A History of Hip Hop Music

A History of Hip Hop Music from the 1970s to the Present day.

Origins of Hip Hop

Hip hop music originated in the 1970s in New York City. DJ Kool Herc is credited as being the first hip hop DJ. He would throw parties where he would play records and people would dance. Hip hop music originally was only played at parties, but it eventually made its way to the radio.

New York City in the late 1970s

Hip hop music first developed in New York City in the late 1970s. African American and Latino youths in the South Bronx created a new style of music by mixing rhythm and blues with jazz, soul, and reggae. This new style came to be known as hip hop.

DJ Kool Herc, a Jamaican immigrant, is credited with being the first hip hop DJ. He would play records at block parties and dance parties, and his skills as a DJ soon attracted a large following. His style of mixing different records together would become an important element of hip hop music.

Hip hop music was initially used as a way to express the struggles and frustrations of inner-city youths. However, it soon became popular among other groups and spread to different parts of the country. By the early 1980s, hip hop was being played on radio stations across the United States.

The first Hip Hop songs

The first Hip Hop songs were created in the 1970s. These songs were primarily created by African American and Latino teenagers in New York City. The most famous of these early Hip Hop songs was “Rapper’s Delight” by the Sugarhill Gang. This song was released in 1979 and became a global hit. It is still considered to be one of the most important songs in Hip Hop history.

The Golden Age of Hip Hop

The Golden Age of Hip Hop is a term used to describe the period between the mid-1980s and early 1990s. During this time, hip hop music became a mainstream genre and spread to countries around the world. This period is often considered to be the Golden Age because it was a time of great creativity and innovation in the genre.

The 1980s

The 1980s saw the rise of hip hop music, with artists such as Afrika Bambaataa, Run DMC, and the Beastie Boys becoming household names. The genre continued to grow in popularity, with new subgenres such as rap metal and gangsta rap emerging. By the end of the decade, hip hop was firmly established as a mainstream musical genre.

The 1990s

In the early 1990s, hip hop music began to diverge from its earlier styles. Hip hop music was now being influenced by other genres such as jazz, soul, and rock. This new sound is often referred to as alternative hip hop or underground hip hop. Artists such as A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, and Beastie Boys began to experiment with different sounds and lyricism. They were also joined by new artists such as Nas, Wu-Tang Clan, and Mobb Deep.

Alternative hip hop differed from traditional hip hop in both its style and its subject matter. Whereas early hip hop was often light-hearted and celebratory, alternative hip hop was often darker and more introspective. It also addressed more serious topics such as violence, poverty, and drug abuse. This change in sound and content helped make hip hop music more popular with a wider audience.

In the late 1990s, a new style of hip hop emerged called gangsta rap. Gangsta rap was a more aggressive form of rap that often glorified gang violence and drug use. The genre was popularized by artists such as Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Tupac Shakur, and Biggie Smalls (also known as The Notorious B.I.G.). Gangsta rap would become one of the most commercially successful forms of hip hop in the 1990s.

Hip Hop Today

Hip hop music has come a long way since its humble beginnings in the early 1970s. What started out as a way for African American youth to express themselves has now become a worldwide phenomenon. Hip hop today is not just about the music, but also the culture that surrounds it.

The 2000s

The hip hop of the 2000s saw the continuation of the genre’s Golden Age with artists such as OutKast, G-Unit, Lauryn Hill, Eminem, Missy Elliott, and 50 Cent dominant in this era. The influence of Hip Hop on other genres became more evident with the success of artists such as Linkin Park, Nelly, Eve, Ja Rule, Slipknot, and Kid Rock all having number one albums. The East Coast–West Coast hip hop feud that started in the early 1990s ended with the murder of Tupac Shakur in 1996 and the death of Biggie Smalls in 1997.

The 2010s

The 2010s began with a continuation of the previous decade’s trends within the genre. 2010 saw the release of I’m New Here by Gil Scott-Heron, an album often cited as helping to bring subjects such as race and class back into hip hop. Nicki Minaj rose to prominence in 2010 with the release of her first album Pink Friday, which debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 and included the US top ten singles “Super Bass” and “Starships”. In October 2010, Kendrick Lamar released his first mixtape Overly Dedicated, which received positive reviews and helped establish him as a rapper to watch.In December 2010, Kanye West released his fifth studio album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy to critical acclaim, with many critics praising it as one of his best works. The album was also a commercial success, debuting at number one on the US Billboard 200.