The history of Hip Hop

 

Hip hop emerged during the 80s, Kurtis Blow was the first commercially successful rapper and the first to sign a major record label followed by hip hop groups Run DMC, and Grand Master Flash & Furious Five. They were the true pioneers of hip hop. Initially, artists used simple rhyming schemes but it was Rakim along with DJ Eric who changed the rap scene with his complex rhymes paving way for new age rappers. The 90s was the golden period of hip hop as new age rappers emerged during this period. They narrated topics like drugs, sex, violence in streets, oppression of police on black people, the gap between rich and poor through their storytelling verses connected with people and making it a more accepted genre throughout America and Europe.

There was a group called NWA whose members went up to become hip hop stars. Ice cube, Eazy-E, Dr. Dre to name a few. They made the songs like ‘Straight Outta Compton’, ‘F**k the Police’ which were massive hits and it brought a new wave in the hip hop world. They introduced ‘Gangsta’ rap to the world. After problems among crew members, several rappers left the group to focus on their solo careers.

Dr. Dre left the group and formed the death row records with Suge Knight which has left a long-lasting legacy as it launched the career of legendary artists like Snoop Dogg and 2Pac. Dr. Dre made the classic solo album 'The Chronic' in 1992 and helped the west coast dominate the sound of Hip Hop. He was the one who helped in the rise of the hip hop stars by producing ‘Slim shady’ album for Eminem. In 1994 Nas's classic album ‘Illmatic’ followed by The notorious BIG's debut album ‘Ready to Die’ brought the east coast in the forefront position which divided the hip hop into west coast hip hop and east coast hip hop. There were songs against each other resulting in a heated debated topic on all news channels. This is believed to be the reason for the death of most revered, respected legendary hip hop figures like 2Pac and Notorious BIG. After that time artists like Nas, Jay-Z, Outkast duo, Eminem dominated the rap scene in the late 90s.

When we entered the new era taste for hip hop changed as southern hip hop artists like Ludacris, Gucci mane, TIP entered the scene with new sounds and funky lyrics. They introduced a new genre of rap music. Outkast was the most successful rapper duo of Southern hip hop as they found success during the period where the west coast and the east coast dominated the scene.
Not being recognised in the larger picture initially, artists like 50 cent and Lil Wayne started flooding the music market with their mixtapes which caught the attention of big hip hop stars. Between 2005-2008 Lil Wayne, 50 cent, Lupe fiasco were the most recognized and successful artists.

As time passed hip hop divided into old school rap and new school rap. Subgenres of hip hop started to come up. But rappers like J Cole, Joyner Lucas, Big Sean have kept hip hop alive with their mesmerising storytelling lyrics. And in India, there isn’t a big story or history. It is an emerging field and apart from Mumbai, other cities and regional languages are also making their way up.

I have lost listening to these for a long time. But recently, after watching Gully Boy, I was interested in Hindi Raps. Also, my buddy friend Akash reminded me of the these raps we used to hear together, so I thought of writing this.