Hip-Hop
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A Brief History of Hip-Hop – Part 3 The Shift to the MC
Read The Introduction, Part 1, and Part 2 In 1978 a subtle shift happened to the culture of hip-hop. The music industry needed a name to call this music and started referring to it as “rap music.” Most people didn’t mind the new term. In fact, people started to call themselves rappers. This term shook…
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Album Spotlight # 3
Huh!? Stiffenin’ Against The Wall by Organized Rhyme The year is 1991. I catch this strange music video called, “Check the OR.” I’m fixed to the television. The song and video are captivating. The old school vibe and sample have my head nodding. The comedy on the screen makes me chuckle. The three guys in…
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Hip Hop Represents at The Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards celebrated their 50th anniversary last night in style. While very few awards were given out, the show was a powerhouse of live performances. Alicia Keys opened the show with a duet with Frank Sinatra. He was shown on a black and white video behind her. It was a great performance. Alicia Keys…
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A Brief History of Hip-Hop – Part 2 Rap is Born
Read The Introduction and Part 1 Part 2 – Rap is Born In the mid 1970s, DJs still owned the parties and were held in reverence. DJs such as Kool Herc, Afrika Bambaataa, and Grand Master Flash quickly became legends. They all strove to improve their DJ skills and soon employed MCs (masters of ceremony) to help them…
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A Brief History of Hip-Hop – Part 1 The DJ
Read The Introduction It is hard to define the exact time that hip-hop was created. There are so many influences that came together to form the culture and many of them far pre-date hip-hop. Where did it come from? It was born out of dancing and the love of music. DJs began to play parties…
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Chase March – the rapper
I think when you love hip-hop as much as I do that you need to be involved in the culture actively somehow. I have written about it for years. I cover hip-hop topics in this blog often. I used to write record reviews, stories, and interviews for the university newspaper back when I was still…
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An Introduction to Hip-Hop Culture
Culture is defined in the Webster’s Dictionary as “the customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group.” Hip-Hop is a way of life for a certain group of people. It has unique rules and customs that are observed. As such, hip-hop is clearly a cultural movement. Rap and hip-hop…
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Album Spotlight # 1
Raising Hell – Run-DMC This is the album that introduced me to rap music. I remember it quite well. I was at a family due and my cousin had the cassette tape. He made sure that the adults weren’t around and he played it for a few of his cousins. One of the rappers swore…
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I’ve Joined the Digital Age
I have finally joined the digital age. Yes, I broke down and bought an MP3 player. I did a lot of research before buying one and I think I have found the perfect player. I didn’t buy an Ipod. They are extremely limiting. I needed something that could work on more than one computer. I…
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Music Space Issues – Solved
Last summer, I thought that it was so great that I managed to save some space and organize my entire CD collection (see entry). This Christmas break, I found myself organizing this same collection yet again. It took a lot of time and effort but I managed to convert my entire collection of rap CDs…