The Birth of Peaceful Movement

On August 11th 2023, we celebrated 50 years of Hip Hop. To pay homage to the most dominant culture in today's world, I keep sharing with you a series of articles about my passion for it.

THE ORIGINS

In this short article below, you'll have a chance to get through all the basics of the Hip hop culture, from its very early days in the Bronx in '73 to the key parents of the movement and its main pillars and values.

Relax And Take Notes.

It's your Birthday

What we call today "Hip Hop" is an urban movement that seeds its origins in The Bronx where, on August 11th, 1973, a young Jamaican-immigrant named Clive 'DJ Kool Herc' Campbell organized the first Block Party at 1520 Sedgwick avenue, in the Bronx district in New-York City, USA.

The term Hip-Hop itself comes from Keith "Cowboy" Wiggins, a member of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. Cowboy is credited with coining the term in 1978 while teasing a friend who had just joined the US Army by scat-singing the made-up words "hip/hop/hip/hop" in a way that mimicked the rhythmic cadence of marching soldiers. Cowboy later worked the "hip hop" cadence into his stage performance.

Check out the full Hip-Hop page on Wikipedia.

The pioneers

Among the parents of this new-born Culture, we have to mention:

• Clive Campbell aka DJ Kool Herc - the godfather of Hip-hop,
• Cindy Campbell - Clive's older sister and godmother of Hip-hop,
• Joseph Saddler aka DJ Grandmaster Flash - inventor of turntablism and the first DJ ever,
• Robert Keith 'Cowboy' Wiggins - inventor of the term "Hip-Hop" and member of The Furious Five,
• Coke LaRock - first emcee or credited as the first rapper,
• Lance Taylor aka Afrika Bambaataa - leader of the Universal Zulu Nation and member of the Black Spades gang in The Bronx,
• Theodore Livingston aka Grand Wizard Theodore - inventor of the scratching technique,
• The Sugarhill Gang, the hip-hop trio who recorded the first Rap single ever, "Rapper's Delight".

The values

The people passionate about Hip-hop stand behind the motto

"Peace, Love, Unity, and Having Fun."

A concept promoted mainly by Afrika Bambaataa and the Zulu Nation as the solution to stop gang wars in the boroughs of New York City in the late 70s and switch from guns and knife fights to breakdance battles.

The 5 pillars

Hip-hop isn't just about rap music.

It is a true Culture grounded in the urban environment via 5 main disciplines: 1) DJing or Turntabling, 2) Writing or Graffiti, 3) Breakdancing, 4) Beatboxing, and 5) MCing.

It first starts with a DJ (Kool Herc) behind two turntables plugged together, creating a repeated loop of breakbeats so dancers (b-boys and b-girls) can keep practicing their moves (breakdance). Very often, the DJ was helped by an Emcee (Master of Ceremony) to energize the audience by spitting punchlines and jokes on the microphone.

During the same period, writers from NYC left their mark on the subway and Big Apple's walls.

What are YOUR early memories of Hip-hop?

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Adrien Rosier