History of Hip Hop

Hip Hop was born in the United States within the lowest ranks of the population. Similarly to the Blues, Hip Hop was popular in African American culture and communities. The music was a form of communication for these communities during a time of turmoil and oppression. The oldest forms of Hip Hop were not recorded due to the economical conditions of the time, therefore it’s earliest history is lost. It is stated that Hip Hop truly took form in the 1970s, but would not become nationally popular until the 1980s.

    As stated in the video, Rapper's Delight by the Sugarhills Gang was the first recorded and distributed form of Hip Hop. Prior to this, the use of cassette tapes, “mix tapes”, were the only way Hip Hop music could go further than a small group of people. The album was similar to the speech-song that we’ve previously seen in the Blues. This album was monumental in growing the Hip Hop industry and making it a dream for millions of people to join the Sugarhill Gang in their stardom. 

  Very quickly, Hip Hop would have its own identity, truly separating itself from the comparisons to the Blues or any other genre of music. The transition from a grove beat in the album, Rapper’s Delight, to the use of a faster tempo, louder dynamics, and the term rapping would come about. Alongside this progression was the growth of Hip Hop being a tool to vent for the artists. Describing the struggles they have been through during the 1980s to the early 2000s. On a wide range of topics, from economic troubles, interactions with the police, to being forced into the gangster lifestyle by the system they are under.

    Between the 1980s and the 2000s, Hip Hop would be considered a genre for the ‘hardest people’ because of its affiliation with violence and death outside of music. The most popular example of this would occur in Las Vegas in 1996. The death of Tupac Shakur at the age of 25. During an era of Hip Hop known as the feud between East Coast and West Coast rappers. These songs were personal attacks against the other, using any known or unknown public information in order to devalue or deplatform the other rapper. It was the battle for careers between rappers, either you won the war, or you lost your paycheck and reputation. This led to conditions that made the music have a greater impact on the individual lives of Shakar and Notorious B.I.G. There was never a formal arrest for the killing of Shakar, but rumors and allegations would pin the death on the East Coast rapper Biggie Smalls and consequently B.I.G., both who would later die in shooting of their own. This period of Hip Hop was dangerous and violent, change has to be made.

    The 2000s would bring this, Hip Hop would go through a transitional period, where the old and new would meet. Being a Gang banger would still be present, but it would not be on display for the world to see outside of the music. Music from this era of Hip Hop would be more about flaunting your own wealth and success than putting hits on other rappers. Though diss tracks would not disappear, they would become less lethal in a literal sense. This 2000s era would bring about artists such as Eminem, 50 Cent, Drake, Lil Wayne, and many other mainstream Hip Hop artists today.

    Hip Hop has become more mainstream as a form of entertainment and has lost most of its original power and influence over a nation. Genres within Hip Hop have formed that have been criticized by many of the veterans in the scene. This would be a generation of Mumble Rappers, starting in 2011 with the release of Tony Montana by Future, a future member of the group Migos. Though Mumble rap was around from the beginning of the 1990s, this would be the first time it would reach the mainstream and spotlight. Bringing in newer artists into the microgenre, such as 6ix9ine, Kodak Black, Lil Baby, Playboi Carti, and many, many more. The scrutiny of the microgenre comes from the idea of disrespect that these artists show to the genre. There has always been a focus on lyricism and rhyme schemes within Hip Hop and these Mumble Rappers disregarded this barrier and entered with repeated lyrics and overpowering beats. Though veterans of the genre would hate and disregard this form of Rap, the mainstream audience would love the form of Hip Hop, due to its upbeat and fast tempo.

    In the present day, Hip Hop has been deconstructed into so many different micro-genres, with so many artists and styles. It has evolved in many different ways and continues to do so, it is not a singular form of music that it was in the 1980s and as such has seen a growth in popularity. Though, there is still a stigma of being the music of poorer, less fortunate, and gangster parts of society. This is due to its affiliation with violence in the past, but also has to do with the oppression and attempts at suppression of these Black artists in the past and even in the present day. 

    Hip Hop is beginning to dabble with a more political approach again due to the 2016-2020 political climate. It has not gotten off the ground and has very few actual artists that have joined in on it. But, it is nice to see the original purpose of Hip Hop rear its head in the present day, alongside a new form of instrumentation. I personally have always loved Hip Hop, especially Drake, Eminem, Joyner, and J-Cole. I enjoy the focus on lyricism and the clever use of words within the music. Hip Hop has helped many people get through tough times and will always continue to grow as a genre.

Blair, Elizabeth. “'Rapper's Delight': The One-Take Hit.” NPR, NPR, 29 Dec. 2000, https://www.npr.org/2000/12/29/1116242/rappers-delight. 

“East Coast–West Coast Hip Hop Rivalry.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 27 Oct. 2021, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Coast%E2%80%93West_Coast_hip_hop_rivalry. 

“Hip-Hop.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., https://www.britannica.com/art/hip-hop. 

“Tupac Shakur Dies.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 13 Nov. 2009, https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/tupac-shakur-dies.