Big Blog 1 (Hip-Hop)

Hip-hop is a genre of music that originated in the Bronx of New York by African American and Latino communities during the 1970's. Some characteristics of hip-hop music come from rapping, beats, rhythm, and DJ scratching. Since its earlier years hip-hop has become much more popular on a global level with other related topics like fashion and dancing. Some of the key elements that make hip hop what it is are Rapping, DJ scratching, Beats, Dancing, and Graffiti. 

Rapping- Rapping is the most known aspect of hip hop and is described as a from of music that comes from chanting lyrics in a rhythm over a beat or instrumental track. Some of my favorite rappers are Youngboy, Lil Baby, and Rod Wave. When listening to each of these artists music you can hear a nice beat with their voice over going in a rhythm with the beat. Here is an example of Lil Baby rapping.

DJ Scratching- is when Dj's use a technique of moving a vinyl record back and forth on a turntable to make a certain rhythm or sound. One DJ that I know of is Shaq O'neal which was a former NBA player. 

Beats- Beats are another key component to hip hop music as you hear them in every song. In many beats you will hear drums, samplers, synthesizers, and other sounds. Beats can determine the speed of a song and help make a rhythm for the rapper. 

Dancing- Dancing is a very popular aspect of hip hop which helps artists create more views and make their music more fun. Many artists will create music videos which is when they make visuals for their music and sometimes create a dance for a song. One dance in particular that took over the United States that I remember would be the whip & nae-nae which came from the song "Watch Me" by Silento. 

Graffiti- Graffiti is a form of art that is associated with hip hop because they both emerged from New York in the 1970's. In this type of art you will see many designs, letters, or images in a public space like subways, trains, buildings, or bridges made with spray paint and markers. Many times graffiti is described as vandalism but I think that sometimes it actually looks pretty cool. 

The journey of hip-hop started in 1973 in what we call the Early years of hip hop and lasted until 1979. During these early years we saw the introduction of hip hop to the world and its purpose was to be a voice for the youth of low income areas and distressed backgrounds because the music would talk about the social, political, and economical reality of their lives. During the 1970's block party's were a big thing and once hip hop was introduced we began to see Dj's come to block party's to try and show off their music. Some famous artist from this era would be DJ Kool Herc, DJ Disco Wiz, and Afrika Bambaataa. 

Then from 1979-1983 the old school hip hop era began, and during this time we saw the transition to recording. In 1979 they began to actually recored music with beats to make a sound recording. The first hip hop track to ever blow up and become widely known would be the Sugarhill Gang's "Rappers Delight." Then soon after that song many others began to become recognized and help hip hop become known and more "mainstream."

The next era came from 1983-1986 and is called the new school era. During this time we would see some new types of sounds which were drum machine based with influences from rock music. In the article I read it said "It was notable for taunts and boasts about rapping, and socio-political commentary, both delivered in an aggressive, self-assertive style" when talking about hip hop. So in this era they were made out to be all big and bad and tough because that was cool at the time in the New York area. 

From 1986-1997 we saw what was known as "Golden age hip hop." This era of music was known for its innovation because of how the hip hop game was being changed. During this era we began to see many more "mainstream" songs from known artists like the Beastie Boys, Tupac, MC Hammer, and The Notorious B.I.G. Vanilla Ice released the song "Ice Ice Baby" which was the first single to reach the number 1 spot on top 100 billboards in the United States, U.K., and in Austriala. hip hop became a top selling music genre in the 1990s and by 1999 hip hop was the highest selling genre with 81 million CDs sold. Another things that took place during this era would be the East Coast vs. the West Coast rivalry in hip hop.

The "bling" era which lasted from 1997-2006 gave us artists like Jay-Z, Neely, Puff Daddy, and Fat Joe. These artists added more of like a pop element to their music which made their music sound more catchy allowing them the rise to be some of the greatest artists to ever make music.

Then from 2006 until now we have seen the take over of trap music and the blowup of sound cloud artists. Trap music is like a southern rap which originated in the 1990's and is known to be aggressive with hard beats and the heavy use of drums. This type of music has recently become more and more popular and has made similar genres like EDM and pop help grow a little more also. Some of the most talked about artists include Drake, Future, Young Thug, and Migos.