The Origin Of Hip-hop – The Most Popular Music Genre

In this present world, Hip-hop has become a generally accepted culture for the people, people, and people.

Dominating the music industry with over 60% of the world its subscribers, Hip-hop is believed and proven to have become part of us.

According to stats, Hip-hop or Rap has topped the most listened tracks worldwide, with over 30 percent song consumptions recorded.

One might be a fan of Hip-hop, just like an average youth, but little did we know about its origin – Hip-hop/Rap.

Hip-hop is a music genre birthed on August 11, 1973, at a birthday party in one of the most impoverished areas of West Bronx, New York City, with the street address; 1520 Sedgwick Avenue. 

Some African-Americans organized it, and the Latinos, with a Jamaican DJ, Clive Campbell is popularly known as DJ Kool Herc (founding father of Hip-hop music), performing his song ‘Back to School’ two turntables before crowds who were hungry to dance.

DJ Cool  began with the two turntables in a DJ setup to switch between two music tracks back and forth, followed by a drum brake which he called ‘Merry-Go-Round’ but presently known as ‘Break Beat.’

 

Folks in Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens used to invade training grounds and paint the walls with colorful renderings of their names, words, images from underground comics, and televisions in which the New York Metropolitan Authorities responded with wired fences, undercover police, and dogs.

DJ Cool, along with other DJ’s like Grandmaster Flash, Afrika Bambaataa, and Grand Wizard Theodore, went on to refine the beat break by adding sauce to the culture; the introduction of breakdancing, rapping, etc., till Grandmaster Flash invented Needle-dropping – an extension of short drum breaks, playing two records and shifting the needle from one turntable to the other at the beginning of a break. In contrast, the other one plays, known as ‘Scratching.’

Hip-hop wasn’t accepted at first, nor was it played on radio and television stations. Hip-hop was only performed live in clubs, open spaces, etc., till 1979. Sugarhill Gang released his Rapper’s Delight under his record label, Sugar Hill.

Weeks after the release, Sugarhill recorded a success with his song making the top-ten chart.

More records were released afterward; Afrika Bambaataa released ‘Planet Rock,’ while Kurtis Blow came up with ‘The Breaks.’

Grandmaster Flash and Furious Five, in 1982, released ‘The Message’ – a record that addressed the socio-economic standards, poverty, crime, and stress of living in a dangerous city.

LL Cool J started creating records with melodic hooks until 1986 Run DMC – New York trappers began rap-rock, adding hard-rock guitar in their ‘Raising Hell’ album, which made the first top-ten list albums with Beastie Boys’ Licensed To Ill becoming the first number-one album.

In the early 90s, gangsta and hardcore rap was birthed in Los Angeles and New York. Rappers began talking about gangsta lifestyles, drugs, its effect, police brutality, and injustice from the government to their neighborhood, like most of Compton’s rappers.

The likes of Nas in 1994 released his Illmatic album, ‘You played yourself’ by Ice-T, Death Certificate by Ice Cube, 2Pac’s All Eyez on Me, and the rest that spoke about things going on within their hood.

Coming into the 21st century, Hip-hop became more successful with the pop singers, and rappers are coming together to deliver a fantastic studio work.

Thanks to Lil’ Kim, Lauren Hill, Drake, T.I, Future, Eminem, Kanye We st, Lil Wayne, and many more.