Hip hop has been the face of American culture for the last 50 years, celebrating its anniversary on August 11th, 2023. Although many people think of hip hop as just a music genre, there are many more aspects to it: including breakdancing, beatboxing, graffiti art, and many forms of hip hop dance (house, breaking, stepping, locking, etc.). Hip hop music was born at a house party in the Bronx, hosted by 18 year old Clive Campbell. (DJ Kool Herc)
He took popular songs from artists such as James Brown, Aretha Franklin, and the Meters and played two copies of each sound at a time, (this is known as the merry-go-round method) looping the percussion parts of each song to keep the beat up. The “break” of the music, or the percussion section, was the most anticipated part of a song. This is where breakdancing got its name, as people tended to save their best dance moves for the break. Along with break dancing, early forms of rap were formed at Herc’s party. He used rhythmic wordplay inspired by Jamaican “toasting” to hype the crowd before the beat drop. DJ Afrika Bambaataa was another big influence in the hip hop world. He hosted many block parties, and worked to guide youth away from drugs, gang life, and violence. He also created “Universal Zulu Nation”, a music organization that encouraged peace and unity through expressive hip hop culture. Afrika Bambaataa ultimately categorized hip hop into three main categories; DJing, breakdancing, rapping, and visual art. To celebrate this milestone in hip hop history, many parties and concerts have taken place including a huge concert known as “Hip hop 50 Live'' at the Yankee stadium, featuring artists like Slick Rick, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, Lil Kim, and more. Many people brought symbols of early hip hop such as Adidas track suits, boomboxes, and kangol hats. Some of the most influential hip hop music artists that changed the industry are Biggie Smalls, Missy Elliot, Tupac, and Dr. Dre, bringing their individual styles to hip hop culture. Along with music, the emergence of hip hop and street dance styles were evolutionary in pop culture. Although street dance battles don’t often happen anymore, they were a way for certain groups of people to assert their “dominance” within a community. If you are interested in learning more about how hip hop gained its popularity and street battle culture, some great movies to watch are; You Got Served (2004), Stomp the Yard (2007), and Step up 2 The Streets (2008).
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