Hip hop Facts for Kids

Two hip hop DJs creating new music by mixing tracks from multiple record players. Pictured are DJ Hypnotize (left) and Baby Cee (right).

A graffiti artist uses his artwork to make a satirical social statement on censorship: "Don't blame yourself... blame hip hop"

Hip hop is a type of culture/art style that started in the 1970s. It began in Jamaican-American, African-American, and Latino-American urban areas in some of the larger cities of the United States. Hip hop uses a style of singing called rapping. The singer or group chants or says words with a rhythm that rhymes. The lyrics of hip hop songs are often about the life of urban people in the big cities. Hip hop music also uses musical styles from pop music such as disco and reggae. Rap and hip hop music have become successful music genres.

Hip hop as a culture involves the music as well as a style of dressing called "urban" clothes (baggy pants, Timberland leather work boots, and oversize shirts); a dancing style called breakdancing or "B-Boying"; and graffiti, a street art in which people paint pictures or words on walls. In the 2000s, hip hop music and hip hop culture are very popular in the United States and Canada. Hip hop musicians usually use nicknames. Many of the popular hip hop musicians from the 2000s use nicknames, such as Snoop Dogg, Jay-Z, Eminem, Lil' Wayne, and 50-Cent.

Rapping

Rapper, entrepreneur and executive Jay-Z emphasizes his wealth.

Rapping is a form of singing. It is a mix between singing and talking. The words are spoken with rhythm and in the text there are rhymes. African-Americans made rhyming games based on rap. The beat in the background is a simple loop that is sometimes made by the rapper themself or sometimes copied from a sample CD. The simple loop carries out through the entire song usually, except for the chorus. It developed in the ethnic minority urban (city) areas, as an American form of Jamaican "toasting" (chanting and rhyming with a microphone).

Run DMC and The Sugarhill Gang were early popular hip hop groups in the 1980s. When rappers began to use violent language and gestures, the music was then liked by gangsters. This kind of music was called "gangsta rap". This genre began in the 1980s and is still produced.

Some well known early rappers include: Tupac Shakur, Snoop Dogg, The Notorious B.I.G., Eminem, and Sean "P-Diddy" Combs.

More modern rappers include 50-Cent, Eminem, Jay-Z, Nas, and Kanye West. Rap is now produced in almost every nation of the world.

The fastest rapper according to Guinness World Records is Ricky Brown from the United States. On January 15, 2005, he rapped 723 syllables in 51.27 seconds from his track.

Images for kids

Afrika Bambaataa with DJ Yutaka of Universal Zulu Nation in 2004
DJ Kool Herc, a Jamaican DJ, is recognized as one of the earliest hip hop DJs and artists. Some credit him with officially originating hip hop music through his 1973 "Back to School Jam".
1520 Sedgwick Avenue, the Bronx, a venue used by Kool Herc that is often considered the birthplace of hip hop on August 11, 1973.
The Sugarhill Gang used disco band Chic's "Good Times" as the source of beats for their 1979 hip hop hit "Rapper's Delight". Pictured is the Sugarhill Gang at a 2016 concert.
DJ Jazzy Jeff, who is also a record producer, manipulating a record turntable in England in 2005.
The Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer, a staple sound of hip hop
DJ Marley Marl.
Grandmaster Flash performing in 1999.
Run-DMC, from left to right: Joseph "Run" Simmons, Jason "Jam Master Jay" Mizell, and Darryl "D.M.C." McDaniels.
KRS-One and his Boogie Down Productions were key performers in golden age hip hop.
Flavor Flav of Public Enemy performing in 1991.
Wu-Tang Clan at the Virgin Festival in 2007.
Dr. Dre performing with Snoop Dogg, 2012
Rapper Scarface from the southern U.S. group Geto Boys.
Birdman performing in 2010
Eminem performing in Munich, Germany in 1999.
50 Cent performing in 2012.
The Glitch Mob performing in the Netherlands in 2010
Producer Lil Jon is one of crunk's most prominent figures
Soulja Boy in an interview with Bandai Namco Entertainment at E3 2018.
While hip hop music sales dropped a great deal in the mid-late 2000s, rappers like Flo Rida were successful online and with singles, despite low album sales.
Kanye West performing in 2008
In 2009, Time magazine placed M.I.A. in the Time 100 list of "World's Most Influential People"
Cupcakke in 2018
Lil Nas X was one of the rappers to emerge in the 2010s. He garnered mainstream success in 2019. He is also the first successful openly gay rapper.
Doja Cat was the most streamed rapper of 2021 on Spotify.
The most streamed hip hop album of all time on Spotify is XXXTentacion's second album, ? (2018).
Pete Rock performing at Razel and Friends – Brooklyn Bowl, 2016
De La Soul at the Gorillaz tour, Demon Days Live in 2005
The annual Blockfest in Tampere, Finland is the largest hip hop music event in the Nordic countries and also one of the best-selling festivals in advance. Picture of Blockfest in 2017.
The German rapper Fler in 2011.

Hip hop facts for kids

Rapping

Images for kids

See also