Over the past 20 years, Hiphop has grown and dominated many music charts around the world.
When it comes to Hiphop, many people will immediately think of its music and powerful dances. However, hiphop culture is not just about music and dancing, Hiphop includes many different aspects of life and many diverse art forms such as: Graffiti, Fashion, Beatbox, DJ, Rapping,….
Hiphop culture has a fascinating history, and here are 6 things about Hiphop that you may not know:
1. Hiphop’s Birthday
Hip-hop is a musical genre and cultural movement that emerged in the 1970s in the Bronx, New York. This culture originated and developed in the ‘ghetto’ (usually concentrated areas of poor, black people, places often associated with many social evils and gangs).
On August 11, 1973, Hip Hop was born at a lively party in the Bronx, New York, at a birthday party for a 16-year-old Jamaican boy named Clive Campbell. Hip Hop’s birth was marked by DJ Kool Herc using 2 turntables to create a “scratch” effect, creating fun and catchy melodies, making all the guests dance to the music throughout the party.
If you don’t know, last year (2017) Google celebrated Hiphop’s 44th birthday on its homepage by designing a custom Graffity-style logo and a mini game that allows users to transform into a DJ – Disc Jockey, the soul of the party.
2. The most popular music in Hip Hop is not Rap music.
In the minds of many, Hiphop is often associated with Rap. However, the most profound popular records in Hiphop are some obscure songs from DJ Herc’s record box such as: “It’s Just Begun – Jimmy Castor Bunch”; “Apachel – Incredible Bongo Band”; or “Take Me To The Mardi Gras – Bob James”,
The melodies and beats of these songs became extremely popular and served as a model for many other songs throughout the “golden age” of rap (roughly 1986 to 1993).
3. The word “Hiphop” was invented by accident
The father of the impressive cultural naming was Keith “Cowboy” Wiggins – one of the first MCs, and a member of the groups Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five..
The word “Hip-Hop” was coined while he was imitating the rhythm of marching soldiers, mocking a friend of his who had just joined the army. For some reason, the phrase entered his stage act and the Furious Five were sometimes mistakenly referred to as “Hip-Hop” in some performances.
DJ Lovebug Starski is credited with first using the term to describe Hiphop culture in general, with an appearance in a 1981 Village Voice feature, referring to Bambaataa.
Hiphop is a combination of two slang words: hip and hop. The word “Hip” means “cool”, which is a way of saying “cool” in the context of something being very good or interesting.
4. The inventor of the DJ Mixer (Audio Processing Device) was also the one who wrote and performed the first Rap.
Joseph Saddler – The first DJ known by the stage name Grandmaster Flash is the one who created the DJ Mixer, considered the soul or heart of the sound system, an essential and important tool for any DJ.
Originally an electromagnetism student, it was not difficult for Joseph Saddler to design and complete the machine himself. In addition, he is also said to be the first person to perform rap on stage when he wrote a rhyming paragraph for his MC, but at that time this was a strange thing and no MC dared to perform it, so he had to stand up and present his impressive introduction, with the first rap as follows: “You dip, dive and socialize, try to make you realize, we’re qualified to rectify, the burning desire to boogie.”
5. DJs Were the Stars in Hip Hop Culture, Not Rappers
In 1979, with the release of records, Rap music and Rappers became extremely popular, becoming something that is almost typical and representative of Hiphop culture.
However, before that time, DJs were almost always in the top position, followed by B-Boys (BreakDance/Hiphop dancers).
6. Hip hop spread beyond New York thanks to a terrible power outage
At approximately 9:36 a.m. on July 13, 1977, the entire city of New York was plunged into darkness and completely cut off from electricity for 24 hours. This horrific incident caused New York to lose more than $300 million, more than 1,600 stores were looted, many blocks of buildings were burned and attacked, the airport was closed, a series of baseball games were forced to be postponed, social evils increased, leading to many social and political instabilities,…
Although it caused serious consequences for the entire city and its people, this power outage brought Hiphop a stronger development and spread than ever. According to DJ Disco Wiz: “Before the power outage, there were only about 5 DJs in the entire city of New York. However, after the incident, every block had one.
Hundreds of poor kids suddenly had access to free high-end audio equipment (something they would of course never be able to afford). The popularity of Hip Hop grew exponentially after 1977, and this terrible power outage was certainly the cause.
Hiphop culture has always had a history of continuous development and change over the past decades. To learn and study Hiphop dances systematically and professionally, register to study Hiphop dance at SaigonDance Center right here.
→ Class schedule/ opening: https://www.saigondance.vn/lich-hoc-nhay-hiphop/
→ Tuition: https://www.saigondance.vn/hoc-phi-cac-mon/