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Introduction
Introduction
Many students are interested in rap music. Rap music comes from Hip Hop which makes rap one of the elements of Hip Hop. The five elements are, dj, mc, breakdancing, graffiti and knowledge. hopefully, this page provides rap fans (should use the term Hip Hop here) with the knowledge of Hip Hop's history. Below is a timeline that tells some of the story.
Book Review
Book Review
1950s Highway
1950s Highway
The completion of the Cross Bronx Expressway (mid-1950s) started the process of "White Flight" from the South Bronx. Many small businesses would be lost resulting in an economic collapse.
Benign Neglect
Benign Neglect
benign neglect.pdfHip Hop comes from poverty. People from the South Bronx made something out of the nothing they had. To expand on the story, it's crucial to understand the role of benign neglect that allowed South Bronx poverty to worsen in the 1970s climate of New York's poverty. combined with "White Flight" due to the developing of the Cross Bronx Expressway, the residents of the South Bronx were left to survive on their own. See Power Point.
Post-Benign Neglect (Early 1970s)
Post-Benign Neglect (Early 1970s)
By the early 1970s, the South Bronx continued a rapid urban decline. Benign neglect combined with the aftermath of the Cross Bronx Expressway resulted in a racial make up of the South Bronx that consisted mostly of poor Black and Latinos. Eventually gangs formed to survive urban decay. Property values declined, creating further economic decline and a national stigma. The stigma was fueled by property owners who burned down their properties to make money from insurance claims. The end result was the burning of the South Bronx. The term "the Bronx is burning" became a national understanding for urban decay.
Gangs
Gangs
Numerous gangs emerged in the South Bronx during the 1970s. New York City violence was at an all time high but in the South Bronx, residents were left to fend for themselves. The documentary "Rubble Kings" addresses the gangs of the South Bronx (see trailer below).
Birth of Hip Hop Culture (the three creators Herc, Bambaataa and Flash)
Birth of Hip Hop Culture (the three creators Herc, Bambaataa and Flash)
At 1520 Sedgwick Avenue, Kool Herc throws the first Hip Hop party. What makes his party different? Kool Herc extended the break in records to prolong the instrumental beat that usually came after a lyrical verse. His audience identified this part of a record as the best part, as this section usually was funky, full of soul and/or utilizing a drum beat. The problem was this section was very short. To extend the beat, Herc developed the "Merry Go Round." This used two of the same records and basically played the same section one after the other. With the beat extended at the break, the term evolved to break beats and break dancing.
Africa Bambaataa was another dj, but he was also a leader of one of the biggest gangs known as the Black Spades. In an attempt to create a truce after the death of Black Benji, Bambaataa used his power as a leader to throw a safe party. New York gangs fought over territory (see map) and one would not want to attend a party in a rival neighborhood. Bambaataa's parties ensured the safety and security of the Black Spades. Here people danced (breakdancing) as the dj prolonged the beats. Since a dj was too pre-occupied spinning records, an MC was needed to communicate to and hype up the audience. The MC was the person on the microphone saying things like "clap your hands everybody." Eventually MCing became a thing on its own and simple lines evolved to complex verses resulting in rap music.
Grandmaster Flash perfected the transition from one record to the next by developing the back spin technique. This technique used a mixer to make the transition from one record to the next without any error.
Graffiti and Dancing and Sadness
Graffiti and Dancing and Sadness
Is graffiti art? Is breakdancing, dancing? Remember, the 1970 originators of what would become Hip Hop Culture, came from poverty. In an attempt to obtain street credibility, a graffiti artist could write his/her name on a wall and one would know the artist's name. What if that same name was on a subway that went through all of the Five-Boroughs of New York? That is recognition outside of one's neighborhood. What if dancing on the floor one could have the best dance move? In both scenarios, such dancers and artists, worked to obtain street credibility. There belief system was one of learned helpless. They came from poverty and their futures were uncertain. However, that recognition from that art and dance move would be recognition and respect and for many a peak point in their lives.
SBHS Breakdancing Club
HIP HOPhistoryonly.pptxVideos
Videos
If titles are removed, try to locate by title provided
From Mambo to Hip Hop is about the 1950 migration of Latinos to NY that contributed to Hip Hop.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpGYDl1-scw
The Hip Hop Years is a summary of Hip Hop origins.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhrSlOa2bsA
Style Wars Documentary on Graffiti
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EW22LzSaJA
And you Don't Stop Documentary
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUNT7zAq0VU&list=PL352B6CDEF7D48B1C
Breakin and Enterin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFkgObeA8AU
80 Blocks from Tiffany
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDb8Nr_gVcw
Planet Rock the Story of Hip Hop and the Crack Generation is about the influence of crack in rap lyrics.
Sources
Sources
library.pdf"One Day It'll All Make Sense": Hip-Hop and Rap Resources for Music Librarians by Andrew Leach: Sources for librarians to suggest for scholarly research on the topic of Hip Hop.
nihilism.pdf“I SEE DEATH AROUND THE CORNER”: NIHILISM IN RAP MUSIC byCHARIS E. KUBRIN: Rap music speaks directly to issues of identity, culture and violence.
African Self-Consciousness.pdf"The Relationship between African Self-Consciousness, Cultural Misorientation, Hypermasculinity, and Rap Music Preference" by DeReef F. Jamison: Correlation between one's African identity and the kind of rap one consumes.
Don't Hate Me Because I'm Beautiful.pdf"Don't Hate Me Because I'm Beautiful": Black Masculinity and Alternative Embodiment in Rap Music by Antonia Randolph: Some rap is hard as an expression of frustration for male dominance.
in education.pdf"Rap Music: An Education with a Beat from the Street" by Catherine Tabb Powell: Social and historical circumstances that led to certain rap groups.
global.pdf"Getting Real about Global Hip Hop" by Yvonne Bynoe: Hip Hop around the World.
fresh out of school.pdf"Fresh out of School: Rap Music's Discursive Battle with Education" by Wayne Au: Rap and its place in education.
in education.pdflibrary.pdfwriting.pdfSneakers and Laces
Uprock Tutorial
6-Step Tutorial
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