Rap music became popularized in Atlanta and the rest of the South in the early to mid-1980s. The first rap to come out of the city of Atlanta was uptempo party music with heavy bass and very obvious Florida influence. Hits like “Whoomp! (There It Is)” by Tag Team, and “Jump” by Kriss Kross defined the pre-Outkast era of Atlanta hip-hop. While these songs were immensely popular (“Whoomp!” is ranked by Billboard as one of the greatest songs of all time (“Greatest of All Time”) while “Jump” was one of the top 3 selling songs of 1992 (“Week Ending May”), groups from the city, for the most part, were commonly seen as “novelty” and “kiddie crews” (“Kriss Kross: Da Bomb”). While the emergence of relatively simple but enjoyable music was going on in Atlanta, rap as a whole began to truly explode. The newest major music genre entered its golden era; “Ready to Die” by Biggie Smalls, “Illmatic” by Nas, and “Me Against The World” by 2Pac were all albums that were rated “five mics” by The Source (“5 Mics?”) The “five mic” rating from The Source indicated an exceptional and rare hip-hop album. In this time of growth in hip-hop culture Atlanta, and the South as a whole was in large part left out. People were enthralled by cross country feuds between rap superstars; but just when it seemed like there was no space at the time for rap from anywhere but New York or California, the duo of Andre “3000” Benjamin and Antwan “Big Boi” Patton, better known as Outkast single-handedly redefined rap music. Andre 3000 played an instrumental role in defining not just rap, but music as a whole in the 1990s and 2000s. His presence transitioned Southern rap from being viewed as nothing more than exciting, throw away party music to music that could be timeless an... ... middle of paper ... ...ing an album in over a decade new artists today commonly cite the group as an influence; the hyper lyricism, extraterrestrial themes, and experimental funk sound that helped define their music has been emulated by dozens of musicians today, ranging from Macklemore to Kendrick Lamar. Since 1994 Outkast’s music has been sampled by nearly 300 different artists. Without the emergence of Outkast, music today simply would not be what it is. Outkast defined music and rap culture in the 2000s. Their willingness to entirely abandon conventional wisdom both in and outside of their music has inspired a generation of musicians. Outkast single handedly reshaped rap culture’s view of rap music from the South. Outkast’s greatness is nearly immeasurable, but in terms of visible impact on rap and music as a whole today, they are among the most influential rap groups we have ever seen.
It was the first time I had ever been to a party. I had just graduated high school, and did not have nor ever did have any sort of interest in going to a party. One of my fellow classmates had invited me to her party on the night of graduation, and I decided why not? I was told growing up that I would never have contact with most of my classmates after graduation ever again, so I wanted to have one last fun moment with the graduating class of 2013. I arrived at my classmate’s house around nine, and immediately was overwhelmed by the makeshift dance floor in the backyard, the loud, unfamiliar music, and the disco lights. Growing up, I had never been introduced to rap music, so I did not enjoy it as much as my fellow classmates did. It did not take long for the party to get started. Boys and girls alike started to make their way to the makeshift dance floor, immediately dancing on one another. I was absolutely taken away as girls that I had known for four years bent over and began to press their backsides up against boys, grinding on the boys as if it were an everyday activity as degrading music blared out of the speakers, as if they were not aware of the actual lyrics of the song. I was not sure what made me feel sicker to my stomach: the way the girls moved their behinds in ways that I found impossible, which I later learned was called ‘twerking’, or the misogynistic rap music that my classmates danced to. I have not been to a party since then, and I do not think I ever will go to one again. It did not take me long to understand why my parents never let me listen to rap music before: it is this misogynistic, or a hatred towards women, type of music. Rap music clearly portrays women in several, negative ways, such as re...
Rhodes, Henry A. “The Evolution of Rap Music in the United States.” Yale New Haven
“Hip hop has been named the most influential musical genre to emerge since 1960, beating the British invasion of the Rolling Stones and The Beatles, soul, punk, prog rock, heavy metal, disco and many more in a new study” (Von Radowitz and Webb).
The hip-hop community has been greatly influenced by the Black Arts Era. Both groups have addressed social, political issue as well as giving voice to the emotional discord of the black man. These groups push the boundaries using words meant to inflame the black man and shock the Caucasians.
In conclusion, rap has come so many ways, seeing how it started in the early 70’s. Hip hop effected society, fashion, and hip greatly today. Hip-hop has changed its style over the 30 years its been introduced. Its been the top most listened to genre since the late 80s, and has been the most played music videos on MTV. Finally, rap is what makes the world go round.
Rap started in the mid-1970s in the South Bronx area of New York City. The birth of rap is, in many ways, like the birth of rock and roll. Both originated in the African American community and both were first recorded by small, independent record labels and marketed towards, mostly to a black audience. And in both cases, the new style soon attracted white musicians that began performing it. For rock and roll it was a white American from Mississippi, Elvis Presley. For rap it was a young white group from New York, the Beastie Boys. Their release “(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)” (1986) was one of the first two rap records to reach the Billboard top-ten. Another early rap song to reach the top ten, “Walk This Way” (1986), was a collaboration of Run-DMC and Aerosmith. Soon after 1986, the use of samples was influenced in the music of both black and white performers, changing past thoughts of what make up a “valid” song.
The influence of Hip-Hop has never been as great as it is in this day and age. Often dismissed by a majority of America as simply a fad, hip hop has become a global phenomenon and has arguably been the most popular form of music for the past three decades. Hip-Hop has influenced art, language, fashion, culture, and sports. This music has been used to teach elementary level children, it has been taught in undergraduate universities and serves as a bridge for hundreds of philanthropies. The influence of Hip-Hop has also been felt in films. These films range from fictional works, documentaries, and autobiographies. A film known as, Something from Nothing by famous rapper Ice T sheds light on elements within Hip-Hop that have enabled the genre to reach millions of people.
Hip hop culture is known for its negative reputation. It is often thought as an entrance way into gangs, illegal drug activity, and malicious behavior. In today’s culture it is important to lead kids toward a positive direction in life but the hip hop culture of today is not steering youth in that direction. This is because hip-hop has moved away from what it was supposed to be used for. This genre of music was supposed to be used to for personal expression and growth not to create negative images for the youth and encourage them to change their behaviors and beliefs. Hip hop was supposed to give hope to the youth. Give them a reason to pursue their dreams and give them a positive outlook on life. Are there artists who keep it “old school?” Yes there is, but it is never heard on mainstream radio. Hip hop culture has the potential to help the youth follow their dreams and become better people. It just needs to go back to its roots and bring those morals back up again.
Hip hop has multiple branches of style and is a culture of these. This essay will examine Hip Hop from the point of view of the following three popular music scholars, Johnson, Jeffries and Smitherman. It will delve deeper into their understanding of what hip hop is and its relation to the different people that identify with its message and contents. It will also identify the history of Hip hop and its transition into popular music. In particular this essay will focus on what hip hop represents in the black community and how it can be used as a social movement against inequalities faced by them. This will then open up the discussion for the how this has influenced society, and the impact it has had in terms of race issues which hip hop itself often represents through music.
Hip hop music has gone through many changes since the 1980’s and continues to change today with new artists, styles, and sounds. Over the past forty years hip hop music has been a way for fans to relate to artist through their songs because many hip hop artist lived and experience the same things that their fans did. Hip hop has changed over the years because of changes and improvement of the average American. Hip hop music reflects on the current situation in American life and over the past forty years hip hop changes with the current times and views of hip hop fans in America. The improvement of more Americans since the 1980’s has help grow the access to hip hop music as well as the popularity of hip hop music and artists.
Black culture in our society has come to the point where it is allied with pop culture. The most popular music genres, slang terms, to dance forms it all comes from black culture. Hip hop emerged from black culture, becoming the soul of it that is seen in the media. Hip hop helped the black community by creating new ways of expressing themselves, from breakdance, graffiti, rap and other music, to slang. This culture was rooted in their tradition and created from something new. Hip hop created a new form of music that required the use of turn tables, ‘cuts’, loops, rhythm, rhyme, stories, and deep-rooted emotions, but also incorporated black oral forms of storytelling using communal authors.
It is impossible to separate my voice from this topic, as I was born as an African
Hip-hop is moving backwards in the sense that it is regaining its revolutionary and activist voice, as more independent artists are claiming control of the spotlight. Hip-hop is moving forward in the sense that it is no longer catering to one general sound, and corporate labels are losing their grip on the images that get displayed to the masses. Hip-hop is becoming more local. Hip-hop is becoming more about the experience, and less about what is hot and on the top 100 right now. Hip-hop is catering more to the individual’s unique taste, rather than mass-producing one sound and one message. Hip-hop, in the future, will be able to truly uphold its title as “the people’s genre” again. Hip-hop is being reborn, and being returned to a state that runs on artistic investment rather than commercial
ingredient of hip hop music, has brought this genre music to the top; attracting and influencing many
In order for people to understand hip-hop, they have to move past the misconception that all hip-hop music is derogatory. There are hundreds or more songs and artists that send positive messages.... ... middle of paper ... ... August 2013.