Celebrating fifty years of hip-hop.
Let's pay some respect to some of the greatest MC’s to ever pick up a mic.
artwork by Tanaya Vohra.
How do we define hip-hop?
Intelligent or ignorant? Empowering or divisive? Well that's just it, you can’t really define an art form that doubles as a deeply cultural phenomenon. To me, hip-hop is revolutionary.
If you watched the VMAs or the BET Awards this year, you probably saw a plethora of artists take center stage to celebrate hip-hop’s 50th birthday. The genre has birthed household names from Jay-Z and 2Pac to Nicki Minaj and Drake. Whatever your opinions on these individual artists may be, every last one of them has left their own stamp on the rap game. Considering how long and complex its history is, it would be impossible to cover every essential artist, album, and song in this article. However, hopefully you will learn something new, and are inspired to check out some new tunes to add to your library. I’ve even linked a playlist at the end of this article for you to spin.
Hip-hop was born in 1973 in the Bronx, New York. With roots in jazz, r&b, blues, and reggae, the genre combines punchy poetry, strong percussion, and distinctive melodies to make tracks teeming with emotion and charisma. The wider cultural movement of hip hop was founded on four main pillars: DJing, break dancing, graffiti art, and rapping, and became a way for artists to freely express themselves, unfiltered and unimpeded by restrictive social and political powers. DJ Kool Herc is considered the godfather of the genre as he was the first to isolate the “break beat”—the part where the drums play alone—which allowed dancers and MC’s to perform on the beat.
In only 50 years, the genre has already seen major shifts. During the 1970s, hip-hop was largely local to New York and its party scene. DJs created new sounds and dancers created new moves, with MCs throwing a few rhymes over the beat. More pointed lyricism stamped the 1980s: with an evolving penchant for social commentary, many hip-hop artists adopted political stances, empowering African Americans to challenge and overcome racial discrimination. But rap music really went global in the ‘90s. The rise of gangsta rap as a subgenre—with artists like 2Pac, The Notorious B.I.G., and Nas—propelled hip-hop to become one of the most popular yet controversial genres. Hip-hop’s prominence continued to rise in the 2000s, but the spotlight shifted from street level spitters to nonconformists like Kanye West and OutKast. Evolving again in the last decade, it now goes without saying that hip-hop has become one of the most multifaceted musical umbrellas on the planet. Navigating such a deep and varied genre can be difficult, so whether you’re a rap purist like me or simply want to learn more, here is a deep dive into some of the key artists from each decade.
The 1980s
Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five
Have you heard of Coi Leray’s song, “Players”? Well, that catchy instrumental is actually sampled from Grandmaster Flash’s 1980s hit “The Message,” widely considered to be the “first nationally recognized progressive rap statement.” The famous lyric “It’s like a jungle sometimes / it makes me wonder how I keep from going under” resonated with many disenfranchised people in New York who struggled under the weight of the drug epidemic and mass incarceration. The song’s popularity highlighted how hip-hop provided a platform for artists to narrate their experiences, which in turn inspired others to educate and mobilize the Black community at large through their music. Considering this history, I was kinda disappointed with Coi Leray’s version, which waters down this classic entirely.
Essentials: “The Message,” “It's Nasty,” “Freedom”
KRS-One/Boogie Down Productions
“Woop Woop! That’s the sound of da Police!”
KRS-One is deemed one of the first artists to promote a “politically conscious underclass” among African Americans through his album By All Means Necessary, which incorporated popular messages of self-determination inspired by the visionary Malcolm X. He furthered his efforts with the “Stop the Violence” campaign, which taught young Black men about the impact of violence in their communities and educated them on their responsibilities to society. The notion of education was central to KRS-One, who not only endeavored to provide social advice but directly criticized the American education system for its lack of inclusion of African American political theorists.
Essentials: “Sound of Da Police,” “Stop the Violence,” “My Philosophy”
Public Enemy
As their name suggests, these guys did not come to play. Public Enemy were originally a group of students who endeavored to fuse hip-hop with political activism. Their song “Fight The Power” was featured on the soundtrack for Spike Lee’s landmark film Do the Right Thing. Just like KRS-One, PE was intellectually present in the rap scene and the larger Black community. The group was affiliated with the Nation of Islam and produced songs echoing some of the teachings of Minister Louis Farrakhan like “Bring The Noise” and “Don’t Believe the Hype.”
Essentials: “Rebel Without A Pause,” “Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos,” “911 Is a Joke”
NWA
This gangsta-rap collective’s first album, Straight Outta Compton, was one of the first records to receive the “Parental Advisory, Explicit Content” warning. NWA were certainly not afraid of criticizing white America, and their popularity also drew direct attention from the US government, who even went so far as to ban them from performing certain songs. They performed them anyway.
Essentials: “Straight Outta Compton,” “F**k tha Police,” “Express Yourself”
Want more 80s rap? Check out: Run DMC; Erik B and Rakim; Big Daddy Kane; LL Cool J
The 1990s
2Pac
2Pac has a GOAT case. As the son of Afeni Shakur, a prominent member of the Black Panther Party, California-based rapper Tupac Shakur quickly became a magnetic, politically charged figure who rarely censored the content of his verses. He condemned governmental structures and painted bleak images of his own experiences as a Black man. You’ll undoubtedly notice parallels between these sentiments and those of Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five’s “jungle” narrative from a decade prior. His artistic education led him to have a unique rhyme style, fusing immaculate poetry with emotion.
Essentials: “Ambitionz Az a Ridah,” “Changes,” “Brenda’s Got a Baby”
The Notorious B.I.G
Flows, flows and more flows. Biggie was one of the coolest rappers to ever step foot in the game. His voice and his immaculate wordplay were not comparable to any other MC, and the content of his rhymes were diverse and encapsulating. My personal hot take is that Jay-Z would not be Jay-Z if it weren’t for Biggie—he’s paid homage to so many of Big’s iconic bars. Biggie’s influence is still felt decades later with rappers like Pusha T, who based his album Hell Hath No Fury off Biggie’s unique style.
Essentials: “Warning,” “Young G’s,” “Juicy”
Nas
Nominated at the GRAMMYs this year for Rap Album Of the Year, Nas is an artist who shows no signs of slowing down. Nearly three decades ago, he dropped arguably the greatest debut album ever with Illmatic. The ten track masterpiece encapsulated life as a young New Yorker growing up in Queens. It would’ve been impressive at any age, but Nas started writing bars for Illmatic at 16 years old, and yet still he was able to intelligently address loaded issues like violence within his community. Drawing on his own life experiences that were equal parts harrowing and inspiring, Nas is one of hip-hop’s greatest storytellers ever.
Essentials: “New York State of Mind,” “If I Ruled The World,” “Nas Is Like”
Lauryn Hill
Lauryn Hill’s only solo studio album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is a masterful fusion of hip-hop and R&B that focused on Black love, womanhood, and motherhood. Lauryn Hill’s success challenged the negative media stereotypes of hip-hop as a violent genre, and her “unapologetically black aesthetic” subverted American social standards of beauty as she made appearances on the cover of TIME and other popular publications. Immediately recognized as one of hip-hop’s seminal records upon release, Miseducation has also aged beautifully, achieving diamond status and becoming one of the genre’s highest selling albums of all time.
Essentials: “Killing Me Softly with His Song,” “Doo Wop,” “Ex-Factor”
Want more 90s rap? Check out: A Tribe Called Quest; Wu-Tang Clan; Snoop Dogg; Mobb Deep; Queen Latifah; Lil Kim
The 2000s
OutKast
Yes, Andre 3000 just dropped a flute album. But, he remains the greatest rapper of all time in my opinion. The East vs West Coast rivalry largely dominated hip-hop during the 80s and 90s, but this Atlantan duo broke through the dichotomy. Indeed, “The South got something to say!” Andre and Big Boi’s unique aesthetic, flows, and lyrical content garnered the attention of millions. Their most successful project was 2003’s SpeakerBoxxx/The Love Below, a double album which stepped away from narrating social strife and instead dealt with Black male identity and the complex nature of relationships. This album went diamond with over 13 million sales, and the timeless single “Hey Ya!” dominated the Billboard Hot 100 with nine weeks at #1. The duo also challenged traditional masculinity through their fashion choices, which set a precedent for contemporary artists like Young Thug and Tyler, the Creator to continue pushing the culture forward.
Essentials: “Ms Jackson,” “So Fresh, So Clean,” “Aquemini”
Eminem
Eminem’s legacy is undeniable. He is the most commercially successful hip-hop artist of all time with over 200 million records sold, and he was the first white rapper to really dominate in an overwhelmingly African-American space. (You can decide for yourself if those two facts are correlated at all, but I digress.) To his credit, Em frequently collaborated with huge acts such as Dr. Dre and 50 Cent, which broadened hip-hop’s general audience as it introduced waves of white people to a genre they previously never saw themselves in. He’s also been on the progressive side of a lot of important issues.
Essentials: “Stan,” “Mockingbird,” “Renegade”
Missy Elliot
Missy’s impact on the industry was huge, and she recently made history as the first female hip-hop artist to ever be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Hip-hop is historically a male-dominated genre, but building off of the legacies of those prior like Queen Latifah and MC Lyte, her success was significant in establishing and expanding the space for women to grab the mic. She cosigned and publicly supported other artists like Eve and established a foundation for modern stars like Nicki Minaj, Cardi B, and Megan Thee Stallion.
Essentials: “Lose Control,” “One Two Step,” “Gossip Folks”
50 Cent
50 is a personal favorite of mine. The rise of G-Unit in the early 2000s was like nothing hip-hop had ever seen. This guy got shot nine times and didn’t die. In fact, the incident inspired his classic track “Many Men (Wish Death),” which features some of the coldest bars ever recorded: “Hommo shot me, three weeks later, he got shot down / Now it’s clear that I’m here for a real reason / ‘Cause he got hit like I got hit, but he ain’t fuckin breathin.” If that isn’t gangsta, I don’t know what is. The people agree: 50 Cent is still reaping the benefits of his legendary debut album Get Rich or Die Tryin’, as his successful “Final Lap” world tour this year celebrated the 20 year anniversary of the record’s release.
Essentials: “In Da Club,” “21 Questions,” “Poppin’ Them Thangs”
Want more 2000s rap? Check out: Eve; Ludacris; DMX; Jay-Z; Kanye West
The 2010s
Drake
Hate him or love him, Drake is a living legend, even if he’s becoming a parody of himself as his career blazes on. His record-setting output year after year continues to cement the fact that he has no commercial peers in this era of hip-hop. It’s this simple: he is not the best rapper, nor is he the best singer, but he is the only Drake out there, which is good enough to make him the second highest selling hip-hop artist of all time, with an outside shot to catch Eminem. His music might not be the most esoteric, but he knows what the masses want, and every new Drake release remains an unmatched event that unites the entire rap community. He must be doing something right.
Essentials: “Pound Cake,” “Lord Knows,” “0 to 100”
Kendrick Lamar
Kendrick is the mainstream rapper that all the old heads like to say still embodies “real hip-hop.” Taking significant inspiration from ‘Pac, Nas, and Andre 3000, Kendrick is extremely creative and intelligent in his music. Many people point to his socially conscious, jazz-infused opus To Pimp a Butterfly as the greatest hip-hop album of all time, for which there is a great argument. It’s certainly on the list for the 2010s. If I had to choose though, 2012’s cinematic good kid, m.A.A.d city is my favorite record from him. If an album ever had to be adapted into a movie, GKMC tops that list for sure.
Essentials: “Sing About Me, I’m Dying Of Thirst,” “How Much a Dollar Cost,” “Father Time”
J. Cole
J. Cole is just that dude. Debuting back in 2011 with Cole World: The Sideline Story, North Carolina’s finest is rapping as well as he ever has in the present day. Undoubtedly inspired by the rappers of the ‘90s, J Cole combines his life experiences with social issues through immaculate wordplay and intelligent production. He also founded his very own record label, Dreamville, which works to support up and coming Black artists such as JID, Bas and R&B songstress Ari Lennox. His imprint will be felt long after he drops his own mic. Also, don’t you dare call his music boring.
Essentials: “4 Your Eyez Only,” “No Role Modelz,” “Ville Mentality”
Nicki Minaj
Tupac elevated the African-American musical image within a white-dominated society. OutKast helped push hip-hop to be more commercial than ever before. Lauryn Hill, Queen Latifah, and Missy Elliot pushed for women to achieve center stage. Nicki has done all three: she is a shining star within the game as a woman who made a name for herself both inside and outside of the genre. Most people know the chorus to “Super Bass” and “Starships,” but the hip-hop head in me implores you to listen to her feature on Kanye West’s 2010 song “Monster.” On a song with titans like West, Rick Ross, and JAY-Z, Minaj clearly had the best verse.
Essentials: “Itty Bitty Piggy,” “Up All Night,” “Starships”
Want more 2010s rap? Check out: Lil Wayne; Meek Mill; Cardi B; Migos; Travis Scott
Hip-hop has made leaps and bounds since its birth in the 1970s. A style that started as part of a cultural movement in house parties has since supported political activism and inspired social change, all while becoming one of the world’s most commercial genres. Hip-hop is extremely diverse, with new sub-genres like trap existing alongside traditional conscious rap. I’m certain that hip-hop will continue to expand and adapt, and I am excited for what its future has in store. For hip-hop's 50th anniversary, let’s make sure we give flowers to the genre’s pioneers. Hopefully we all make it to see its 100th!
edited by Alexander Malm.
artwork by Tanaya Vohra.
