2023-08-11 16:22:16
Hip-hop celebrates its 50th anniversary on Friday August 11. Born in the Bronx in the 1970s, this musical genre which combines rap and rhythm now includes many sub-genres and has a major influence on the music industry around the world.
The beginnings
Hip-hop music was born in New York in the 1970s, in the popular district of the Bronx. At that time, the youth of working-class neighborhoods met regularly in “block parties”, these neighborhood gatherings where music with Afro-American and Caribbean influences was played. The birth of “scratching”, which consists of scratching records to obtain a rhythmic effect, embodies the emergence of hip-hop.
In its early days, this musical genre focused on the theme of the party, with simple rap techniques and a moderate tempo. The iconic band Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five with their song The Messagewhich realistically depicts life and poverty in the ghettos, brings a style ” aware “ to gender.
« [Le hip-hop] provided young people with a reading grid on their world, whether they are suburbs, inner cities, or elsewhere recounts DJ Kool Herc, considered the “founding father” of hip-hop, in the preface to a book on the subject (1).
The Golden Age of the 1980s
In the 1980s and early 1990s, a period considered the “golden age” of hip-hop, the East Coast, and in particular New York, played a central role in its development. Disco accents interfere in the interpretations of the groups Run-DMC or the Beastie Boys. For its part, Public Enemy is known for its titles with political themes, evoking racism and « Black Power ».
Artists like LL Cool J, Nas, Big Daddy Kane and the group Wu-Tang Clan embody the advent of fast flow and elaborate metaphors. Hip-hop also gradually designates the dance that accompanies it, as well as the practice of graffiti.
The East Coast–West Coast Rivalry
Introducing jazz and R&B elements, bands De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest became pioneers of « alternative hip-hop » while women begin to impose themselves on stage, with in particular Salt-N-Pepa, Foxy Brown and Lauryn Hill, champion of melodic rap.
Puff Daddy-backed rapper The Notorious BIG becomes king of the East Coast with the release of his cult album « Ready to Die » in 1994, until his murder in 1997. On the other hand, the fast-tempo West Coast hip-hop, influenced by electronic music, reached its peak in the mid-1990s. in 1988 with his album « Straight Outta Compton »certified platinum, in which he denounces racism and police violence with crude words that arouse controversy.
The “bling-bling” turning point
In the 2000s, hip-hop experienced a “bling-bling” turn characterized by more commercial influences, embodied by artists such as Jay-Z, DMX, Busta Rhymes and 50 Cent. These years also mark the emergence of the rapper Eminem, produced by Dr Dre, a key figure in the musical genre. Hip-hop becomes mainstream at this time.
The hard core of rap migrated in the 2010s to Atlanta, Georgia in the south of the country, where trap, a subgenre of hip-hop marked by cymbals and electronic drums, developed. Trap, whose name refers to the places where the drug trade takes place, remains one of the most popular styles of American music, its influence ranging from pop to electronic music to reggaeton.
Although still marginalized in ceremonies such as the Grammy Awards in the United States, the influence of hip-hop is today global. Beyond “ four elements » often cited to describe the original universe of the musical genre – « DJ art, breakdancing, rap and graffiti – DJ Kool Herc adds ” a way of walking, of talking, to get dressed or ” to communicate ».
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