Rap Music: History and Genres

Sep 11, 2012 by KimBrause799

Those who are young or reasonably new to the HipHop culture do not realize that Rap Music has several diverse genres:

East Coast: The East Coast, most notably New York City, was the genesis for rap music hitting the mainstream. Run-D.M.C. led the pack, with Rakim and Big Daddy Kane also breaking by way of to make rap emerge as a national phenomenon.

West Coast: While HipHop was cooking in the East, West Coast rap music gained national recognition in the mid-1980s with performers like Ice T and As well $hort.

Dirty South: Even though most of the music world’s focus focused on rap coming from New York and Los Angeles, HipHop artists in the South were turning to independent music labels to release their work. Geographically, the Dirty South genre encompassed places as diverse as Houston, Birmingham, and Miami, and was significantly influenced by Ghetto Mafia in the mid-1990s. Musically, Dirty South rap is recognized for is danceabilty and rhythmic delivery.

Gangsta Rap: Some say Gangsta Rap very first emerged on the West Coast with N.W.A.’s “Straight Outta Compton” release, while other individuals credit Ice T with taking Gangsta Rap to national acclaim. Characterized by lyrics glamorizing components of a criminal life-style, violence, promiscuity, misogyny, and materialism, Gangsta Rap’s controversy came to a head with the murder of the West Coast Tupcac Shakur in 1996, and the subsequent murder of the East Coast’s The Notorious B.I.G. in 1997.

Pop Rap: Identified for its widespread, mainstream appeal, Pop Rap’s very first breakout star was LL Cool J. The Fresh Prince and MC Hammer rapidly rose to the best of the Pop Rap scene and the music charts with lyrics that had been much less controversial than those of the Gangsta Rap genre, and as a result had been far more likely to obtain radio airplay.

Christian Rap: Even though HipHop was garnering a reputation for much less than savory lyrics and artists for questionable activities, other artists had been expressing their faith via HipHop. Christian Rap took off in the late 1980s and early 1990s with rap groups like P.I.D. and S.F.C.

Jazz Rap: Even though Jazz Rap has by no means enjoyed mainstream commercial achievement, the genre usually incorporates Afrocentric and political themes. Gang Starr and Gil Scott-Heron are often cited as two of the first Jazz rappers.

Conscious HipHop: Similar to Jazz Rap, Conscious HipHop has never ever enjoyed mass commercial success. With an emphasis on social issues, Conscious HipHop isn’t overtly political, but rather offers with problems such as poverty and religion.

Electro HipHop: A combination of dance music and rap, Electro HipHop very first emerged in the 1980s on the West Coast from artists like Arabian Prince and Egyptian Lover. By the mid-1990s, Electro HipHop had pretty considerably run its course.

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