A Modern Black Arts Movement through the Instrument of Hip-Hop

Hip hop, the creation of electronic sound and enticing language is a style born from the African American and Hispanic cultures. It formed in New York City from block parties and the participation of the youth culture. This style of music began as a minimal change in rhythm to a globally popular culture consisting of graffiti art, dancing, and music. Hip hop was not only a type of tasteful music, but it also became a benchmark in history. When this style of music was created, it served as an outlet for those who did not have a voice, particularly the minority groups. These groups were given rights that they deserved just like everyone else. In the 1970’s is when hip hop began to spread, creating not just

Hip-hop is a cultured style that started in the 1970’s. Majority of different funk groups began playing disco music at that time it was popular. During this time funk music was technology driven more electronic sounds were being used on the drum machines. Funk was the new dance in the early 70’s. This particular style of singing in which was being used is called rapping, this begun in African American, Urban Areas, Jamaican American, Latino American and many others cities of the United States. The group of artist or singer say words with a rhythm that rhymes. Some hip-hop music lyrics are about violence and illegal drugs. Often time lyrics are about the life of urban people who stay in big cities. Other styles that hip-hop uses come from

Hip Hop was birthed in the neighborhood, where young people gathered in parks, on playgrounds, and neighborhood street corners, to verbalize poetry over spontaneous sounds and adopted melodies. Hip Hop was not just the music; it was also a way for the young to show their skills in break dancing, gymnastic dance style that was valued, and athleticism over choreographed fluidity. Hip hop was also fashion such as: hats, jackets, gold chains, and name-brand sneakers. Hip Hop was a form of graffiti, to a new way of expression that engaged spray paint on the subway walls as the canvas. In addition, today’s hip hop have changed as where the DJ was once is now the producer as the key music maker, and the park is now a studio.

“…the appropriation of hip-hop cultural forms suggest not that whites want a black identity: rather, they want characteristics of blackness.” (Perry 2002, 109). This is quote by Pamela Perry, a sociologist as University of California Santa Cruz, from her book Shades of White:White Kids and Racial Identities in High School. Pamela Perry is a sociologist from University of California, Santa Cruz, throughout her book she touches on the idea of white children developing a sort of identity crisis depending on their environment. This quote helps put the appropriation of African American culture in its simplest terms. In most cases people associate Hip Hop culture with African Americans. With that being said, many artist of different genres who attempt to have a more hip hop vibe, fall subject to appropriating African American Culture. Various artist have been appropriating culture in several different ways whether it’s through dance, sound, or even image.

In order to understand hip-hop dance, it is important to recognize hip-hop music and where it came from. Many scholars of rap music relate the founding of rap to African and African American oral and musical traditions, specifically African griots and storytellers. They link the rhythm of rap to the use of drums in Africa and to African American music in the United States, from slave songs and spirituals to jazz and R&B. Scholars have found very interesting connections between rap music and Black nationalist traditions (traditions historically practiced by black people that serve as part of their racial identity). Rap is similar to the “call and response of the black church, the joy and pain of the blues, the jive talk and slang of the hipsters and jazz musicians, the boasting of street talk, the sidesplitting humor of comedians, and the articulateness of black activists.” All of these African American oral traditions, including rap, can be traced back to West African oral traditions. In traditional African societies, the spoken word and oral culture included poetry, storytelling, and speaking to drumbeats. The links between rap music and African American oral and musical traditions demonstrate that hip-hop music represents more than just sound. It represents history. This aspect of it, in my opinion, makes this type of music very unique and makes it carry more value.

Hip-Hop and rap resurfaced in the Bronx, in the 70’s, around this time people in Bronx were going through, poverty, unemployment, increased crime, etc. Which caused them to have freedom of expression through rhyming; creating the meaning rap. Although the meaning of the word “Rap” original meant to strike or blow. Which in my opinion fits perfectly because they are striking mentally with words instead of physically. This genre is basically a form of

In the early 70's, a Jamaican, DJ known as Kool Herc attempted to combine his Jamaican style of disk jockey, that involved reciting improvised rhymes over the dub versions of his reggae records (Davey 1). He also invented turntables, which kept the music going, with the occasional voice on the top of records, which started the roots of rap music. Over time, the culture broke into mainstream, spread around the world, and young people who did not have much to do, created not only multi-million industry, but have also created a way we can speak to each other all around the world. Hip hop is linked to other music such as rap which is embraced by urban black population. It is raw self-expression, sometimes features expletive lyrics, and violence. “Hip hop artists spoke to despair and pain of urban youth and the poor who were often without a voice. The rappers themselves were, the product of that reality, and it was conveyed through their lyrics” (Muhammad 1).

Hip-Hop is an all-encompassing term used to reference a genre of music, as well as a subculture that made its first appearance in New York City by African-Americans in the poverty-stricken South Bronx streets during the 1970’s. Hip-Hop began as a trendy medium of musical protest against the injustices suffered by Black and Latino men, but quickly evolved into a lifestyle focusing on the creative expression of emotional, and political experiences shared by ethnic cultures throughout the United States. The emergence of hip-hop culture was expected to be a trend that would disappear in a fashion similar to that of the disco movement, but rapidly became one of the most influential subcultures in today’s American society. Despite the boundless impacts

Hip-hop culture began to develop in the south Bronx area of New York City during the 1970s. It had a significant influence in the music industry. Hip-hop music generally includes rapping, but other elements such as sampling and beatboxing also play important roles. Rapping, as a key part in the hip-hop music, takes different forms, which including signifying, dozen, toast and jazz poetry. Initially, hip-hop music was a voice of people living in low-income areas, reflecting social, economic and political phenomenon in their life [1]. As time moves on, hip-hop music reached its “golden age”, where it became a mainstream music, featuring diversity, quality, innovation and influence [2]. Gangsta rap, one of the most significant innovations in

Hip-hop is a musical art form, created by African-Americans and Latino-Americans in the mid seventies. Its conception came from a young generation of African-Americans in the Bronx, who created a beautiful, prideful expression of music, art and dance from a backdrop of poverty. Since that ignition in a New York City borough, it has inspired people from all socio-economic and cultural backgrounds all across the world. When hip-hop is discussed as an art form and not just as rap, it usually is meant to include the four elements: the DJ, the emcee, graffiti writing, and break dancing. Some of these were around before the words "hip-hop" were uttered, but they reestablished their identities within hip-hop.

The hip hop or rap music is a style of popular music originated in the late 1970s in the South Bronx during a time characterized by political traditionalism and economic collapse. It started being played in gathering in public parks or individual homes. It was first used by the youngest members of the inner city black and Latino communities in New York. This kind of music, provided one of the few spaces where excluded minority youth could adopt and secure a public voice, and also a way in which members of these communities could express their worries and speak without restrictions.

Hip-hop is an underground urban movement which emerged in the South Bronx, NY during the early 1970s. Hip-hop is composed of four basic elements; DJ-ing, emceeing (rapping), graffiti and style, and break dancing. These elements are how most people recognize hip-hop culture. Many other people think of hip-hop as just a music genre, but it is more than just a music genre. It is cultivating way of living, and several people fail to understand its true meaning. It originated as so much more than just art and entertainment. Hip-hop is the constantly evolving spirt and consciousness of urban youth that keeps recreating itself in a never-ending cycle (Global Awareness through Hip-Hop Culture Program). TIME magazine has even considered it the most important youth culture on the planet (time.com). It has, and continues to influence the young urban crowd through its music, style, and role models. Hip-hop has evolved throughout the years, and has made several changes to the music and dance, the style and clothing, and the influential roles. Both good and not so good. Nevertheless, hip-hop culture continues to influence people.

Hip-Hop is a cultural movement that emerged from the dilapidated South Bronx, New York in the early 1970’s. The area’s mostly African American and Puerto Rican residents originated this uniquely American musical genre and culture that over the past four decades has developed into a global sensation impacting the formation of youth culture around the world. The South Bronx was a whirlpool of political, social, and economic upheaval in the years leading up to the inception of Hip-Hop. The early part of the 1970’s found many African American and Hispanic communities desperately seeking relief from the poverty, drug, and crime epidemics engulfing the gang dominated neighborhoods. Hip-Hop proved to be successful as both a creative outlet for

Hip hop is a creative, cultural movement and can be anything you make it out to be. There is no specific text such as a Bible or Qur’an that must be followed when creating hip hop. Whatever one may choose to rap, dance, or draw about is his or her option. In this week reading the group, Fun-Da-Mental takes lines such as “Subhanallah, ilhamdulillah” from the Qur’an and makes it part of their song (Islamic Hip-Hop versus Islamophobia 59). And when Natacha Atlas performs she likes to embody the spiritual aspect of God into her productions by combining phrases such as “Allah ana bahibbak” (Islamic Hip-Hop versus Islamophobia 66).

Hip hop finds its ethnic origins in Jamaican music and DJs in the seventies who used two turntables to create longer drum breaks in records for dance parties giving rise to “break dancing” and “break dancers” now known as b-boys and b-girls (A Closer Look At a New Hip Hop Movement). DJs and MCs popularized the technique of speaking over beats and the culture expanded to include street dance and graffiti art. Embraced by working class urban and young African-Americans, the music stems from African American forms of music including jazz, soul, gospel, and reggae.