HIP-HOP

Hip hop music, also called hip-hop or rap music, is a music genre
consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping,
a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted. It developed as part of hip
hop culture, a subculture defined by four key stylistic elements:
MCing/rapping, DJing/scratching, break dancing, and graffiti writing. Other
elements include sampling (or synthesis), and beatboxing.
While often used to refer to rapping, "hip hop" more properly denotes the
practice of the entire subculture. The term hip hop music is sometimes used
synonymously with the term rap music though rapping is not a required
component of hip hop music; the genre may also incorporate other elements
of hip hop culture, including DJing, turntablism, and scratching, beatboxing,
and instrumental tracks.
Hip hop as music and culture formed during the 1970s when block parties
became increasingly popular in New York City, particularly among African
American youth residing in the Bronx. At block parties DJs played percussive
breaks of popular songs using two turntables to extend the breaks Hip hop's
early evolution occurred as sampling technology and drum-machines
became widely available and affordable. Turntablist techniques developed
along with the breaks and the Jamaican toasting vocal style was used.
Rapping developed as a vocal style in which the artist speaks along with an
instrumental or synthesized beat. Notable artists at this time include DJ Kool
Herc, Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five, Fab Five Freddy, Marley Marl,
Afrika Bambaataa, Kool Moe Dee, Kurtis Blow, Doug E. Fresh, Whodini, the Fat
Boys, and Spoonie Gee. The Sugarhill Gang's 1979 song "Rapper's Delight" is
widely regarded to be the first hip hop record to gain widespread popularity
in the mainstream. The 1980s marked the diversification of hip hop as the
genre developed more complex styles. Prior to the 1980s, hip hop music was
largely confined within the United States. However, during the 1980s, it
began its spread and became a part of the music scene in dozens of
countries.
New school hip hop was the second wave of hip hop music, originating in
198384 with the early records of Run-D.M.C. and LL Cool J. The Golden age
hip hop period was an innovative period between the mid-1980s and the
early 1990s. Notable artists from this era include the Juice Crew, Public
Enemy, Eric B. & Rakim, Boogie Down Productions and KRS-One, EPMD, Slick

Rick, Beastie Boys, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane, Ultramagnetic MCs, De La
Soul, and A Tribe Called Quest.
Gangsta rap is a subgenre of hip hop that often focuses on the violent
lifestyles and impoverished conditions of inner-city youths. Schoolly D,
N.W.A, Ice-T, Ice Cube, and the Geto Boys are artists most frequently
associated with the founding of gangsta rap. These artists were known for
mixing the political and social commentary of political rap with the criminal
elements and crime stories found in gangsta rap.
and alternative hip hop of the Native Tongues posse as well as the hardcore
rap of artists such as Nas, Wu-Tang Clan, and Notorious B.I.G..
In the West Coast hip hop style, G-funk dominated mainstream hip hop for
several years during the 1990s. East Coast hip hop in the early to mid 1990s
was dominated by the Afrocentric jazz rap.In the 1990s, hip hop began to
diversify with other regional styles emerging on the national scene, such as
Southern rap and Atlanta hip hop. At the same time, hip hop continued to be
assimilated into other genres of popular music, an example being Neo soul.
Hip hop became a best-selling music genre in the mid-1990s and the top
selling music genre by 1999. The popularity of hip hop music continued
through the 2000s, with hip hop influences also increasingly finding their way
into mainstream pop. The United States also saw the success of styles such
as crunk, a music that emphasized the beats and music more than the lyrics.
Starting in 2005, sales of hip hop music in the United States began to
severely wane. During the mid-2000s that alternative hip hop secured a
place within the mainstream, due in part to the crossover success of artists
such as OutKast and Kanye West.