Rap
Also known as Hip-hop rap
A concise, evidence-based rap entry that keeps the focus on the Bronx origins, the DJ/MC foundation, and a couple of canonical early recordings.
Origins and context
Documented early rap developed in the Bronx’s 1970s block-party and DJ-led hip-hop scene, drawing on African American spoken-word and musical traditions and on Jamaican toasting brought into New York’s party culture.
The sound
Characteristics
- Rhythmic spoken delivery
- Rhyme patterns
- DJ turntables
- Drum machine or sampled beat
- Microphone
History
Rap’s early documented history is tied to the Bronx in the 1970s, where block parties, DJ innovation, and MC routines turned party music into a new public language. The Library of Congress notes that the style grew out of older African American musical and spoken-word traditions, while the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame highlights DJ Kool Herc’s 1973 Bronx party as a key moment in shaping the breakbeat approach that rap developed around. (loc.gov) By the late 1970s, recorded rap was beginning to reach a wider audience through releases such as The Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight,” and early 1980s records like Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five’s “The Message” helped show that rap could carry sharp social observation as well as party energy. From there, the genre spread far beyond New York and kept branching outward, but its earliest documented shape still feels rooted in the sound of a crowd, a mic, and a beat that never quite stands still. (loc.gov)
Notable artists
- TSThe Sugarhill Gang
- GFGrandmaster Flash & The Furious Five
Essential listening
- 1
- 2
- 3
The Sugarhill Gang
- 4
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five
Explore connected genres
Sources and further reading
- loc.gov
Rap’s early documented development is tied to Bronx block parties in the 1970s.
- DJ Kool Herc | Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
- Apple Music
The Sugarhill Gang’s "Rapper’s Delight" was a major early recorded rap hit.
- Apple Music
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five’s "The Message" is a landmark early rap recording.
- Early Hip-Hop at the Library of Congress