Hip Hop & Rap
Two turntables and a microphone.
It’s all about the beat. And the break. And over both? Some serious spoken commentary—shared experiences, struggles, sex, and sociopolitical schemata. Arguably the most popular super-genre of music in America, hip hop & rap grew out of the block parties of Black and immigrant youth in the Bronx in the ‘70s and exploded with regional varieties (eg. East Coast, West Coast, Southern, Atlanta) across the decades with subgenres like new-school, gangsta rap, trap, bounce, and the ever-evolving styles that get bodies moving on dancefloors and in the streets. Speakers, turntables, beat machines, and microphones are the instruments of choice combined with the signature sounds of samples, scratching, and synthesizers.
Artists like...
Notorious B.I.G., Beastie Boys, Queen Latifah, Childish Gambino, Run DMC, JayZ, Missy Elliot, Salt-n-Pepa, Common, Lil Wayne, Kendrick Lamar, Lauryn Hill
