The History and Influence of Hip Hop
Hip Hop has cultivated its own following for a long time running now. Hip Hop has single-handedly dominated the music scene—in fact, its birthday just happened to be last month!
Part of the celebration of this major milestone was a concert. At a concert held at Yankee Stadium to celebrate Hip Hop music, fans and the artists showed up dressed in different variations of popular trends throughout the 70s, 80s, and 90s. During this event, many famous hip hop artists like Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, and Nas performed at the concert. This event was even billed as “Hip Hop 50 Live.”
Along with the concert, Hip Hop artists Jadakiss, Ja Rule, and Ashanti all showed up at the Empire State Building, which was lit up in honor of Hip Hop’s 50th Birthday. The popularity of these events demonstrated the loyalty of hip hop fans.
Despite it being experimented with in the 1970s, Hip Hop didn’t really get its chance in the spotlight until the late 1980s and early 1990s, when influential and recognizable names like Tupac Shakur, The Notorious B.I.G., MC Hammer, Nas, and Snoop Dogg broke new grounds with their music.
By the end of the 1990s, Hip Hop was a major mainstream genre that inspired many high-profile artists like Lil Wayne, Timbaland, Nelly, Ja Rule, Jay-Z, DMX, and 50 Cent. Because of these major artists, in 1995, the Grammys added a new award category for Best Rap Album, which solidified Hip Hop as a popular genre in the music industry.
In the 2000s, new trends began to happen in Hip Hop. A new genre was created, called Alternative Hip Hop. Artists became influenced by jazz, punk, indie rock, and electronic music, allowing for more diversity.
When you think about Hip Hop now, though, who do you think of? Nicki Minaj? Tupac Shakur? Queen Latifah? Kanye West? These artists have cultivated such a large following that they are household names. This is because of the huge influence they have had on the music industry as a whole. To celebrate Hip Hop is to commemorate a genre that has allowed for greater diversity in the music industry and the new ground they break.
