This chapter from a 2014-2015 series on early rap music focuses on how artists responded to the crack plague of the mid-to-late 1980s. It’s an example of how the culture has always illustrated current events throughout its history.
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Born in the 1980s, hip-house was a shotgun marriage between two hot springs of black innovation. Its reputation lies somewhere between unalloyed club bliss and pop kitsch.
View More First Wave Hip-House: 1988-1990It has been twenty-five years since Eric B & Rakim released their debut, Paid in Full, on July 7, 1987, so it’s easy to forget…
View More Hip-Hop & The Funky Drummer