2. History
• Hip Hop is a genre of music, originating in the 1970’s in the Bronx, New York.
• Hip hop is a subculture originating from an African / Latino American community during the
1970s in New York City, more specifically the area of origin is traced to Morris Heights, Bronx.
• Later its influence spread to Latin American communities
• This term is often used to refer to hip-hop music, In a more broader sense , hip-hop culture is
characterized by four elements: Rapping, DJing, Breaking and Graffiti.
• The coinage of the actual term is credited to ‘Keith cowboy’ , (a member of Grandmaster Flash
and the Furious Five). He created the term while teasing a friend who had just joined the U.S.
Army, by scat singing the words "hip/hop/hip/hop" in a way that mimicked the rhythmic
cadence of soldiers marching .
• Hip hop arose in New York City when DJs began isolating the percussion break from funk, or
rock songs for audiences to dance to. The role of the MC was originally to introduce the DJ and
the music, and to keep the audience excited. The MC would speak between songs, giving
exhortations to dance, greetings to audience members, jokes and anecdotes. Eventually, this
practice became more stylized, and came to be known as rapping. By 1979, hip hop had
become a commercially recorded music genre, and began to enter the American mainstream.
It also began its spread across the world. In the 1990s, a form called gangsta rap became a
major part of American music, causing significant controversy over lyrics which were perceived
by some as promoting violence, promiscuity, drug use and misogyny. Nevertheless, hip hop
continued to increase in popularity, and by the year 2000, it was a staple of popular music
charts.
3. The roots of hip hop are found in African American and West African music. The griots of
West Africa are a group of traveling singers and poets, whose musical style is reminiscent of
hip-hop and who are part of an oral tradition dating back hundreds of years. Within New
York City, griot-like performances of poetry and music by artists such as The Last Poets and
Jalal Mansur Nuriddin had a great impact on the post-civil rights era culture of the 1960s and
1970s. Hip hop arose during the 1970s when block parties became common in New York
City, especially the Bronx. Block parties were usually accompanied by music, especially funk
and soul music. The early DJs at block parties began isolating the percussion breaks to hit
songs, realizing that these were the most dance-able and entertaining parts; this technique
was then common in Jamaica and had spread via the substantial Jamaican immigrant
community in New York City, especially the "godfather" of hip hop, DJ Kool Herc.
Dub music had arisen in Jamaica due to the influence of American sailors and radio stations
playing R&B. Large sound systems were set up to accommodate poor Jamaicans, who
couldn't afford to buy records, and dub developed at the sound systems (refers to both the
system and the parties that evolved around them). Herc was one of the most popular DJs in
early 70s New York, and he quickly switched from using reggae records to funk, rock and,
later, disco, since the New York audience did not particularly like reggae. Because the
percussive breaks were generally short, Herc and other DJs began extending them using an
audio mixer and two records. Mixing and scratching techniques eventually developed along
with the breaks. (The same techniques contributed to the popularization of remixes.) Such
looping, sampling and remixing of another's music, sometimes without the original artist's
knowledge or consent, can be seen as an evolution of Jamaican dub music, and would
become a hallmark of the hip hop style.
Later, the MCs grew more varied in their vocal and rhythmic approach, incorporating brief
rhymes, often with a sexual or scatological theme, in an effort at differentiating themselves
and entertaining the audience.
4. Key artists in the development of the genre
There are several artists/groups credited with work which
pioneered development in the genre of Hip-Hop these include:
DJ Hollywood: The precise identity of the first rapper is likely to remain forever shrouded, but DJ
Hollywood has a strong claim. A Harlem DJ who by the mid-70s had drifted downtown to play disco sets to
a mainstream crowd, he would accompany his mixes with brief rhymes. While other DJs had spoken over
records, Hollywood did so to the rhythm of the beat and claimed inspiration from Isaac Hayes's Black
Moses for his style, which would both encourage the crowd and touch on more romantic themes.
DJ Kool herc: Otherwise known as the ‘Godfather of Hip-Hop’ credited with originating hip hop music
in the early 1970s in The Bronx, New York City. His playing of hard funk records of the sort typified by
James Brown was an alternative both to the violent gang culture of the Bronx and to the nascent
popularity of disco in the 1970s. Campbell began to isolate the instrumental portion of the record, which
emphasized the drum beat—the "break"—and switch from one break to another to yet another.
Schoolly D: Schooly D Is credited with releasing the first Gangster rap record, the ‘gangsta’ culture
may have been bubbling up in Los Angeles, but gangsta styling's were first put on record in Philadelphia.
Over a huge drum- machine patter, Schoolly D's PSK What Does It Mean? pays homage to the city's Park
Side Killers gang. Telling anyone who wasn't aware all about the guns, the drugs and the girls, it's a fierce
performance, D's sing-song flow suffused with braggadocio.
N.W.A : NWA were instrumental in the development of Gangster rap and are credited with the title of
bringing this subculture of rap to the mainstream. NWA Shocked nations with its explicit lyrics describing
the violent lives of the members based in Compton, California. Members of the group Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, Ice
Cube, MC Ren and DJ Yella would later go on to become platinum-selling artists.
RUN DMC: At the time Run-D.M.C. the Hip Hop trio consisting of Joseph "Reverend Run" Simmons,
the late Jason "Jam-Master Jay" Mizell and Darryl "D.M.C" McDaniels. With their no nonsense style and
trendy Adidas sneakers, they dominated not only Hip Hop but also pop and rock among other genres.
American emcees were not the only emcees getting it on during the Golden Age
5. Audience / fans – who are they? Demographic?
• There are many demographics who listen to Hip-Hop music , a
recent tech crunch article portrays the Hip-Hop demographic
as such:
• “The global hip hop community: twenty four million people
between the ages of 19-34, from a range of nationalities,
ethnic groups and religions. Their collective spending power is
$500 billion annually in the U.S. alone.”
• Hip hop was born out of economically deprived areas of new
york, but since then the popularity of the genre has grown and
spread amongst many demographics worldwide. This has
made it difficult to specify demographics which consume the
music, this has been made even more difficult by
organizations who do not wish to disclose this information and
the technological shift which has heavily impacted the media
industry, e.g. pirating.
7. Public perception of the genre, is it a popular genre with mainstream appeal
or more niche?
• Hip –Hop music has grown in popularity over past 40 years to become one
of the most powerful and common genres of music consumed by the public.
The public perception of Hip-Hop music tends to change depending on the
sub genre in question. In more generic terms, It would be right to say HIP –
HOP is a popular genre with mainstream appeal due to the success of artists
such as Run DMC, Tupac, Notorious BIG, Diddy, Jay-z, Dr Dre, Lil Wayne and
much more. With that being said there are several sub genres of HIP-HOP
which are growing in popularity , for example ODD Future , and notably
Tyler the creator, who have been successful in gaining recognition without
conforming to the expectations of the mainstream HIP-HOP audience. The
Public perception of HIP-HOP typically is quite negative despite its
mainstream success as many associated hip hop with only violence, drugs,
sex, and materialistic imagery. This is obviously unreflective of HIP-HOP as a
whole. I would discredit this as issues in the media are always put in a
negative way , as the public consume media a lot , it makes sense that it
influences them and so causes them to look at things negatively. For
example when rapper Tupac was killed , hip hop was seen as violent and
when jimmy hendixi died rock music is now only drug related.
8. Record labels / key industry figures?
• Def Jam records: Def Jam are one of the most well known music labels in Hip-Hop
today. The label was Founded by Rick Rubin in his dorm room in the 1980’s and was
soon joined by Ronald Simmons, brother of well known hip –hop figure Russell. Def
Jam have been in operation , throughout hip-hop’s early beginnings ,its rise in
popularity and it’s commercial domination as one of the most powerful music
genres. Despite early financial problems, it has maintained its reputation and taken
on a plethora of talented artists who’s success has contributed to the success of the
label.
• Cash Money records: Founded by brothers Bryan “birdman” Williams and Ronald “
slim” Williams. Cash Money Records was founded in 1991. Bryan Williams told some
of his close friends the original motivation for starting the label: "I was hoping it
would get us out of the projects and into a positive way of life. And we wanted to
help other people get out of this poverty, Cash money are respected as being on of
the last ‘black’ music record labels still relevant and successful having being founded
in the 90’s. There most notable artist is Lil’ Wayne who Bryan Williams signed after
the rapper left a voicemail rapping his lyrics. Lil Wayne's success has taken cash
money to new heights , braking several records along the way. In more recent years,
the likes of Nicki Minaj, Drake and Tyga have joined the label, all three of whom
where scouted by Lil’ Wayne. There success has maintained the labels reputation. In
addition to this they have diversified their roster and their variety can be seen by
signing rock duo Kevin Rudolf and Limp Bizkit , as well as maroon five member PJ
Morton. This has ensured their fan base as a whole has grown . They have also built
up a portfolio of business ventures which includes the YMCMB clothing &
accessories brand, Trukfit, GTV Vodka , not to mention the labels founded by their
artists.
9. Competition
• Hip Hop weekly: Magazine is the #1 celebrity newsweekly covering TV, music,
fashion, sports and celebrity news in the Hip Hop community. Sells over 100,000
copies / month
• XXL: Hip-hop on a higher level. Features eye candy, message boards, articles, and
more. Sells over 350,000 copies/month
• VIBE: Contains online features, multimedia, and more/ sells 90,000 copies/month
• Complex : a young men's style/lifestyle magazine founded by Marc Ecko in
2002. The publication offers mainstream readers insight into the latest trends in
niche cultures, such as street wear, sneaker culture, hip hop, and graphic art. /
sells over 220,000 copies /month
• The source : Magazine of hip-hop music, culture, and politics. Includes
interviews, articles, music, videos, and more .Sells over 180,000 copies/month
• URB Magazine : Premier alternative music magazine covering all aspects of hip-
hop and DJ culture Sells over 175,000 Copies per month
• Rap up : Hip-hop and R&B magazine for and by Gen Y. Sells over 100,000 copies
per month
10. Other media
• Hip hop is covered by several media platforms, which mean
there is an extensive catalogue of information for it, these
media sources include:
• Television ( chat shows, music videos, documentaries, News)
• Online (blogs , social media, etc)
• Radio plays a big part on the coverage of Hip hop, with some
notable stations including HOT 97 in America and 1 Extra in
the UKL
11. Predictions for the future?
Hip-Hop has grown a lot in the past 40 years as a music genre , culture and business
opportunity.
It is now firmly a common genre , consumed by hundreds of millions of people
worldwide .
The genre gets plenty of coverage through radio plays and television, not to
mention through online marketplaces like iTunes and Amazon.
The genre is increasingly becoming more commercially successful , social media has
been instrumental in providing a platform for music label's and artists to
communicate with consumers and fans.
With that being said the technology shift and internet has resulting in millions in lost
revenue in the music industry..
For the future I believe that music will be marketed with more social integration,
there will be more free music on established online market places to draw
customers to a paid platform.
Hip Hop was known as dead around 2006, as quoted by Nas with the rapper saying
artists lacked “originality” and conscious focus on social topics, recently there has
ben an emergence of artists, such as J Cole, Drake, Wiz Khalifa, Nicki Minaj, French
Montana, Asap Rocky, Big Sean and more, this prompted the rapper been quoted as
“ excited” about the future of Hip hop when interviewed by XXL magazine in 2010.
I believe hip hop will continue to grow and spread in popularity across the globe and
I believe more subgenres will be founded. The Genre will be seen as more positive
