July 6, 2008
30th anniversary of hip hop
Newsday celebrates the 30th Anniversary of hip hop with a series on it's roots, its politics, its global reach and more. Check out our videos with hip hop stars who started the musical movement in the 1970s to today's rappers, audio clips, photos and much more.
Grandmaster Flash, Kool Herc and Afrika Bambaataa
, Taken on Oct.2, 1993. Caption: From Left to Right, Grandmaster Flash, Kool Herc and Afrika Bambaataa. The three of the pioneers of hip hop and rap hail from the Bronx.
RUN-DMC create handprints in cement.
Hip hop pioneers RUN-DMC create handprints in cement as they are inducted into Hollywood's RockWalk Monday, Feb. 25, 2002, in Los Angeles. Jason "Jam Master Jay" Mizell, left, Darryl "DMC" McDaniels, center, and Joseph "DJ Run" Simmons, produced the first rap album to go gold as well as the first rap act nominated for a Grammy.
Rapper Angel performs at Pyramid.
Rapper Angel (Angela Thomas) of Greenport performs at Pyramid's END of the WEAK open-mic.
Hip-Hop Fashion: Past to Present
Photo/Robert Spencer
Monday's stories: Rappers find 'Gangsta' sells
In the past two years, gangsta rap's popularity soared to levels it hadn't seen since N.W.A. helped invent the genre 15 years ago, but are the streets where today's hip-hoppers grow up really that much more dangerous than the rest of the country? Here is Day Two of Newsday's five-part series on hip hop.
Women find place in hip hop
Without adornment, save a pair of gold earrings in the shape of 45-inch record inserts, Jean Grae's style contrasts with the bejeweled appearance of many of today's female rappers and the bikini-clad dancers populating rap videos.
The moguls of hip hop
In the '80s, it was the leveraged buyout; in the '90s, technology. But at the beginning of a new century, it's the selling of "cool" that is building empires and making moguls.
Hip hop fashion
Louis Vuitton designer Marc Jacobs recently joined forces with music producer and hip-hop artist Pharrell Williams to create a line of funky eyewear. Terms of the deal were not available. But such partnerships between upscale companies and hip-hop artists are becoming increasingly common.
Audio: Conscious Rap Songs
One knock against hip hop is the lack of conscious music, says its critics. Here are some sound clips of songs that fall into that category.
Audio: Hear S.I. Artists
Hard core, raw hip-hop is the hallmark of Staten Island. Wu-Tang Clan paved the way with its realistic images of ghetto life.
Audio: Listen to Brooklyn Artists
From Big Daddy Kane to Biggie to Jay-Z, Brooklyn rappers have a distinct style Here are some audio clips of their music.
Audio: Listen to Public Enemy
From the suburbs of Roosevelt, Long Island sprang the conscience of hip hop. Public Enemy shed lights on the problems of being Black in America. The group continues to provide pointed commentary of our society. Here are some of their songs.
Audio: Listen to Queens Artists
Born in the Bronx, hip hop became commercial in Queens. Following in the footsteps of Run-DMC, artists such as LL Cool J to 50 Cent and Ja Rule continue to offer up slinging beats and ear candy. Hear some of their songs.
Audio: Listen to Bronx Artists
The Bronx is the birthplace of hip hop. Artists such as Afrika Bambaataa, the Cold Crush Brothers and Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five put hip hop on the map. Here is audio of some Bronx artists.
The global reach of hip hop
Amanda Smith likes having a few surprises tucked up the sleeves of her light pink sweater.
Politics gets hip
Kwame Kilpatrick -- all 6-feet-4 of him -- looks like a linebacker. He sounds like a preacher, even with the oversized diamond stud blinging on his ear. Wind him up and he will quote Tupac Shakur and bust out rhymes from Run-DMC and even his city's most famous rapper, Eminem.
Gang's still here
It started with gibberish. "I said a hip hop, the hippy, the hippy to the hip hip hop, you don't stop the rock to the bang-bang boogie, say, up jump the boogie, to the rhythm of the boogie, the beat."
Boogie down Bronx
HIP-HOP 'HOOD A look at the neighborhoods that have influenced hip-hop
Where are they now?
After 25 years, the Sugar Hill Gang is still going strong, celebrating the anniversary with a series of high-profile shows and a new album that could be in stores by the end of the year. "We have six or seven songs done already, and we're trying to get done before Christmas," says Michael "Wonder Mike" Wright.
Hip hop's building blocks
People tend to define hip-hop as music, but in fact it's an entire culture. Historians say hip-hop comprises "four elements" -- tagging, b-boying, DJing and rapping -- that emerged during the late 1970s and early 1980s. These days, rap is the focal point, while the other elements have evolved into different forms. Still, all four elements continue to define the look, sound and character of hip-hop culture.
Top 25 hip hop songs
We asked readers to vote at NYNewsday.com for their top 25 hip-hop songs. Here's the tally:
Rappers find 'gangsta' sells
The statistics are clear. During the past decade, across America, the murder rate is down. The violent crime rate is down. Overall crime? Also down.
NYPD keeps tabs on rappers
Officially, the New York Police Department makes no special effort to keep tabs on rappers. Officially, the department has no binder of dossiers on the performers.
Hip hop still lives in Hollis
HIP-HOP 'HOOD A look at the neighborhoods that have influenced hip-hop
Top 25 hip hop albums
We asked readers at Newsday.com and NYNewsday.com for their favorite 25 hip-hop albums. Here's the tally:
Women find role in hip hop
Jean Grae steps onto the darkened stage not caring who is in the audience. She raises the microphone and tells the crowd she wants to see hands in the air.
Staten Island has its own home-grown rappers
HIP-HOP 'HOOD A look at the neighborhoods that have influenced hip-hop
Hip-hop moguls livin' large and in charge
In the '80s, it was the leveraged buyout; in the '90s, technology. But at the beginning of a new century, it's the selling of "cool" that is building empires and making moguls.
Becoming DJ Crud-ee Skillz
'All DJs need a name," says Jahi Lake. "It says something about who you are and what you stand for."
Roosevelt community molds Public Enemy
HIP-HOP 'HOOD A look at the neighborhoods that have influenced hip-hop
Companies take to the rap culture
LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA, the world's largest luxury goods company, is turning to hip-hop to help boost its sales.
Hip-Hop fashion: From gold links to pink
From bamboo earrings -- at least two pair -- to "throwback" jerseys, hip-hop fashion is rampant, constantly changing but forever defining urban flavor and style.
Glossary: Hip-Hop Fashion Terms Defined
5411's -- (n) a type of Reebok brand sneakers, given the name because of its price after taxes, $54.11 e.g. "5411's, size seven in girls"
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