Hip Hop  South Bronx of New York in the early 1970`s  DJ-ing, MC-ing break dancing, graffiti and rap  Alternative expression to gang violence  Local sub-culture of the coloured communities

Context  : the Black Civil Rights Movement  Decline in population, livable housing, and the quality of life in the late 1960s and the 1970s  1970s reflected America's urban crisis of unemployment and poverty  Concentration of Black and Latin American communities  Gang violence peaked in 1973 however declined with the popularity of hip hop

Documentary The Perfect Beat DJ Kool Herc Kraftwerk  The Beat Episode 10 The Beat Episode 10  Leading figures in Hip Hop: DJ Kool Herc Grand Master Flash Afrika Bambaataa Universal Zulu Nation  Sub- Culture graffiti and break dancing

DJ Kool Herc  Also known as Clive Campbell  Born in Kingston, Jamaica and moved to the South Bronx with his family  Clive hoseted parties with his sister Cindy began hosting parties where he DJ’d with a two-turntable system to the music of James Brown, the Temptations, Aretha Franklin, and others  Developped the “Merry-go-round” for dancers he called B-Boys and B-Girls  He also began to "emcee" between the transitions, talking and hyping up the crowd, which eventually became rapping.  DJ Kool Herc Explaining the "Merry-Go-Round“ DJ Kool Herc Explaining the "Merry-Go-Round  Rappers Delight Rappers Delight

Grand Master Flash  Grand Master Flash  Born in Bridgetown, Barbados however grew up in the Bronx  A large influence in his life was his father who listened to Caribbean and Black American records  He developed and mastered 3 innovations: 1. Backspin Technique 2. Punch Phrasing 3. Scratching  Grandmaster Flash Grandmaster Flash The Message

Afrika Bambaataa  Afrika Bambaataa  Born as Kevin Donovan  Joined the Savage Seven gang ( Black Spades)  Bambaataa had deep interest in music and politics  Officially changed his name to Afrika Bambaataa Aasim, adopting the name of the Zulu chief Bhambatha  Bambaataa formed a social group called the Zulus  Soulsonic Force – “Renegades of Funk”“Renegades of Funk”

Afrika Bambaataa Bambaataa declared: “When we made Hip Hop, we made it hoping it would be about peace, love, unity and having fun so that people could get away from the negativity that was plaguing our streets (gang violence, drug abuse, self hate, violence among those of African and Latino descent).” Looking for the Perfect Beat Music Video

Universal Zulu Nation  Afrika Bambaataa & Zulu Nation DocumentaryZulu Nation Documentary  Founded by Afrika Bambaataa and is the world`s largest & oldest Hip Hop organization  Originally made up of reformed gangsters. Sophisticated version of the Black Spades  Believed in helping any peaceful nation or race  Politically and socially aware, providing positive outlets  Bambaataa: “It's about survival, economics, and keeping our people moving on”

Graffiti  Originated in Philadelphia 1965 and moved to New York 1968  Self promotion of artists among peers  Early graffiti was not political  Popularity of graffiti was followed with strict anti-graffiti laws  Graffiti Video Graffiti Video

Michael Stewart  1982 Bronx NY  "If this had been a white boy who had been beaten by eleven Black officers, you would have had murder indictments within two days... What we have witnessed has been a farce, and all the players happened to be white. The six defendants, the six defense lawyers, the two prosecutors, the twelve jurors, the judge, and even every court officer in the well of the courtroom was white. the only Black person there was the victim, and he was unable to testify."

Discussion Question  We've discussed the issue of similar incidents of institutionalized racism in previous classes. But graffiti, as part of Hip Hop culture, is supposed to be an alternative mode of expression rather than participating in gang activity.  Is graffiti equally harmful to society as gang activity? Do you feel this is another example of a dominant culture suppressing the voice of visual minorities?

Break Dancing  Started when dancers at clubs started dancing to a particular part of the song.  The break - dancers became known as "breakers," or "b-boys" and "b-girls"  DJ's like Kool Herc noticed this trend, and they began to loop and mix the break for the dancers  1983 Roxy Competition 1983 Roxy Competition Video

End of Old School  there was apparent commercialization of Hip Hop  The movie Beat Street, featuring DJ Kool Herc, spread Hip Hop to a different audience  Run DMC was a new rap trio that came out of Queens, managed by Russell Simmons  “It’sTricky” Video “It’sTricky”  Run DMC Tricky Video

Discussion Question  Thinking about racial authenticity, how are subcultures more or less authentic than commercially produced media?  Does racial authenticity need to be compromised to gain representation in main stream media?

Discussion Question  How is location significant? Could hip-hop have developed anywhere else?  How is race a factor in the development of Hip Hop?  Why couldn't it be a bunch of white kids in a suburban area?

Discussion Question  So far in the seminar we have discussed issues surrounding representation in television and film, but how is representation different or similar to rap music?  What are the issues of representation in music? Consider the time period up to 1986.

Hip Hop Jeopardy!!!  Game Game