Hip Hop Basics Flashcards
Learn the basics of the Hip Hop Nation: its history, its leaders, and its significance as a cultural movement.
What is the New York City neighborhood credited for the origins of hip-hop?
the South Bronx
The first rap song to reach the Bilboard Top 40 pop charts was…
“Rapper’s Delight” by The Sugar Hill Gang
Who is DJ known as the founder of hip-hop who spun breakbeats at parties in the South Bronx in 1972?
DJ Kool Herc
What is a “breakbeat” in hip-hop?
- spinning two of the same records and cutting back and forth in between them to prolong a beat
- the breakbeat is the origin of hip-hop instrumentals
What are the four elements of hip-hop culture?
- breaking (breakdancing)
- graffing (graffiti writing)
- MCing (rapping)
- DJing (working turntables)
What are two hip-hop terms for breakdancing?
- breaking
- BBoying
Name the competitive dance associated with hip-hop, developed in 1968 by Rubberband Man and Apache of Bushwick, Brooklyn.
uprocking
Name the style of breaking that incorporates the six-step and four-step combination moves.
footwork
or
downrocking
Name the two major dance techniques used in toprocking.
- uprocking
- popping and locking
What is the generic name for the breakdancing moves known as freezes, headspins, and windmills?
power moves
What does MC (“emcee”) stand for and who was the first MC?
- master of ceremonies
- Melle Mel of The Furious Five was the first rapper to identify as an MC
What is freestyling?
- improvisational rap
- often described as “off the top of the dome” (off the top of the head)
What is an MC battle?
- competitive rapping
- written or freestyle
- opponents undermine each other through words
Who was the MC of Boogie Down Productions and founder of the Temple of Hip Hop?
KRS-One
Who are the two members of The Juice Crew who created the song “The Bridge?”
- MC Shan
- Marley Marl
Who is credited with coining the term “hip-hop?”
Keith Cowboy (of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five)
What is beatboxing?
- mix of vocal percussion, verbal samples, and turntable emulation
- establishes a hip-hop instrumental background through voice
What is the name of an important peace gang in New York City established by Afrika Bambaata?
Universal Zulu Nation
Who were the founding members or groups of the hip- hop collective Native Tongues?
- Jungle Brothers
- De La Soul
- A Tribe Called Quest
- Prince Paul
- Kool DJ Red Alert
Doug E. Fresh, Rahzel, and Biz Markie are legends of what musical “instrument?”
beatboxing
What rap group’s distinctive dress and hit single “Walk This Way” first established a place for hip-hop in popular music?
Run-D.M.C.
What is the name of the major hip-hop recording label propelled to success by LL Cool J, The Beastie Boys, and Public Enemy?
Def Jam Recordings
What was Juice, and what was its significance to hip-hop?
- crime drama
- shot on location in Harlem, New York City
- starred Tupac Shakur and Omar Epps
- showcases DJing by including a DJ contest in the plot
Who were two rap legends whose lives were intertwined as best friends, arch enemies, and the leaders of a media war between East and West Coast hip-hop?
- Tupac Shakur
- Notorious B.I.G.
Who was the performer of the hit single “How to Rob” (1999), a prodigious fantasy about robbing all the biggest performers in hip-hop?
50 Cent
What is gangsta rap?
- genre of hip-hop that reflects the violent lifestyles of some inner-city youths
- pioneered in the mid-1980s
- now the most lucrative subgenre of hip-hop
Who created gansta rap?
- Schooly D
- Ice-T
- popularized in the late-1980s by groups like N.W.A.
What hip-hop artist recorded “Cop Killer,” a heavy metal song in reaction to police brutality in the 1992 Rodney King case?
Ice-T’s heavy metal band, Body Count
Name the members of New York-based swing hip-hop group Gang Starr.
- DJ Premier
- DJ Guru
Who is Snoop Doggy Dog?
- West Coast MC
- former Crips gang member
- mentored by Dr. Dre
- hit singles include “What’s My Name?” and “Gin and Juice”
- popularized “izzle” in vernacular speech, e.g., “for shizzle” (“for sure”)
Who is Master P?
- New Orleans rapper and entrepreneur
- founded No Limit Records (reorganized into New No Limit)
- paved the way for the new “Southern rap” style
- distributed several prominent artists, such as Snoop Dogg
Who are Outkast?
- composed of rappers Big Boi andAndre 3000
- hip-hop legends based near Atlanta, GA
- fused psychedelic funk with their Southern roots
- among most successful acts in history
- won six Grammy Awards
Who is Dr. Dre?
- West-Coast rapper and producer
- member of World Class Wreckin’ Cru and N.W.A.
- pioneered G-funk (gangsta funk)
- launched the careers of Snoop Dogg, Eminem, and 50 Cent
- almost exclusively produces others
- recorded two albums (The Chronic and 2001, collaborating with Snoop Dogg) to wide acclaim
Who is Public Enemy?
- Long Island-based hip-hop group
- songs included social commentary, accusations of racist politics
- “Fight the Power” (1989) became an anthem for the hip-hop community
Who was Big Pun?
- Bronx-based Latino rapper
- member of Terror Squad (led by Fat Joe)
- released Capital Punishment (1998), which went platinum and was nominated for a Grammy Award
Who is Jay-Z?
- Brooklyn-based rapper
- co-founded Roc-A-Fella records
- CEO of Def Jam Records
- one of rap’s most financially successful artists in history
What famous rap artists starred in the film Belly (1998)?
- DMX
- Nas
- Method Man
Who are the Wu Tang Clan?
- Staten Island, New York, hip-hop group
- founded by RZA, GZA, SUPREME, and Ol’ Dirty Bastard
- frequently sampled traditional Kung Fu movies
Name the original members of the Wu Tang Clan.
- RZA
- GZA
- Raekwon
- U-God
- Ghostface Killah
- Inspectah Deck
- Method Man
- Masta Killa
- Ol’ Dirty Bastard
Who is Redman?
- East Coast rapper
- was member of Def Squad in early-1990s
- part of a duo with Wu-Tang Clan member Method Man
- alias: Funk Doctor Spock
What city is Redman referring to when he mentions the Brick City in his rhymes?
Newark, NJ
Who was The Fresh Prince?
- Will Smith’s stage name at the start of his rapping career
- member of DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince
- won a Grammy Award in 1989 for “Parents Just Don’t Understand”
What is uprocking?
- competitive dance associated with hip-hop
- developed in 1968 by Rubberband Man and Apache of Buschwick, Brooklyn
- also incorporated funk, rock, and soul
- opponents non-violently “battle” through shuffles, turns, spins, “jerks,” and “burns”
What is footwork (or downrocking)?
a style of breaking in which the six-step and four-step are combination moves used to transition to “power moves”
What are uprocking and popping and locking?
- two major toprocking techniques
- drew on funk, rock, soul, and disco influences
What are three types of breakdancing power moves?
- freezes
- headspins
- windmills
Who is KRS-One?
- MC of Boogie Down Productions
- founder of the Temple of Hip Hop
- advocated the recognition of hip-hop by the UN as a cultural movement
Who were The Juice Crew?
- a collective of (mostly Queensbridge-based) musicians
- creators of “The Bridge,” a song that ignited historic feuds with KRS-One and Boogie Down Productions
Who is Afrika Bambaata?
- founder of Universal Zulu Nation, a peace gang in New York City
- famous for futuristic, techno-influenced hip-hop such as the single “Planet Rock”
Name three legends of beatboxing.
- Doug E. Fresh
- Rahzel
- Biz Markie
What did Run-D.M.C. frequently wear during performances?
- black leather jackets
- turtlenecks
- Cazal glasses
- fedoras
- fat gold chains
- Adidas Shelltoe sneakers
Name three acts (musicians or groups) that catapulted Def Jam Recordings to success.
- LL Cool J
- The Beastie Boys
- Public Enemy
Who is 50 Cent?
- an MC from Jamaica (Queens), New York
- brazenly challanged the biggest established performers in first single, “How To Rob” turning the hip-hop establishment on its ear
- 2003 album Get Rich or Die Tryin’ was a huge commercial success
What group and front vocalist provoked a backlash from law enforcement and even President Bush against their violent “protest” song, “Cop Killer,” in 1992?
Ice-T’s Body Count
