As hip hop became mainstream, artists such as Run D.M.C, LL Cool J and the Beastie Boys helped push it even further by merging rap with hard rock music while pushing political ideology through lyrics.
Hip hop transcends any assumptions of race-essence that might otherwise arise due to its artistic elements and elements of expression that often form its foundation.
Origins
Hip hop was created out of collaboration among Black, Latinx and Caribbean American youth in New York City’s Bronx borough during the 1970s. DJs such as Kool Herc began spinning soul and funk records at block parties where teens danced along to its grooves. Over time, youth experimented with ways to personalize this music for themselves using elements from jazz as well as spoken word poetry that allowed artists to express their emotions using rhythm, cadence and vocal inflections.
In the late 1970s, MCs first began rapping over short percussive breaks on DJ records known as beats. Sugarhill Gang’s 1979 song “Rapper’s Delight” became one of rap’s first breakthrough hits; by 1980 it had become an enormous cultural phenomenon with artists such as Rakim, Big Daddy Kane and Public Enemy making waves within music circles; these MCs often depicting themselves as cooler-than-life characters who might be either sophisticated or tough and gangsta!
Rappers also developed distinct styles for delivering their lines that would capture listeners’ attention. Early rhythmic chants soon evolved into more intricate rhymes which explored various topics and themes; lyrics became ever more poetical as artists such as Melle Mel, KRS-One and Rakim perfected their craft.
As hip hop gained in popularity, its reach extended far beyond New York City to other parts of the United States and then around the globe. Artists such as Beastie Boys pioneered new techniques in sampling with digital technology; while LL Cool J and Public Enemy took rap beyond romance into romance and political ideology.
Hip hop music has quickly emerged with its own distinct sound in recent years, as producers switched away from using sampled tracks in favor of live instruments – giving hip hop music more full and robust tones while lessening reliance on synthesizers and keyboards. Today, it stands as a dominant form of contemporary music.
Styles
Hip hop culture emerged in the South Bronx during the early 1970s, where many African American and Latino neighborhoods were economically degraded. Young people in these neighborhoods used cultural expression to counter poverty, drug, and crime epidemics that affected them; eventually creating what has since become known as “hip hop”. Over time it became a global movement; its core elements being deejaying or turntabling; rapping or MCing; graffiti painting (graffiti); and b-boying or hip-hop dancing which incorporates virile body language with swaggering movements – four key elements which make up its core components.
RUN DMC’s hit, “Rapper’s Delight,” launched hip hop to mainstream popularity and opened doors for other artists such as LL Cool J, Public Enemy and Beastie Boys to take hip hop in new directions with deejaying and sampling techniques that exceeded any previous artists. MTV broadcast their performances as they showcased both rapping and dancing talents of RUN DMC.
In the 1990s, hip hop continued its rapid evolution and diversification. It became more commercial, while regional styles emerged such as West Coast hip hop, gangster rap, Southern rap and rap rock. Furthermore, this decade saw high-profile artists such as N.W.A, Jay-Z, Tupac Shakur and Snoop Dogg making significant strides within hip hop music culture.
By the 2000’s, hip hop had expanded to encompass female artists like Missy Elliot and Salt-N-Pepa as well as its international popularity – particularly Japan and Australia. Furthermore, this period saw increased use of metaphorical lyrics within rap music as well as collaboration with genres like electronic music.
Hip-hop culture continues to thrive today, giving rise to numerous subgenres like trap, grime, chillhop, crunk, bounce, mumble rap and Latin hip-hop. Furthermore, its focus has broadened to cover socially conscious issues such as police brutality, the black struggle and prison industrial complex; thus making hip hop one of the world’s most beloved music genres.
Influencers
Rap music has had a profound effect on various facets of popular culture, from fashion and technology to art, language, dance entertainment education and politics. Additionally, its impact has extended into global economies by creating a billion-dollar industry which continues to evolve and thrive.
Hip hop’s pioneers embraced a lifestyle that promoted positive messages of self-expression and community activism, inspiring generations of rappers as they spread hip hop culture across society.
Hip hop culture has evolved as a result of sociopolitical changes such as drug abuse and violence in urban communities. Early hip hop MCs and DJs used it as an antidote for violence among gangs; for instance, Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight,” featuring Kraftwerk’s classic song “Planet Rock”, served as an early warning about drug addiction as well as taking responsibility for one’s actions.
In the 1980s, hip hop experienced its Golden Era. Pioneers like Run-DMC and the Beastie Boys helped elevate it into mainstream popularity through innovative sampling techniques; while also diversifying it by including hard rock influences. Other influential artists of this era included LL Cool J, Public Enemy, The Notorious B.I.G, LL Cool J and Snoop Dogg.
Hip hop lyrics have also grown from rhythmic chants to metaphorical tales about various subjects, with artists such as Melle Mel, KRS-One, Rakim and Missy Elliot making significant contributions towards its advancement lyrically. Meanwhile LL Cool J and Public Enemy played key roles in pushing political ideology through hip hop rap.
As hip hop became more commercial, different regional styles emerged such as West Coast hip hop and gangsta rap. Hip hop also blended elements from other genres such as R&B and jazz into its musical palette; artists like MC Hammer, Schoolly D, LL Cool J and the Beastie Boys all successfully fused these musical genres into hip hop music.
Hip hop’s popularity in the 2000s led to an explosion of artists like Lil Pump and XXXTentacion who pioneered new trends such as trap and mumble rap music, even being included on pop albums by Katy Perry and The Weeknd.
Trends
Hip hop culture is constantly evolving. It consists of four elements: deejaying (also known as “turntablism”), rapping, graffiti painting or “graff”, and breaking. DJ Kool Herc in the Bronx pioneered turntablism in the 1970s to create new tracks by manipulating records using turntables – this creates new tracks by mixing beats and basslines from existing records into one track. Breaks are long percussive periods in hip hop music that hearken back to its origins while encouraging dancing – hip hop also uses vocal styles such as rapping or singing for music creation and breaking is encouraged to encourage dancing!
As hip hop emerged during the 1980s, MCs (master of ceremonies) introduced DJs and amped up crowds for dance parties. Performances moved away from featuring songs laden with boasting and sexual innuendo to being more topical and socially aware; Melle Mel, KRS-One and Rakim were instrumental in helping shape hip hop’s iconic rhyming and wordplay that is part of its essence today.
Hip hop’s graffiti roots began in the ghettos as urban artists used their neighborhoods as canvases to express themselves. Early rappers developed personas – often super-smooth or tough characters who would wear clothing from local boutiques as well as wear their own T-shirt designs as a form of branding – reminiscent of earlier days. Hip hop culture quickly spread to other cities, becoming an influential industry that would influence fashion, art, television and film alike.
Hip hop music draws its musical inspiration from various sources, such as African American gospel and jazz, but its signature break beats and rhythmic patterns have come from African American gospel and jazz music, respectively. Additionally, its sampling practice — in which an old recording is remixed into something new — makes hip hop fresh while connecting back to its origins at once.
Hip hop’s mainstreaming spurred on other forms of art related to it. Writers and visual artists began documenting it on paper before later turning their eye toward film with films like Wild Style and Style Wars showing that this creative drive also ran through breaking dance, an ancient form from Bronx that dates back more than 200 years.