Hip hop music: Difference between revisions

Universal Zulu Nation founder Afrika Bambaataa is credited with first using the term to describe the subculture in which the music belonged; although it is also suggested that it was a derogatory term to describe the type of music.^[14] The first use of the term in print was in The Village Voice,^[15] by Steven Hager, later author of a 1984 history of hip hop.^[16]

1970s

Origins

Hip hop as music and culture formed during the 1970s when

percussive breaks of popular songs. This technique was then common in Jamaican dub music,^[18] and was largely introduced into New York by immigrants from Jamaica and elsewhere in the Caribbean, including DJ Kool Herc, who is generally considered the father of hip hop.^{[by whom?]} Because the percussive breaks in funk, soul and disco

records were generally short, Herc and other DJs began using two turntables to extend the breaks.

Hip hop's early evolution into a form distinct from R&B also, not coincidentally, occurred around the time that sampling technology became widely available to the general public at a cost that was affordable to the average consumer--not just professional studios. The first sampler that was broadly adopted to create this new kind of music was the AKAI-MPC.[19] --ThomasMikael (talk) 18:55, 27 September 2013 (UTC)

Turntablist techniques – such as scratching (attributed to

toasting, another influence found in Jamaican dub music.^[18][22]

Hip hop music in its infancy has been described as an outlet and a "voice" for the disenfranchised youth of low-economic areas,[23] as the culture reflected the social, economic and political realities of their lives.^[24]

Introduction of rapping

MCing or emceeing, is a vocal style in which the artist speaks lyrically, in rhyme and verse, generally to an instrumental or synthesized beat. Beats, almost always in 4/4 time signature, can be created by sampling and/or sequencing portions of other songs by a producer.^[25] They also incorporate synthesizers, drum machines, and live bands. Rappers may write, memorize, or improvise their lyrics and perform their works a cappella

or to a beat.

Hip hop music predates the introduction of rapping into hip hop culture, and rap vocals are absent from many hip hop tracks, such as "

Funky Four Plus One is credited with performing the first female hip hop rap. ^[26] The Sequence, a hip hop trio signed to Sugar Hill Records in the early '80's, were the first all female group to release a rap record, Funk You Up

.

The roots of rapping are found in

Blowfly are often considered "godfathers" of hip hop music. ^{[citation needed}

]

Within New York City, performances of spoken-word poetry and music by artists such as The Last Poets, Gil Scott-Heron^[28] and Jalal Mansur Nuriddin had a significant impact on the post-civil rights era culture of the 1960s and 1970s, and thus the social environment in which hip hop music was created.

DJ Kool Herc and

MCs

would often add call and response chants, often consisting of a basic chorus, to allow the performer to gather his thoughts (e.g. "one, two, three, y'all, to the beat").

Later, the MCs grew more varied in their vocal and rhythmic delivery, incorporating brief rhymes, often with a sexual or scatological theme, in an effort to differentiate themselves and to entertain the audience. These early raps incorporated the dozens, a product of African American culture. Kool Herc & the Herculoids were the first hip hop group to gain recognition in New York,^[29] but the number of MC teams increased over time.

Often these were collaborations between former

B-boying arose during block parties, as b-boys and b-girls got in front of the audience to dance in a distinctive and frenetic style. The style was documented for release to a world wide audience for the first time in documentaries and movies such as Style Wars, Wild Style, and Beat Street. The term "B-boy" was coined by DJ Kool Herc to describe the people who would wait for the break section of the song, getting in front of the audience to dance in a distinctive, frenetic style.^[31]

Although there were many early MCs that recorded solo projects of note, such as

Funky Four Plus One, who performed in such a manner on Saturday Night Live in 1981.^[33]

Influence of disco

Hip hop music was both influenced by

disco music and a backlash against it. According to Kurtis Blow, the early days of hip hop were characterized by divisions between fans and detractors of disco music. Hip hop had largely emerged as "a direct response to the watered down, Europeanised, disco music that permeated the airwaves",^[34][35]

and the earliest hip hop was mainly based on hard funk loops. However, by 1979, disco instrumental loops/tracks had become the basis of much hip hop music. This genre got the name of "disco rap". Ironically, hip hop music was also a proponent in the eventual decline in disco popularity.

DJ Pete Jones, Eddie Cheeba,

Love Bug Starski were disco-influenced hip hop DJs. Their styles differed from other hip hop musicians who focused on rapid-fire rhymes and more complex rhythmic schemes. Afrika Bambaataa, Paul Winley, Grandmaster Flash, and Bobby Robinson

were all members of this latter group.

In

techno in Detroit

.

Transition to recording

Prior to 1979, recorded hip hop music consisted mainly of

mixtapes by DJs. Puerto Rican DJ Disco Wiz is credited as the first hip hop DJ to create a "mixed plate," or mixed dub recording, when, in 1977, he combined sound bites, special effects and paused beats to technically produce a sound recording.^[36]

The first hip hop record is widely regarded to be

The Fatback Band, which was released a few weeks before "Rapper's Delight", as a rap record.^[38]

There are various other claimants for the title of first hip hop record.

By the early 1980s, all the major elements and techniques of the hip hop genre were in place. Though not yet mainstream, hip hop had permeated outside of New York City; it could be found in cities as diverse as

Sugar Hill Records, was performed by The Sequence, a group from Columbia, South Carolina which featured Angie Stone.^[39]

Despite the genre's growing popularity, Philadelphia was, for many years, the only city whose contributions could be compared to New York City's. Hip hop music became popular in Philadelphia in the late 1970s. The first released record was titled "Rhythm Talk", by Jocko Henderson.

The

New York Times had dubbed Philadelphia the "Graffiti Capital of the World" in 1971. Philadelphia native DJ Lady B recorded "To the Beat Y'All" in 1979, and became the first female solo hip hop artist to record music.^[40] Schoolly D, starting in 1984 and also from Philadelphia, began creating a style that would later be known as gangsta rap

.

1980s

The 1980s marked the diversification of hip hop as the genre developed more complex styles.

echo as texture and playful sound effects. The mid-1980s was marked by the influence of rock music, with the release of such albums as King of Rock and Licensed to Ill

.

Heavy usage of the new generation of

synchronisation, in his case, triggering 3 Korg sampling-delay units through a 808. Later, samplers such as the E-mu SP-1200

allowed not only more memory but more flexibility for creative production. This allowed the filtration and layering different hits, and with a possibility of re-sequencing them into a single piece.

With the emergence of a new generation of samplers such as the AKAI S900 in the late 1980s, producers did not require the aid of tape loops.

Public Enemy's first album was created with the help of large tape loops. The process of looping break into a breakbeat now became more common with a sampler, now doing the job which so far had been done manually by the DJ. In 1989, DJ Mark James under the moniker "45 King", released "The 900 Number", a breakbeat track created by synchronizing samplers and vinyl.^[32]

The lyrical content of hip hop evolved as well. The early styles presented in the 1970s soon were replaced with metaphorical lyrics over more complex, multi-layered instrumentals. Artists such as

conscious rap

.

During the early 1980s, electro music was fused with elements of the hip hop movement, largely led by artists such as

Sprite commercial^[44] marked the first hip hop musician to represent a major product. The 1981 songs "Rapture" by Blondie and "Christmas Wrapping" by the new-wave band The Waitresses were among the first pop songs to utilize rap in the delivery. In 1982 Afrika Bambaataa, introduced hip hop to an international audience with "Planet Rock

."

Prior to the 1980s, hip hop music was largely confined within the context of the United States. However, during the 1980s, it began its spread and became a part of the music scene in dozens of countries.

Hip Hop, Be Bop (Don’t Stop) by Man Parrish, Planet Rock and Dirty Talk (Klein + M.B.O. song).^[45]

In the early part of the decade,

B-boying became the first aspect of hip hop culture to reach Japan, Australia and South Africa, where the crew Black Noise established the practice before beginning to rap later in the decade. Musician and presenter Sidney became France's first black TV presenter with his show H.I.P. H.O.P.^[46] which screened on TF1 during 1984, a first for the genre worldwide. Radio Nova helped launch other French stars including Dee Nasty

whose 1984 album Paname City Rappin' along with compilations Rapattitude 1 and 2 contributed to a general awareness of Hip Hop in France.

Hip hop has always kept a very close relationship with the Latino community in New York.

Kid Frost

from Los Angeles began his career in 1982.

Senen Reyes (born in Havana) and his younger brother Ulpiano Sergio (Mellow Man Ace) moved from Cuba to South Gate with his family in 1971. They teamed up with DVX from Queens (New York), Lawrence Muggerud (DJ Muggs) and Louis Freese (B-Real), a Mexican/Cuban-American native of Los Angeles. After the departure of "Ace" to begin his solo career the group adopted the name of Cypress Hill

named after a street running through a neighborhood nearby in South Los Angeles.

Japanese hip hop is said to have begun when Hiroshi Fujiwara returned to Japan and started playing hip hop records in the early 1980s.[47] Japanese hip hop generally tends to be most directly influenced by old school hip hop, taking from the era's catchy beats, dance culture, and overall fun and carefree nature and incorporating it into their music. As a result, hip hop stands as one of the most commercially viable mainstream music genres in Japan, and the line between it and pop music is frequently blurred.

New school hip hop

Main article:

New school hip hop

The new school of hip hop was the second wave of hip hop music, originating in 1983–84 with the early records of

b-boy attitude. These elements contrasted sharply with the funk and disco influenced outfits, novelty hits, live bands, synthesizers and party rhymes of artists prevalent prior to 1984 (although this characterization does not include all, or most artists prior to 1984). New school artists made shorter songs that could more easily gain radio play, and more cohesive LPs than their old school counterparts. By 1986 their releases began to establish the hip hop album as a fixture of the mainstream. Hip hop music became commercially successful, as exemplified by the Beastie Boys' 1986 album Licensed to Ill, which was the first rap album to hit #1 on the Billboard charts.^[49]

Golden age hip hop

Public Enemy

in 2006.

Main article: Golden age hip hop

Hip hop's "golden age" (or "golden era") is a name given to a period in mainstream hip hop—usually cited as between the mid-1980s and the early 1990s—said to be characterized by its diversity, quality, innovation and influence.

Public Enemy, Boogie Down Productions, Eric B. & Rakim, De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, Gang Starr, Big Daddy Kane and the Jungle Brothers.^[53]

The golden age is noted for its innovation – a time "when it seemed that every new single reinvented the genre"[54] according to Rolling Stone. Referring to "hip-hop in its golden age",^[55] Spin’s editor-in-chief Sia Michel says, "there were so many important, groundbreaking albums coming out right about that time",^[55] and MTV’s Sway Calloway adds: "The thing that made that era so great is that nothing was contrived. Everything was still being discovered and everything was still innovative and new".^[56] Writer William Jelani Cobb says "what made the era they inaugurated worthy of the term golden was the sheer number of stylistic innovations that came into existence... in these golden years, a critical mass of mic prodigies were literally creating themselves and their art form at the same time".^[57]

The specific time period that the golden age covers varies little from different sources. MSNBC states, "the “Golden Age” of hip-hop music: The ’80s".^[58]

Gangsta rap and West Coast hip hop

Main articles: Gangsta rap and West Coast hip hop

Gangsta rap is a

non-rhotic pronunciation of the word gangster. The genre was pioneered in the mid-1980s by rappers such as Schoolly D and Ice-T, and was popularized in the later part of the 1980s by groups like N.W.A. Ice-T released "6 in the Mornin'

", which is often regarded as the first gangsta rap song, in 1986. After the national attention that Ice-T and N.W.A created in the late 1980s and early 1990s, gangsta rap became the most commercially lucrative subgenre of hip hop.

N.W.A is the group most frequently associated with the founding of gangsta rap. Their lyrics were more violent, openly confrontational, and shocking than those of established rap acts, featuring incessant profanity and, controversially, use of the word "nigger". These lyrics were placed over rough, rock guitar-driven beats, contributing to the music's hard-edged feel. The first blockbuster gangsta rap album was N.W.A's

FBI Assistant Director, Milt Ahlerich, strongly expressing law enforcement's resentment of the song.^[60][61] Due to the influence of Ice T and N.W.A, gangsta rap is often credited as being an originally West Coast phenomenon, despite the contributions of East Coast acts like Boogie Down Productions

in shaping the genre.

The subject matter inherent in gangsta rap has caused a great deal of controversy. Criticism has come from both

right wing commentators, and religious leaders. Gangsta rappers often defend themselves by saying that they are describing the reality of inner-city life, and that they are only adopting a character, like an actor playing a role, behaving in ways that they may not necessarily endorse.^[62]

1990s

Mainstream breakthrough

Rap is the rock 'n' roll of the day. Rock 'n' roll was about attitude, rebellion, a big beat, sex and, sometimes, social comment. If that's what you're looking for now, you're going to find it here.

— Bill Adler, Time, 1990^[63]

In 1990,

Hot 100 were hip hop songs.^[63] In a similar 1990 article, Robert Hilburn of the Los Angeles Times

put hip hop music's commercial emergence into perspective:

It was 10 years ago that

It's Like That" in 1984—won critical approval, but rap, mostly, was dismissed as a passing fancy—too repetitious, too one dimensional. Yet rap didn't go away, and an explosion of energy and imagination in the late '80s leaves rap today as arguably the most vital new street-oriented sound in pop since the birth of rock in the '50s.^[65]

However, hip hop was still met with resistance from black radio, including

urban contemporary, of which Russell Simmons said in 1990, "Black radio hated rap from the start and there's still a lot of resistance to it".^[65]

G Funk, which soon came to dominate West Coast hip hop. The style was further developed and popularized by Snoop Dogg's 1993 album Doggystyle

.

Hip hop became a best selling music genre in the mid-1990s and the top selling music genre by 1999 with 81 million CDs sold.[73]^[74][75] By the late 1990s hip hop was artistically dominated by the Wu-Tang Clan.^[72] The Beastie Boys continued their success throughout the decade crossing color lines and gaining respect from many different artists.

Record labels based out of

midwest rap scene was also notable, with the fast vocal styles from artists such as Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Tech N9ne, and Twista

. By the end of the decade, hip hop was an integral part of popular music, and many American pop songs had hip hop components.

World hip hop

In Haiti, hip hop was developed in the early 1980s, and is mostly accredited to Master Dji and his songs "Vakans" and "Politik Pa m". What later became known as "Rap Kreyòl" grew in popularity in the late 1990s with King Posse and Original Rap Stuff. Due to cheaper recording technology and flows of equipment to Haiti, more Rap Kreyòl groups are recording songs, even after the January 12th earthquake.

In the

merenrap, a fusion of hip hop and merengue

.

New York City experienced a heavy Jamaican hip hop influence during the 1990s. This influence was brought on by cultural shifts particularly because of the heightened immigration of Jamaicans to New York City and the American-born Jamaican youth who were coming of age during the 1990s.

In Europe, Africa, and Asia, hip hop began to move from the underground to mainstream audiences. In Europe, hip hop was the domain of both ethnic nationals and immigrants.

Israeli (Subliminal). In Portugal hip hop has his own kind of rapping, which is more political and underground scene, they are known for Valete, Dealema and Halloween. Russian hip hop emerged during last years of Soviet Union and cemented later, with groups like Malchishnik and Bad Balance enjoying mainstream popularity in the 1990s, while Ligalize and Kasta

were popular in the 2000s.

In Asia, mainstream stars rose to prominence in the Philippines, led by Francis Magalona, Rap Asia, MC Lara and Lady Diane. In Japan, where underground rappers had previously found a limited audience, and popular teen idols brought a style called J-rap to the top of the charts in the middle of the 1990s.

Latinos had played an integral role in the early development of hip hop, and the style had spread to parts of Latin America, such as Cuba, early in its history. Later in the decade, with Latin rap groups like Cypress Hill on the American charts, Mexican rap rock groups, such as Control Machete, rose to prominence in their native land. An annual Cuban hip hop concert held at Alamar in Havana helped popularize Cuban hip hop, beginning in 1995. Hip hop grew steadily more popular in Cuba, because of official governmental support for musicians.

hip hop scene. Some notable artists include: Racionais MC's, Thaide, and Marcelo D2

Protuotrov, with Masta Ace

, the song is Zivili (lived).

East vs. West rivalry

Main article: East Coast–West Coast hip hop rivalry

West Coast hip hop

Main article: West Coast hip hop

After

East Coast-West Coast hip hop rivalry

.)

Detached from this scene were other artists such as

Solesides collective (DJ Shadow and Blackalicious amongst others) Jurassic 5, Ugly Duckling, People Under the Stairs, Tha Alkaholiks, and earlier Souls of Mischief

represented a return to hip hop roots of sampling and well planned rhyme schemes.

East Coast hip hop

Main article: East Coast hip hop

In the early 1990s East Coast hip hop was dominated by the

Black Sheep & KMD

. Although originally a "daisy age" conception stressing the positive aspects of life, darker material (such as De La Soul's thought-provoking "Millie Pulled a Pistol on Santa") soon crept in.

Artists such as

Public Enemy, Organized Konfusion, Ignacio Bernal

, had a more overtly militant pose, both in sound and manner.

In the early-1990s, the

hardcore rap equivalent to what was being produced on the West Coast.^[79] According to Allmusic, the production on two Mobb Deep albums, The Infamous and Hell on Earth (1996), are "indebted" to RZA's early production with Wu-Tang Clan.^[80][81]

The success of artists such as

Notorious B.I.G.

during 1994–95 cemented the status of the East Coast during a time of West Coast dominance.

The productions of

Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, Ghostface Killah's Ironman, and GZA's Liquid Swords

are now viewed as classics along with Wu-Tang "core" material. The clan's base extended into further groups called Wu-affiliates.

Producers such as

Gangstarr but also for other affiliated artists such as Jeru the Damaja), Pete Rock (With CL Smooth and supplying beats for many others), Buckwild, Large Professor, Diamond D and The 45 King

supplying beats for numerous MCs regardless of location.

Albums such as

The rivalry between the East Coast and the West Coast rappers eventually turned personal.[82]

Later in the decade the business acumen of the Bad Boy Records tested itself against Jay-Z and his Roc-A-Fella Records and, on the West Coast, Death Row Records. The mid to late 1990s saw a generation of rappers such as the members of D.I.T.C. such as the late Big L and Big Pun.

On the East Coast, although the "big business" end of the market dominated matters commercially the late 1990s to early 2000s saw a number of relatively successful East Coast indie labels such as

In the 1990s, hip hop began to diversify with other regional styles emerging on the national scene.

Though white rappers like the Beastie Boys, House of Pain and 3rd Bass had had some popular success or critical acceptance from the hip hop community, Eminem's success, beginning in 1999 with the platinum The Slim Shady LP,^[88] surprised many.

2000s and 2010s

The popularity of hip hop music continued through the 2000s. Dr. Dre remained an important figure, and in the year 2000 produced,

Hip hop influences also found their way increasingly into mainstream pop during this period mainly the mid-2000s, as the Los Angeles style of the 1990s lost power. Nelly's debut LP, Country Grammar, sold over nine million copies. In the 2000s, crunk music, a derivative of Southern hip hop, gained considerable popularity via the likes of Lil Jon and the Ying Yang Twins. Jay-Z represented the cultural triumph of hip hop. As his career progressed, he went from performing artist to label president, head of a clothing line, club owner, and market consultant—along the way breaking Elvis Presley’s record for most number one albums on the Billboard magazine charts by a solo artist.

In addition to the mainstream success, the United States also saw the success of

The continuation of hip hop can also be seen in different national contexts. In Tanzania, maintained popular acts of their own in the early 2000s, infusing local styles of Afrobeat and arabesque melodies, dancehall and hip-hop beats, and Swahili lyrics. Scandinavian, especially Danish and Swedish, performers became well known outside of their country, while hip hop continued its spread into new regions, including Russia, Japan, Philippines, Canada, China, Korea, India and especially Vietnam. Of particular importance is the influence on East Asian nations, where hip hop music has become fused with local popular music to form different styles such as K-pop, C-pop and J-pop.

In Germany and France, gangsta rap has become popular among youths who like the violent and aggressive lyrics.^[92] Some German rappers openly or comically flirt with Nazism, Bushido (born Anis Mohamed Youssef Ferchichi) raps "Salutiert, steht stramm, Ich bin der Leader wie A" (Salute, stand to attention, I am the leader like 'A') and Fler had a hit with the record Neue Deutsche Welle (New German Wave) complete with the title written in Third Reich style Gothic print and advertised with an Adolf Hitler quote.^[93] These references also spawned great controversy in Germany.^[94][95] Meanwhile in France, artists like Kery James' Idéal J maintained a radical, anti-authoritarian attitude and released songs like Hardcore which attacked the growth of the French far right.

In the Netherlands, MC

Crunk originated in Tennessee in the 1990s. The style was pioneered and commercialized by artists from Memphis, Tennessee and Atlanta, Georgia.

Looped, stripped-down drum machine rhythms are usually used. The Roland TR-808 and 909 are among the most popular. The drum machines are usually accompanied by simple, repeated synthesizer melodies and heavy bass stabs. The tempo of the music is somewhat slower than hip-hop, around the speed of reggaeton.

The focal point of crunk is more often the beats and music than the lyrics therein. Crunk rappers, however, often shout and scream their lyrics, creating an aggressive, almost heavy, style of hip-hop. While other subgenres of hip-hop address sociopolitical or personal concerns, crunk is almost exclusively party music, favoring call and response hip-hop slogans in lieu of more substantive approaches.^[103]

Snap music is a subgenre of crunk that emerged from

Glitch hop and wonky music

Glitch hop and Wonky music evolved following the rise of

Wonky is a subgenre of hip hop that originated around 2008, but most notably in the United States and United Kingdom, and among international artists of the Hyperdub music label, under the influence of glitch hop and dubstep. Wonky music is of the same glitchy type as glitch hop, but it was specifically noted for its melodies, rich with "mid-range unstable synths". Scotland has become one of the most prominent places, where wonky music was shaped by artists like Hudson Mohawke and Rustie.

Glitch hop and wonky are popular among a limited amount of people interested in alternative hip hop and

Starting in 2005, sales of hip hop music in the United States began to severely wane, leading Time magazine to question if mainstream hip-hop was "dying." Billboard Magazine found that, since 2000, rap sales dropped 44%, and declined to 10% of all music sales, which, while still a commanding figure when compared to other genres, is a significant drop from the 13% of all music sales where rap music regularly placed.^[105][106] According to Courtland Milloy of The Washington Post, for the first time on five years, no rap albums were among the top 10 sellers in 2006.^[107] NPR culture critic Elizabeth Blair noted that, "some industry experts say young people are fed up with the violence, degrading imagery and lyrics." However, the 2005 report Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8–18 Year-Olds found that hip hop music is by far the most popular music genre for children and teenagers, with 65 percent of 8- to-18-year-olds listening to it on a daily basis.^[108]

Others say the music is just as popular as it ever was, but that fans have found other means to consume the music."

It was during the mid-2000s that