The Four Elements of Hip hop: MCing, DJing, Breaking and Graffiti writing

A research paper submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for

English 1: College English under the supervision of Ms. Katherine M. Gonzales.

Vince Jairo A. Bueno

2014-70671
CA-BSA
ENG1 X2-5R

Executive Summary: This is a research paper about the main components of hip hop and how
it all started. It tackles the origin, prevalence and famous icons of each element that creates
the Hip hop culture.

I. History and background of Hip hop

The history of Hip hop originated in the late 60's of the 20th century and continues to
evolve to the present day. What began more than 30 years ago, boiled over into a
particular movement and culture.
Hip hop culture originated in New York among black and latino ghetto. Street culture
existed for centuries in all countries. But in USA, a country of ghettos, it had a special
isolation from society and then spilled on the streets of white quarters and then to the
masses -the show business, discos, cinema, etc.
Despite the fact that Hip hop as a way of life originated long ago in various parts of
North America, the real birthplace of it is considered to be the South Bronx - the
black ghettos of New York, one of the poorest quarters. But the word "Hip hop" did
not yet exist, it was invented a few years later when already grown-up culture needed
an overall title.
Hip hop culture has been internationally recognized during the 70's. Its main
components are MCing, DJing, Breakdancing and Graffiti writing. So, how it all
started.

II. MCing
A. In the late 1970s the term Emcee, M.C. or MC became an alternative title for a
rapper, and for their role within hip hop music and culture. An MC uses rhyming
verses - pre written or ad lib - to introduce the DJ with whom they work to keep the
crowd entertained or to glorify themselves. As hip hop progressed, the title MC
acquired backronyms such as "mike chanter", "microphone checker", "music
commentator", and the one who "moves the crowd". A recent neologistic acronym,
gaining use, is "mentor to child". Some use this word interchangeably with the term
rapper, while for others the term denotes a superior level of skill and connection to
the wider culture.
MCing or rapping is based on 3 major components: content, flow (rhythm and rhyme)
and delivery. Rapping is distinct from spoken word poetry in that it is performed in
time to a beat. It is often associated with and a primary ingredient of hip hop music,

but the origins of the phenomenon can be said to predate hip hop culture by
centuries.
Rapping can be delivered over a beat or without accompaniment. Stylistically, rap
occupies a gray area between speech, prose, poetry and singing. The word as used
to describe quick speech predates the musical form. Today, the terms "rap" and
"rapping" are so closely associated with hip hop music that many use the terms
interchangeably.

B. The art of emceeing or rapping has died out and reborn through the years since
its rise. But the prevalence of emceeing would be noted in the 70's when it all started
and in the 90's until the present.
The 70's was the birth of hip hop rap and many people in hip hop including DJ
Premier and KRS-One feel that James Brown was the first MC. James brown had
the lyrics, moves and soul that greatly influenced a lot of rappers in hip hop, and
arguably even started the first MC rhyme. This was the era of old school hip hop and
because of him, hip hop rap has been known all over the world.
The present day is what we now call the new school hip hop. Rapping has been
brought to a different level due to the influences of veteran rappers like Notorious
B.I.G., 2pac, Eminem, etc. in the mid 90's. Today, new breed of rappers is reigning
the hip hop music business. The style of rapping that they bring focuses more on
clever wordplay and meaningful lyrics. Their flows and delivery is alternative,
meaning they flow fast and then slow and over again. The technicality and style of
today's hip hop music made it to be the top of the music industry.

C. There have been many known emcees in the hip hop culture. Some are known for
their discoveries, style, distinction, etc. But the most iconic emcees are those who
started the different eras in different places through the years. Here are some iconic
emcees who started a movement.

1. Christopher George L. Wallace (May 21, 1972 - March 9, 1997) better known as
"Notorious B.I.G." was an american rapper. He was raised in the Brooklyn borough of
New York City. When he released his first album in 1994 he became a known figure
in the East Coast hip hop scene and increased New York's visibility in the genre at a
time when West Coast hip hop was dominant in the mainstream. He was noted for

his "loose, easy flow", dark semi-autobiographical lyrics and storytelling abilities.
Notorious B.I.G. has been heavily involved in the growing East Coast-West Coast hip
hop feud.

2. Tupac Amaru Shakur (June 16, 1971 - September 13, 1996) better known by his
staged name "2pac" was an american rapper and actor. He has been ranked as the
most influential rapper of all time. 2pac began his career as a roadie and MC for the
alternative hip hop group Digital Underground and eventually branching off as a solo
artist. He was known for the theme of his songs and its lyrics. His songs revolved
around the violence and hardship in inner cities, racism and other social problems.
He connected well with the ghettos because of this. During the latter part of his
career, 2pac was a vocal participant in the so-called East Coast-West Coast hip hop
rivalry, becoming involved in conflicts with other rappers, producers and record-label
staff members, most notably Notorious B.I.G. and the label Bad Boy Records.

3. Run-D.M.C. (1981) is an American hip hop group from New York found by Joseph
Simmons, Darryl McDaniels and Jam Master Jay. They are widely acknowledged as
one of the most influential acts in the history of hip hop culture. They were the first
group in the genre to have a gold album and be nominated for a grammy award. The
group was among the first to highlight the importance of the MC and DJ relationship.
Musically, they moved hip hop music away from the funk and disco oriented sound of
its beginnings, into a new and unique imprint. This foundation have then give rise to
hardcore hip hop in the East Coast and propagating worldwide.

III. DJing
A. The Boroughs of New York City became the breeding ground for experimentation.
In 1973, DJ Kool Herc made a name for himself as the "Father of Hip hop", laying
down the jams for huge block parties mainly in the Bronx. It was Kool Herc who
started mixing two identical records together at the same time extending the parts of
the records he thought had the best booty shaking beats. This technique was called
"Break".

The 70's was the time when turntabling or DJing really grew into it's own. DJs
weren't simply picking out songs and playing them. They now became artist and
musicians of their own, manipulating songs to create new and exciting beats for
people to enjoy.

B. DJing prevaled in the 70's when DJ Kool Herc invented the "Break" technique.
This discovery gave rise to all other elements of the genre. After some time, the
"Scratch" was discovered by Grand Wizzard Theodore. This technique during the
80's became a staple of hip hop music, being used by producers and DJs on records
and in live shows. By the late 80's it was very common to hear scratching on a
record, generally as part of the chorus of a track or within its production.

C. Many DJs have come up over the years but true hip hop DJs are the ones who
are greatly known. They are the ones who showcase their talents by mixing and
performing live using a raw turntable in front of a crowd. These are the DJs who
started a new form of art.
1. Clive Campbell (April 16, 1955 - Present) also known as DJ Kool Herc is a
Jamaican born American DJ who is credited with originating hip hop music in the
early 70's. Kool Herc proclaimed himself as the Father of Hip hop. He began to
isolate the instrumental portion of the record which emphasized the drum beat -the
"Break"- and switch from one break to another.

2. Kevin Donovan (April 17, 1957 - Present) also known by the stage name Afrika
Bambaataa, is an american DJ from the South Bronx. He is notable for releasing a
series of genre defining electro tracks in the 80's that influenced the development of
hip hop culture. Bambaataa is one of the originators of the "Breakbeat" DJing and is
respectfully known as the "Godfather of Hip hop culture". Through his works he has
helped spread Hip hop culture all over the world.

3. Joseph Saddler (January 1, 1958) better known as Grandmaster Flash is an

american DJ. He is one of the pioneers of hip hop DJing, cutting and mixing. He
innovated and incorporated newly discovered styles from his era into his works. He
made use of the "Backspin technique", "Punch Phrasing" and "Scratching"
techniques and raised it to a different level.

4. Theodore Livingston (March 5, 1963 - Present) otherwise known as Grand

Wizzard Theodore is an American hip hop DJ. He is widely credited as the inventor
of the "Scratching" technique. His invention of scratching was a mere accident when
his mother ordered him to turn down the music from his records, by doing so he
stopped the records by touching it then accidentally moved it back and forth while his
mother was yelling at him. In addition to scratching, he achieved renown for his
mastery of needle drops and other techniques which he perfected.

IV. Breaking
A. Breaking or Breakdancing elements can be seen in other antecedent cultures
prior to the 1970's. B-boy pioneers Richard "Crazy Legs" Colon and Kenneth "Ken
Swift" Gabbert, both a member of Rock Steady Crew, cite James Brown and Kung
Fu films as major influences to B-boying. Many of B-boying's more acrobatic moves
show clear connections to gymnastics. Some of its elements can be dated back to
ancestral dances. However, it was not until the 70's that B-boying developed as a
defined dance style in the United States.

B. Breakdancing has been known worldwide when it started in the Bronx and then
spread in other countries during the 80's. It was introduced in Brazil in 1984 when Bboy Ismael Toledo moved to united states to study dance and went back to his home
country to propagate breakdancing. During the 1980's, American soldiers introduced
breaking to South Korea after its surge of popularity in the US. South Korea has then
started to build upon breaking by forming crews from different places. In Japan,
breaking began to thrive when Rock Steady Crew visited there for a dance concert
and workshop. Rock Steady Crew had a Tokyo chapter which is led by B-boy CrazyA of japan. They started organizing the yearly B-boy park which draws upwards of
10,000 fans a year and attempts to expose a wider audience to the culture.

C. There are many B-boys around the world but most are not known individually.
They are usually known in groups. Here are some of the Breakdancing Hip hop
groups that made a huge impact in hip hop dance.

1. The Nigga Twins were a B-boy group who were members of Kool Herc's group,
the Herculoids. They were at their most active period during the 70's. They were
known for starting B-boy in the Bronx by dancing to DJ Kool Herc's beats thus
introducing it to other people. They were also known for their high fashion in dancing
by incorporating trench coats and cigars in their routines and battles.

2. The Mighty Zulu Kingz (Est. 1973) were to be the official B-boy crew for the Zulu
Nation. This concept came about due to the fact that the five brothers that helped
Afrika Bambaataa organize the Zulu nation were all B-boys. The founding five of Zulu
kingz helped Afrika start a small movement in his tenement housing projects called
"The Bronx River Organization" which in time was changed to "Zulu Nation".

3. The Rock Steady Crew (Est. 1977) were found by B-boys Jimmy D and Jimmy
Lee. When they started this crew in the streets of Bronx, they had no idea that
someday it would take them all around the world. Only the best B-boys can join with
Rock Steady. They had rivals in all five boroughs of New York and in order to join
them, you had to battle one of the other B-boys in the crew.

V. Graffiti Writing
A. Graffiti writing has a long and proud history. The subculture surrounding graffiti
has existed for several decades, and it's still going strong. The style of urban graffiti
that most people have seen and know about came from New York City in the late
60's and was born on the subway trains. Taki 183, a pioneer of urban graffiti writing,
lived on 183rd street in Washington Heights and traveled all throughout the city.
While he did so, he would use a marker and write his name wherever he went.
Eventually, he became known as this mysterious figure. In 1971 he was interviewed
for an article by the New York Times. Kids all over New York, realizing the fame that
could be gained from "Tagging" their names on subway cars began to emulate Taki
183. The goal was to have one's name in as many places as possible, and as kids
competed against each other to get famous, the amount of graffiti everywhere
exploded. Thus, giving birth to Graffiti.

B. New York subway Graffiti became world famous and its style and sensibilities
were transplanted to other parts of the country and the world, mixing with local
traditions and styles in new ways. The 70's were the golden age of subway graffiti,
but for the MTA it was a problem that had long gone out of control. Graffiti writers or
artists did not just battle each other in their quest to be the "King of all lines" and all
other titles they bestowed upon themselves. They had to deal with police patrolling
trains and the yards where they worked, their masterpieces being washed off of cars,
barbed wire fences and guard dogs, not to mention concerned parents who
sometimes just did not understand this beautiful art.

C. Not much graffiti artists were known due to their hidden identity. But here are
some of the people who gave birth to this art that made hip hop culture much known.

1. Andrew Zephyr Witten otherwise known with the tag name Zephyr. He began
creating graffiti in 1975 and first signed using the name "Zephyr" in 1977. He has
been identified as a graffiti "elder" who invented styles and standards that continue to
be used and expanded upon today.

2. Dondi Joseph White (April 7, 1961 - October 2, 1998) otherwise known as "Dondi"
is considered one of the most influential graffiti artists in the history of the movement.
He was born in the East New York section of Brooklyn. He was of african American
and Italian American descent. In 1980 he took a job in the government office and
began to indulge in his interest in graffiti.

3. Fernando Carlo otherwise known by the tag name "Cope2" is a famous graffiti
artist from the South Bronx, New York. He has been writing graffiti since 1978-79 and
has gained international credit for his work. Cope2 has achieved considerable
mainstream success for his artwork and has collaborated and released many
projects alongside such names as Adidas and Time Magazine.

VI. Summary
As we mentioned earlier, Hip hop culture is composed of four elements namely,
MCing, DJing, Breaking and Graffiti Writing. These were the four major forms of
creative expression that came from the Bronx, New York and spread to the rest of the

world. Graffiti represented the visual, MCing and DJing produced the music and Bboying was the dance. During the early days of hip hop, all of these elements were
deeply intertwined. Graffiti artists were very often B-boys, MCs and DJs as well. At
parties you might see a writer doing his thing on a wall while the DJ spins and
scratches, the MC revs up the crowd, and the B-boy battling each other on the dance
floor. This is how it all started, this is Hip hop culture.

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