1980s Rap & Hip Hop - PowerPoint Presentation

1980s Rap & Hip Hop Social and Historical Context

Picking up where Funk & Reggae leave off The origins of the “DJ” and the “MC”Putting Rap /Hip Hop in Context Elements of Hip HopThe development of Hip HopThe PlaylistWhat we’ll be looking at today

Funk & reggae Influences on early Rap The Funk Emphasizes repeating patterns or “grooves” with out fixed chord progressionsSinger can improvise w/o sticking to verse/chorus structureGeorge Clinton established a celebration of Afro-American music based on free musical speechThis is the first brick in the development of Hip Hop Jamaican ReggaeThe Rudeboyz of Kingston need to show off “gang identity” establishes the eventual “attitude” of the Hip Hop movement Rudeboyz expressed themselves with portable sound systems Rudeboy gangs mix fast-paced rhythmic singing with prerecorded background music, to reinforce messages of gang identity

Rapper’s Delight was released in 1979 by a group called The Sugarhill GangRapper’s Delight-Sugarhill GangIt does incorporate a “rapper” speaking over Disco music It was a big hit in sales and popular in the clubsHowever, this group is not considered to be the pioneer due to the nature of their start. They were a group put together by a label-NOT OGThe real innovator of Hip Hop started somewhere very different What People Think is the first “Rap group”

The Origins of the “DJ” The first real Dj:DJ Kool Herc- born Clive CampbellJamaican-American community of the BronxInherited his parent’s taste for Reggae sounds of KingstonCreated a strong sense of community in poor black neighborhoods by throwing “Block Parties” and dancesOriginated “Break Beat Djing”Kool DJ Herc The DJA modern example:Mix Master Mike DJ Sampling Marley Marl Dr. Dre The Chronic 2001 Funk Samples

Hip Hop MC = a musician speaking rhythmically, usually about who I am / who we are / how we got here / why you listen to us Afrika Bambaataa- Born Kevin Donovan- prominent leader of a street gang in South Bronx in 70sDiscovered the Zulu tribe on a trip to Africa in the 70s-discovered the richness and depth of African DiasporaEstablished the “Zulu Nation” in NYC to bring more positive forces into the poor black neighborhoods of NYCAfrika Bambaatta The MC and Rap Deconstructed Eric B. and Rakim – “Paid in Full” The “MC” A modern example: Tribe Called Quest

The DJ: a musician using turntables to juggle beats and breaks from pre-recorded musicThe MC: rappers, mixing an amplified voice with dance music . Spokespersons for collectivist gangs.Graphers / Hip-hop artists: visual expressions of group (or gang) identity, reclaiming(and territorializing) the ghettoB-Boying/Breakdancing: highly athletic representational dance style; jazz-influenced "ensemble/solo" dichotomyKNOWLEDGE: Grand Master Flash & Afrikka Baambaata coined this "the 5 th Element " of hip-hop, without which the other four are meaningless The five Elements of Hip Hop Culture Graffiti Art B Boy Break Dancing

Cultural Significance of rap “Rap music is one of the main sources within popular culture of a sustained and in-depth examination and analysis of the spatial partitioning of race and the diverse experiences of being young and black inAmerica.”

The South Bronx Some Data to demonstrate the gravity of circumstances:Lost 600,000 manufacturing jobs-40% of manufacturing sector by the mid-1970s average per capita income was $2,430Youth unemployment was 60%The South Bronx lost 43,000 housing units in under a decade (four square blocks a week )1973-1977: 30,000 fires were set in the South BronxOne day in June of 1975, 40 fires were set in a three hour period Hip Hip in Context 1970s and 80s Deregulation Government is removing restrictions on companies-expands business profits While at the same time  cutting spending on public programs “White Flight” from urban cities to suburbs left those neighborhoods without structures, investments, and much promise

The government’s role in inner cities left a gaping hole in the communities Young men unemployed, turn to drug use and drug sales Loss of hope and faith Need to re-invent identity and re-gain power within the urban centersIn walks in the DJ and the MC as the voice of the people The Response to the South Bronx Context

Grand Master Flash & the Furious FiveThe Message RUN DMCIt's Like That The grand-fathers of Hip Hop

Rick Ruben co-founded a record label called Def Jams Records out of his dorm room at NYU- along with Russell SimmonsThey wanted to expand this new art form known as RapOne of their 1 st signings:Beastie Boys –Paul RevereWhat really opened up “rap” to mainstream audiences was the new MTV networkThe Beasties made an impression on white America with their music videos: Fight For Your Right to PartySuccess Continued with another ground breaking signing- Mr. LL Cool J LL Cool J – Rock The BellsDef Jam records

Hip Hop Goes Mainstream RUN DMC- From Queens NYRUN, DMC, & Jam Master JayHad the rhymes, the dance, the beats, and the look First group to also cross genres of music- Rap & Rock Walk This WayThe Beastie Boys- Three Jewish boys from Brooklyn- who played punk and metal music MCA, AD ROCK & MIKE DCross race lines in this heavily Black genre of musicLeft a major impact on modern hip hop Rock N Roll Hall of Fame

Hip Hop Goes Political The West CoastNWA- Rap group from Compton, CA featuring- Dr. Dre , Ice Cube, Eazy E, MC Ren, and DJ YellaCompton was under the same circumstances as NYC and developed a new kind of Rap called “Gangsta Rap”"Straight Outta Compton“Enough is Enough- Gansta Rap Documentary Hip Hop Today and Politics Public Enemy- Rap Group led by Chuck D and Flava Flav- Took a much more militant approach to the music- sending an Anti Racist tone and Black Nationalist message to audiences Fight the Power Also meshed two genres of music that creates a brand new Genre 10 yrs later- Rap and Metal Anthrax-Bring the Noise Start of Nu Metal Limp Bizkit

In the late 1980s, a collective of rappers and groups led by KRS ONE and several prominent MCs released a track condemning the glorification of drugs, violence, gangs, and female misogyny "Self Destruction“Rap found it’s Female Voice Women in rap were few and far between- several women did try to break the gender gap in rap- the voice of that break was- Queen Latifah"UNITY"The response to the violent nature Hip Hop

Hip Hop is now in every part of American and world popular culture Some notable impacts:Kendrick Lamar just won a Pulitzer Prize for the album “Damn”- first time in history a rap album wins this award Hip Hop has been hitting the nation’s living room on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon History of Rap- Jimmy Fallon & Justin Timberlake Hip Hop in Popular Culture