wayne (b1982): Lil Wayne (Dwayne Michael Carter Jr) is a rapper, singer, songwriter and music producer.  He is credited for moving the hip hop sound forward through use of Autotone (a processor that alternates pitch and tone).  Listen: Phone Home

• Kendrick Lamar (b.1987): Kendrick Lamar is the only musician outside of the classical and jazz genres to win a Pulitzer Prize for Music. He is known for carefully managing all parts of his music production including mixing and editing.  His music has gained acclaim for its depth, complexity, fusion with different genres, and exploration of political and social issues.  Listen: Black Friday