Roots in the city. Great time

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Phillis Weatly

Service learning

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Hip Hop

Hip-Hop

Among all the cultural movements that I have the chance to experienced and explore, I must admit that the hip hop movement has always had an impact that any other one had. Not only because I come from a black nation, but also because it was the one that I had the chance to live, to feel and to see evolving. Artists like 2-pac Shakur, Notorious B.I.G and Jay-Z had been a big influence on me ever since I begun listening to them. With them I’ve learned to listen to lyrics and try to understand an artist. Well enough about me. This paper is not about me or what hip hop has given to me, but about the movement, the culture, where it came from and where it’s going, it’s good and bad sides, advantages and disadvantages, it’s impact on our life today. In this paper we will talk about: The history of hip hop and is evolution trough time.

The history of hip hop

Hip hop is both a movement and a music genre developed in New York City around the 1970’s by African Americans.

Hip hop movement

Hip hop is a subculture, which is said to have begun with the work of DJ Kool Herc, Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five, and Afrika Bambaattaa. The four main aspects, or "elements", of hip hop culture are MCing (rapping), DJing, urban inspired art/tagging (graffiti), and b-boying (or break dancing). The most known "extended" elements are beat boxing, hip hop fashion, hip hop slang.

1- Mcing ( rapping)

Derived form the griots, folk poets, of west Africa, the Caribbean, American blues and jazz, rapping is a rhythmic delivery of rhymes. The word rap has been consider of a acronym of the phrases "Rhythmic American Poetry", "Rhythm and Poetry", "Rhythmically Applied Poetry", or "Rhythmically Associated Poetry", but use of the describe quick and slangy speech or repartee long predates the musical form. Rapping can be delivered over a beat or without accompaniment.

Rapping developed both inside and outside of hip hop since Jamaican expatriate Kool Herc first began doing his dancehall toasting in New York in the 1970s. In the 1980s, the success of groups like Run-DMC led to a huge wave of commercialized rap music. By the end of the 1990s, hip hop became widely accepted in mainstream music. Underground Hip-hop rapping from the 2000s has complex rhythms, cadences, an intricate poetic form, and inventive wordplay. Rap lyrics convey the street life from which hip hop originally emerged with references to popular culture and hip-hop slang. Although rap has become an international phenomenon, many types of rap deal with issues such as race, socioeconomic class, and gender.

2- Djing

A DJ or Disc Jockey is a person who selects and plays prerecorded music for an audience. Although hip hop didn’t invented DJing, it has added a flavor that revolutionized the profession and extended its boundaries and techniques. The first hip hop DJ was Kool DJ Herc, who created hip hop through the isolation of "breaks" (the parts of albums that focused solely on the beat). In addition to developing Herc's techniques, DJs Grandmaster Flash, Grand Wizard Theodore, and Grandmaster Caz made further innovations with the introduction of “scratching”.

3- Graffiti

Graffiti are images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property. Concerning our topic, modern hip hop graffiti appeared in Philadelphia and has spread in New York City. . The book Subway Art (New York: Henry Holt & Co, 1984) and the TV program Style Wars (first shown on the PBS channel in 1984) were among the first ways the mainstream public were introduced to graffiti. Quickly, the rest of the globe imitated and adapted hip hop graffiti. Today, there are also strong scenes in Europe, South America, Australia and Japan.

4- B-boying

B-boying, also known as breaking, breakdancing, or B-girling (for women) by its practitioners and followers, is a dynamic style of dance. The "B" in B-boy stands for break, as in break-boy (or girl).The term "B-boy" originated from the dancers at DJ Kool Herc's parties, who saved their best dance moves for the break section of the song, getting in front of the audience to dance in a distinctive, frenetic style. According to the documentary film The Freshest Kids, a history of the b-boy; DJ Kool Herc describes the b in b-boy as short for breaking which at the time was slang for "going off" also one of the original names for the dance. However, early on the dance was known as the "boiong" (the sound a spring makes). Breaking was briefly documented for release to a world wide audience for the first time in Style Wars, and was later given a little more focus in the fictional film Beat Street.

Hip Hop music

Hip hop music is a style of popular music, typically consisting of a rhythmic, rhyming vocal style called rapping (also known as emceeing) over backing beats and scratching performed on a turntable by a DJ. Emceeing, DJing, breakdancing and graffiti art comprise the four elements of hip hop, a cultural movement which began in New York City in the 1970s, predominantly among African Americans and Latinos.^[1] The term rap music is sometimes used synonymously with hip hop music, though it is also used to refer specifically to the practice of rapping.

Typically, hiphop music consists of one or more rappers speaking/chanting semi-autobiographic tales, or often, coded information in an intensely rhythmic lyrical form, making abundant use of techniques like assonance, alliteration, and rhyme. Though rap may be performed a cappella, it is more common for the rapper(s) to be accompanied by a DJ or a live band providing an appropriate beat. This beat is often from the percussion of a different song, usually rock, funk, or soul, and is sometimes sampled. In addition to the beat, other sounds are often sampled, synthesized, or performed. Though rap is usually an integral component of hip hop music, instrumental and non-rap Electro acts such as Planet Patrol are also defined as hip hop music groups.

The creation of the term hip hop is often credited to Keith Cowboy, a rapper with Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five. Though Lovebug Starski, Keith Cowboy, and DJ Hollywood used the term when the music was still known as “disco rap”, it is believed that Cowboy created the term while teasing a friend who had just joined the U.S. Army, by scat singing the words "hip/hop/hip/hop" in a way that mimicked the rhythmic cadence of marching soldiers. Cowboy later worked the "hiphop" cadence into a part of his stage performance, which was quickly copied by other artists; for example the opening of the song "Rapper's Delight" by The Sugarhill Gang. Former Black Spades gang member Afrika Bambaataa is credited with first using the term to describe the subculture that hiphop music belongs to, although it is also suggested that the term was originally derisively used against the new type of music.

Evolution of Hip Hop

1- 1970’s

We can say that everything started during this decade. The Roots of Hip Hop are really deep. It comes from African-American and West African music. The Griots of West Africa are a group of traveling singers and poets, whose musical style is reminiscent of hiphop. Within New York City, griot-like performances of poetry and music by artists such as The Last Poets and Jalal Mansur Nuriddin had a great impact on the post-civil rights era culture of the 1960s and 1970s. Hip hop arose during the 1970s when block parties became common in New York City, especially the Bronx. Block parties were usually accompanied by music, especially funk and soul music. The early DJs at block parties began isolating the percussion breaks to hit songs, realizing that these were the most dance-able and entertaining parts; this technique was then common in Jamaica and had spread via the substantial Jamaican immigrant community in New York City, especially the "godfather" of hiphop, DJ Kool Herc.

Due to the impopularity of Reggea music in New York, Herc, one of the most popular DJs in early 70s New York, switched from using reggae records to funk, rock and, later, disco. Because the percussive breaks were generally short, Herc and other DJs began extending them using an audio mixer and two records. Mixing and scratching techniques eventually developed along with the breaks. (The same techniques contributed to the popularization of remixes.) Such looping, sampling and remixing of another's music, usually without the original artist's knowledge or consent, can be seen as an evolution of Jamaican Dub music, and would become a hallmark of the hiphop style.

Later, the MCs grew more varied in their vocal and rhythmic approach, incorporating brief rhymes, often with a sexual or scatological theme, in an effort at differentiating themselves and entertaining the audience. These early raps incorporated similar rhyming lyrics from African American culture, such as the dozens. While Kool Herc & the Herculoids were the first hiphoppers to gain major fame in New York, more emcee teams quickly followed . Frequently, these were collaborations between former gang members, such as Afrikaa Bambaataa's Universal Zulu Nation (now a large, international organization). Melle Mel, a rapper/lyricist with The Furious Five is often credited with being the first rap lyricist to call himself an "MC." During the early 1970s, breakdancing arose during block parties, as b-boys and b-girls got in front of the audience to dance in a distinctive, frenetic style. The style was documented for release to a world wide audience for the first time in Beat Street.

Although there were many early MCs that recorded solo projects of note, such as DJ Hollywood, Kurtis Blow, and Spoonie Gee, real notoriety didn't appear until later with the rise of soloists with big stage presence and drama, such as LL Cool J. Most early Hiphop was dominated by groups where collaboration among the members was integral to the show.

2- 1980’s

The 1980s saw intense diversification in hiphop, which developed into a more complex form. As technology evolved so did the practice of looping break into breakbeats; the emergence of samplers and sequencers allowed the beats to be manipulated with greater precision and granularity and recombined in more complex new ways than was possible with vinyl alone. In 1984, Marley Marl accidentally caught a drum machine snare hit in the sampler; this innovation was vital in the development of electro and other later types of hiphop. In 1989, DJ Mark James under the moniker "45 King", released "The 900 Number", a breakbeat track created by synchronizing samplers and vinyl. (Toop, 2000)

The content evolved as well. The simple tales of 1970s emcees were replaced by highly metaphoric lyrics rapping over complex, multi-layered beats. Some rappers even became mainstream pop performers, including Kurtis Blow, whose appearance in a Sprite commercial made him the first hiphop musician to be considered mainstream enough to represent a major product, but also the first to be accused by the hip-hop audience of selling out. Another popular performer among mainstream audiences was LL Cool J, who was a success from the release of his first LP, Radio.

Hiphop was almost entirely unknown outside of the United States prior to the 1980s. During that decade, it began its spread to every inhabited continent and became a part of the music scene in dozens of countries. In the early part of the decade, breakdancing became the first aspect of Hiphop culture to reach Germany, Japan and South Africa, where the crew Black Noise established the practice before beginning to rap later in the decade. Meanwhile, recorded hiphop was released in France (Dee Nasty's 1984 Paname City Rappin') and the Philippines (Dyords Javier's "Na Onseng Delight" and Vincent Dafalong's "Nunal"). In Puerto Rico, Vico C became the first Spanish language rapper, and his recorded work was the beginning of what became known as reggaeton. But the worst was yet to come.

It was the mid 80’s when it hit. The most commercialized style of hip hop: Gangsta Rap. Gangsta rap is a subgenre of hip-hop music which developed during the late 1980s. 'Gangsta' is a variation on the spelling of 'gangster'. The subject matter inherent in gangsta rap has caused a great deal of controversy. Criticism has come from both right wing and left wing commentators, and religious leaders, who have accused the genre of homophobia, violence, profanity, promiscuity, misogyny, drug use, racism, and materialism.

Gangsta rappers often defend themselves by claiming that they are describing the reality of inner-city life, and that they are only adopting a character, like an actor playing a role, which behaves in ways that they may not necessarily endorse. Some commentators (for example, Spike Lee in his satirical film Bamboozled) have criticized it as analogous to black minstrel shows and blackface performance, in which performers – both black and white – were made up to look African American, acted in a stereotypically uncultured and ignorant manner for the entertainment of white audiences.

It gave birth to a rivalry that would shake the whole music business in the 1990’s

3- 1990’s

In the 1990s, gangsta rap became mainstream, beginning in about 1992, with the release of Dr. Dre's The Chronic. This album established a style called G Funk, which soon came to dominate West Coast hiphop. Later in the decade, record labels based out of Atlanta, St. Louis and New Orleans gained fame for their local scenes. By the end of the decade, especially with the success of Eminem, hiphop was an integral part of popular music, and nearly all American pop songs had a major hiphop component.

In the 90s and into the following decade, elements of hiphop continued to be assimilated into other genres of popular music; nu soul, for example, combined hiphop and soul music and produced some major stars in the middle of the decade, while in the Dominican Republic, a recording by Santi Y Sus Duendes and Lisa M became the first single of merenrap, a fusion of hiphop and merengue.

New York City experienced a heavy Jamaican hiphop influence during the 90s. This influence was brought on by cultural shifts particularly due to the heightened immigration of Jamaicans to New York City, and the American-born Jamaican youth who were coming of age during the 90s. Hiphop artists such as De La Soul and Black Star have both produced albums influenced by Jamaican roots.

In Europe, Africa and Asia, hiphop began to move from an underground phenomenon to reach mainstream audiences. In South Africa, Germany, France, Italy and many other countries, hiphop stars rose to prominence and gradually began to incorporate influences from their own country, resulting in fusions like Tanzanian Bongo Flava.

The west coast

West Coast hip hop, is a style of hip hop music that originated in California in the early 1980s. It has since grown into a sub-genre of hip hop and has developed several creative centers, most of which are in African American communities in California. It dominated the hip-hop air waves in the early and mid-1990s with the popularity of G-funk. The release of Dr. Dre's The Chronic was the spark that led to the West Coast's peak.

The creation of this style is going to lead to a rivalry between 2 rappers that go by the name of: 2pac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G aka Biggie Smalls aka Big Poppa. These two magnificent rappers, were engaged in a gang battle that ended with the murder of both of them.

4- 2000

The Marshall Mathers LP by Eminem sold over nine million copies in the United States, and Nelly's debut LP, Country Grammar, sold over six million copies. In the next several years, a wave of increasingly pop-oriented crossover acts such as Ja Rule dominated American popular music. It was not until the sudden breakthrough success of the hard-edged 50 Cent that hardcore hiphop returned to the pop charts. The United States also saw the rise of alternative hiphop in the form of moderately popular performers like The Roots, Dilated Peoples and Mos Def, who achieved unheard-of success for their field.

As the decade progressed, hip-hop has transformed from the more or less "old school" rhythmic rap to a more melodic hip-hop that has the elements of jazz, classical, pop, reggae, and many other genres. Hip-hop also gave birth to subgenres such as snap music and crunk. Hip-hop influences also found their way into mainstream pop during this period as well.

Some countries, like Tanzania, maintained popular acts of their own in the early 2000s, though many others produced few homegrown stars, instead following American trends. Scandinavian, especially Danish and Swedish, performers became well known outside of their country, while hip-hop continued its spread into new lands, including Russia, Japan, Philippines, Canada and China.

Conclusion

Hip hop is the reflection of what’s going on in the ghetto. Most of the products of this cultural movement: books, music and movies, shows the reality of the African American life in the United States. It has become the voice of the people and a way to say hey America, we are here and we have rights. Going trough this paper, I’ve learned a lot in the history of this innovative movement. I can’t say that I’m part of this movement because of my roots, but I can feel it and I love it.

The heist of “La Citadelle”

As we know, the island of Haiti is occupied by two countries, Haiti and the Dominican Republic. They are totally different from one another socially, historically and culturally and because of these differences some kind of rivalry had been built over the years. Even tough this rivalry exist some kind of line must not be crossed.

It was a Friday morning when we decided to go to Cabarete. I was studying in la PUCMM (Pontifica Universidad Madre y maestra) in Santiago de los Caballeros. I was in my second semester there. So we took the road, my two housemates and I hoping to have a great week end on the beach getting a tan and meeting some girls. When we got there a few hours later we met with Robert, a Mexican American that was studying in the Dominican Republic for a couple years. He told us that there was a change of plans and that we were going to Barahona, near the Haitian border. We said ok and headed there. We got there an hour after and we went to a little local bar to grab a beer and plan our schedule. While we were talking, a bus full of tourist stopped by for them to by some refreshments and some food for the rest of their trip. One of them, an American named Stanley came to us and asks us some question. He told us how this country was beautiful and how rich and divers the culture is. He also told us that he has visited one of the greatest monuments he saw in his life. When we asked him witch one was it, he told us: la citadelle.

We were so shocked that we couldn’t answer him. My friend Mike, surprised, made sure to ask him again: which monuments did u see? And he answered: La citadelle. There it was, one of the biggest humiliations ever. La citadelle, witch is in cap Haitian, located in the north side of the country and second biggest city after Port-au-Prince (politically and economically speaking). Constructed by the king Henry Christophe in 1808, La citadelle La Ferriere was a Fort that was suppose to defend the new nation, at that time, against France. It is one of are greatest and precious historical monument and he Dominicans are telling people from other countries that it’s their’s. Because the north part of the frontier is really week in the Haitian side, they pass by Baraona, that is the town right next to the border, on the north side of the DR, and find their way to Cap Haitian telling the tourist they are still in the Dominican Republic. When they arrive there they make them visit La citadelle.

In a way it is our fault or worst it is totally our fault, us Haitian. Our system is so week that it can’t defend a monument as symbolic as la citadelle. I’m sure that some of us know and don’t say anything about it because this sense of patriotism is dead within us. We have forgotten about Jean-Jacques Dessalines, Alexandre Petion and Henri Christophe. What would they say if they were there? We need to ask our self this question. We need to remember what they fought for witch brings back the very existence of this fort. This is a violation of our country, of are forefathers and of are pride.