Hip hop is a cultural movement that began amongst urban (primarily,
but not entirely, African American) youth in New York and has since
spread around the world. The four main elements of hip-hop are MCing,
DJing, graffiti art, and breakdancing. The term has since come to be a
synonym for rap music to mainstream audiences. The two are not,
however, interchangeable - rapping (MCing) is the vocal expression of
lyrics in sync to a rhythm beneath it. Hip hop musicHip
hop music is related to the griots of West Africa, traveling singers
and poets whose musical style is reminiscent of hip hop. Some griot
traditions came with slaves to the New World. The most important direct
influence on the creation of hip hop music is the Jamaican musical
style called dub music, which arose in the 1960s. Dub musicians such as
King Tubby isolated percussion breaks because dancers at clubs (’’sound
systems”) preferred the energetic rhythms of the often-short breaks.
Soon, performers began speaking in sync with these rhythms. In 1967,
Jamaican immigrants such as DJ Kool Herc brought dub to New York City,
where it evolved into hip hop. In Jamaica, dub music has
diversified into genres like ragga and dancehall. Herc was one of the
most popular DJs in early 70s New York, playing at neighborhood parties
(”block parties”), and he quickly switched from using reggae records
to funk, rock and disco, since the New York audience did not
particularly like reggae. Herc and others DJs extended the percussive
breaks using an audio mixer and two records, and other mixing
techniques soon developed. Performers spoke while the music
played; these were originally called ”MCs” (”Master of Ceremonies”
or ”Mic Controller”) and, later, ”rappers”. These early rappers
focused on introducing themselves and others in the audience, with some
improvisation and a simple four-count beat, along with a simple chorus.
Later MCs added more complex lyrics, often humorous, and incorporated
sexual themes. By the end of the 1970s, hip hop music was
beginning to become a major commercial and artistic force and had
spread throughout the United States. During the 1980s and 1990s, hip
hop gradually became mainstream (a transition usually considered to
have been completed in 1992) in the US and, to a lesser degree,
worldwide.

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