The Evolution of Hip Hop

Chris James

4/20/06

"The Evolution of Hip Hop"

Hip hop has taken major strides in order to advance from being a musical subculture to crossing over and ordaining a mass pop appeal. Although being first created by black youth in American inner cities; hip hop's influence has touched all races in many countries around the world. A large number of the hip hop audience is no longer primarily black. Hip hop has time and time again challenged the system in ways that have unified individuals across a diverse spectrum. Generations consisting of Blacks, Whites, Latinos, and Asians have grown up with hip hop as their primary choice of music. Hip hop is representing a realignment of America's cultural choice in music. Nevertheless, many people however do not realize that it is much more than music. Hip hop is an art form that expresses culture, style, and language. With that said, the purpose of this paper is to examine hip hop and how it affects the American culture. Different aspects of hip hop will also be examined to create an awareness about what hip hop actually is. In order to understand hip hop as a cultural influence we need to take a look at its history.

In the early 70's, a Jamaican DJ known as Kool Herc moved from Kingston section of Jamaica to NYC's Bronx neighborhood. He attempted to incorporate his Jamaican style into his form of music. This involved reciting improvised rhymes over the dub versions of his reggae records. Unfortunately, New Yorkers were not interested in reggae types of music at this time. To satisfy the likeness of New Yorkers, Kool Herc adapted his style by chanting over instrumental percussion sections of the day's popular songs. Since these breaks were relatively short, he learned to extend them indefinitely by using an audio mixer and two identical records in which he continuously replaced the desired segment. This particular combination is one of the major factors that contributed to the creation of present day Hip Hop.

DJs needed to establish an identity or forte in this highly competitive market. Kool Herc was determined to find records that no one else owned. He did so to distinguish himself from the pack. As an example, he pressed his father into buying James Brown's Sex Machine LP in 1969. A lot of people wanted that record and could not really find it; so people used to come to the parties specifically to hear it being played. In fact, James Brown remains to be the world's most sampled recording artist of all time. Many also say that in addition to Brown's lyrical tenacity, his dance moves also worked to revolutionize steps for hip hop music. Nevertheless, Herc did his research by checking out what was being played in local jukeboxes to test a song's popularity and potential. After seeing Kool Herc play at parties Grandmaster Caz, Afrika Bambaataa, and Grandmaster Flash (revolutionizer of turntable mastery) became heavily influenced by Herc's DJ skills. Kool Herc, along with Caz, Bambaataa and Grandmaster Flash played at festivals, parks, and house parties all over the NYC's Bronx neighborhood. Afrika Bambaataa a true pioneer of his times formed what he called the "Zulu Nation". A former gang leader and social activist, Bambaataa created a collective of DJs, break-dancers and graffiti artists to bring social consciousness to hip hop. Five b-boys (breakdancers) joined him who he called the Shaka Zulu Kings. They became the first break dancing crews ever.

In those early days of the 70's, young partygoers initially recited popular phrases and used their favorite slang in the lyrics. This would usually evoke a response from the crowd, who began to call out their own names and slogans. As this culture evolved, the party shouts became more elaborate as the DJ in an effort to be different, began to incorporate his own little rhymes. It was not long before people started adding their own chemistry to this new form of music spreading like wildfire through local establishments and school yards. It can be said that similar to the components of the favorite music in Africa, "call in response" is also what helped to create the early era of hip hop. This "call and response" linked with new types of syncopation helped in forming a music that was not only innovative but also very appealing to the masses. That is one thing that has remained the same about hip hop since its very beginning. People listening love to get involved in the music, they enjoy hearing a beat and or chorus that is catchy and captivating. When outsiders listen to the music it is usually these melodic "hooks" that give them something to remember after hearing the song. Hip Hop has given birth to many intellectual songs that promote thought. Hip Hop has also produced smooth songs that seem to soothe the soul. But, the party anthems and its relativity to the people are what kept this genre so strong.

Back in its early days, this music was not yet known as rap or hip hop; it was actually simply called "emceeing". As the interest in the music grew, so did its underlying message. Rap caught on because it offered young urban New Yorkers a chance to freely express themselves. The messages included personal stories of the street corners, stories of drugs, violence, sex and crime. Although not always positive music it was depicting the lives of these emcees. This overall "hard" image is also what sparked the interest of people unfamiliar with this type of lifestyle. No matter how hedonistic the message, urban youth found a platform to outwardly express their rage towards the system that did not always treat them fairly. It was a form a music that they could easily relate to that incorporated the struggle that they were forced to deal with on a very regular basis. To them, the police embodied the system. They were indeed a reflection of America's attitude towards them. Hence, vicious verbal attacks on police behavior reflected urban youth's most intimate conceptualization of the system. In essence, this form of music was a new way to fight the system without actually engaging in violence against those who control it.

Rapping in particular was a verbal skill that could be practiced, and molded to aptness at almost anytime. Rap also became popular because it offered unlimited challenges to those who participated. Sometimes these challenges pitted emcees against one another in verbal jousts; or this form of music could be considered a challenge because it was often created and performed with such improvisation. There were no set rules in this art, except to be completely original and to rhyme on time to the