Hip Hop Origins....Before the Bronx

Hip Hop Origins...Before the Bronx

You might at some point in your existence wondered, "How and what paved the way for Hip Hop to evolve the way it did?"

Going through the 4 major elements of Hip Hop I will be clarifying just that the FOUNDation through different kultures from Aztec to Zulu leading up to Hip Hop as well as different genres of music Afro-Cuban to Zydeco that had a helping hand in doing so. Also breaking down some other various background emphasis that had radical impact in the making of such an amazing kulture.

The term Hip Hop itself has deep and ancient origins.

Yin and yang influence to Hip and Hop. Yin means earth, dark, and cold. Yang means heaven, light, and heat. Yin pronounced as "IN"..... Yang pronounced as it looks with a Y and sounds when it ryhmes with "GONG". It is in the underlying forces of nature for Hip- an inner resonance of freshness from the breath as well as stillness to listen and Hop- which is an action word used to describe the movement and light being shed. Boom Bap can also be broken down to Boom as Yin and Bap as Yang, almost a trans reference to The OM and The Big Bang in my opinion....Its not so much which one came first its more the action and reaction chain of events that led to such extrodinary capturing by nature.... Together it is the harmony of the Omniverse the eternal constant force know as the ONE. An electrical yet magnetic bond these two words have on culture back n forth seemingly flawless from its inception makes you wonder if someone who knew that free energy existed way back before it was born that it would become what it is today with swaying back n forth to a 1 2 rhythm symmetrically left and right.

Even the term RAP Rhythm and Poetry can be deciphered throughout the times a flow of cadence used to portray an artform. Even studying waterfalls we come to a height of understanding that people say things in a certain way that has them healing others by their bouncing words in a pattern down a path that sinks into a beat and makes a lasting impression on the listenner soothing their brain with reconnective patterns or thought forms opening to new ideas and understanding of personal perspectives. A relative way of letting go that which has been denied an outlet....almost like a negative ion generator for esteem in a tasteless society for wanting to call it complaining but yet we know it to be standing up for the truth and getting to the heart of the matter. We have seen this time and time again throughout theatre, street and stage preformanace of any era of music. Its the attitude and style that Hip Hop brings makes it seem like its so different but when it all boils down to it alot of that comes from the kulture being remade to break the mold of a rigid system structure and soctiety being placed

upon those unwilling to conform to mainstreams ideology and methodology of capitalisms stiffling monopoly of industry music standards. Any civilization had its moments when the people took what they had or what they didn't know they had and created an artform or expression to convey and to adapt to the times before, present, and after them.

Deejayin

Many tribes around the world have used rhythm as an important foundation at their accustomed gatherings. Setting a tone to this rhythm was only a matter of time until chanting over drums beats would change the course of music into ragas.

Many deejays would talk over music...Jamaican deejays toasting over vinyl in the yard jams. Toasts consisted of comedy, boastful commentaries, half-sung rhymes, rhythmic chants, squeals, screams and rhymed storytelling. Few particular deejays was... count matchuki, UROY, and Disco Daddy. Djs are still to this day known to be one of the audiences progressors and timekeeper of the timeless events that occur during a nights performance. They hold the rhythm which is the vibrational key to transfusing any paticular set of arrangements in the round form of vinyl. A tape deck nor a cd can capture this. It took how many years after a record player was invented before someone learned how to scratch? Close to the amount of years it took for music to be digitally rendered away from vinyl to electronically produced and consumed. All pictographs and hieroglyphs representing wheels are very powerful symbols dealing with time and cycles.... pointing towards one instrument... there is no other circular instrument that makes it possible for the world to hear sound from besides a drum. The cross roads of music deals with how we merge these different genres together.... Hip Hop has been one of the most sucessful to do just that with the introduction of the turntable and syncing up records of different tempos and rhythms to bring you a new conquest.

MCin

How did we get to a point where one person has a microphone and directs a crowd and talks about life and struggle as well as uplifts and sets a tone for the music during a show....who really is the Emcee?

I have an idea of who the Emcee is. It all started as a way to communicate the essence of Hip Hop. Emcee stands for MC which is an abbreviation for Master of Ceremony some also believe it to be Microphone Coordinator. In so many different times we have seen this MC. During rituals of all kinds we have seen this person come forth. A pow wow (also powwow or pow-wow) is a social gathering held by many different Native American communities. The word derives from the Narragansett word powwaw, meaning "spiritual leader". Usually but not always involved a fire as the center piece of the cypher during the ceremony. Cypher which translates to a circle of energy, a CYCLE, also representing a figure that is now taken out of most new education systems.... 0 ... a gathering of minds... shedding light... before going back to 1. Equalized at 0. Regenerating energy as well as showing regnerative energy.... Bringing aether, spiritual energy to the forefront and giving each individual their turn to use expression of communication to channel such energy into a form known today as words.

Now imagine....if everyone in a tribe tried to speak at once....you might feel as if a politician entered the jungle and asked em to vote would probably scare the hell out of indigenous people in an uproar they all told him to leave at once, whoops. To make sure there was a differentiation of who was going to talk or lead at that time there was a crucial apparatus for that job, before the microphone if you will. An Aboriginal talking stick was used to bring messages within circles and between other tribes. Whoever at the time held this stick was allowed to speak, making it a world of ease for those trying to be heard. This was then passed around the circle to make it so no voice was left unheard, much different than our democratic way of thinking nowadays more egalitarian.

Some forms of rythmn and poetry used to show Hip Hop's integral breakthroughs. Call and response....Minnie the mooch. Poetry over breakbeats essentially Last poets...Cab calloway's humor brought new spirit and possibilities to expression, performance, lyrical subjects, language, and image. Other known artists that paved the way to name a small few... Louis Jordan, Bo Diddley, James Brown, and Gil Scott-Heron.

Honestly the key to transisting thru languages that are dead and otherwise less or unspoken can be brought back to life and reitterated thru linguistics maybe that's why the english language is being found so appealing to those with high left brain astetics? From puns to metaphors to the way words are pronounced it is no mystery why the way we use these words keep us finding more and more ways of interjecting them as a culture clash and primal technical clash opening new wave forms of creativity. Because the rhythms and melodies of different generes of music are clashing and molding then so are the dance, vocal, and artwork.

Breakdancin

Breakin or Breakdancin is a form of dancing to dj breaks or the drum breaks on a record. The breaks in music are hard to understand why they make so much impact on this Kulture until you have tried to dance or rap or mix records. It is a feeling much like the yin and yang...push and pull....electric and maganetic feel that puts you in between portals of familiar and unfamiliar worlds. Its a brillaint and thrilling movement that has to be experienced to fully overstand. The streets had a raw influence that makes the foundation to this unique timeless expression. Traditional jazz dance, having existed since the late nineteenth century, is perhaps one of the oldest street dances of urban America. Using dance as a form of showing a peaceful expression like when breakdancers battle is as old as tribal dancing around the fire.

Tai chi, a healing modality known as moving meditation is also present in Hip Hop forms of pop and lock's fluidity shown from the beginning. Rhythm plays a key role in how someone will dance....this is portrayed by steps, turns, twists and patterns. Other types of dance arts came into play- Kung Fu, Capoeira, Swing, Latin, Waltz, Samba, and Tap. Other genres in which influenced the path of breakin were jazz, soul, funk, electro, and disco dance styles. Swing dance one such paticular one, the lindy hop originated in Harlem, NY during the 1930s. Very much so embraced by Breakin kulture. Also styles like The Shmoney Dance, and the Wop were originated in NY beforehand. Many different tribes had their own dances throught time. Vedic takes on 108 positions in yoga and in other uses of the number can show that there is limitless possiblities involving this type of dance and its movement. Kulturally influence by regions, nature, and ritualistic stance. The ritual is to transcend the nature of it is to convey and the outlook is to see thru. Name another type of dance that invloves spinning on your head or back repeatedly in circles in which opens up a gateway.... to a rush of feeling that overwhelms a crowd? Or a competative type of dance that pushes people past the limits of what we thought was capable. The term freeze involves a person stopping in the middle of a dance to pose in a certain position. This is very different from most types of dance in which time is standing still just for the moment to preserve a kulture unlike others but fuses them all together within the dance and ritual. Very powerful and uncanny representation of what is timeless and classic. Also the form and the formless that exists in trascendental meditation and trance like states of supra heightened awareness of oneself and everything around them.

Graffiti

How did carving on rocks turned Into aerosol on trains? To some this might seem like a very bizare change...however there's some insightful words that make it all to easy to tell the story.... Murals were known to be in caves at first as far back as 30,0000 BC. Mainly stayed inside of walls because of their ideal place for preservation. Way later that eventually evolved into outer walls once techniques and supplies changed. The word "Graffiti" itself has ancient Greek and Latin origins. Greek word graphein means to write. The Latin, graphium, is the tool used by scribes. A scribe is known as the most ancient profession in the world; one who writes books, documents or keeps track of records. Huge Importance in every civilization known to man. Having an expression or to communicate something not being expressed by the popular culture of art is what sprouted the idea of such a trivial kulture uprising!

In 1939, American Julian S. Kahn received a patent for a disposable spray can, in which he used to develop whip cream for household desert junkies. Aerosol developed from the need to apply mosquito bombs during World War II. Kind of ironic nickname for bombin the town when graffiti is being sprayed heheheh. The need was the seed and even in the 1920s there were war soldiers leaving names on walls. Rock n Roll subculture of the 1960s left messages of famous band members in phrases for tourists and followers to see. It was only a matter of time until the right artform would flourish into a sophistocated unique niche. As we delve deeper into the paint we can see that body paint on tribal warriors resemble the antiquity of such. Even the henna and tatoo cultures are a total direct influence.

It was only natural that we as a kulture of individuals would figure out a way to reveal to the masses a technology or tool to see thru the square and rectangular walls put up around us and to show how to deal with them. The world is my playground is an excellent quote used in history....not only is it your playground but its your canvas and what better way to show that then using the infastructure built around us. In many ages and civilizations these same principles were used and I can rest assured that the glyphs of all of the time periods were foretelling and pre dating a story so ancient that we may never know its true origin exactly but we know the message that was trying to be sent ever so clear.

Closing Notes

When you are paying tribute to Hip Hop... you are paying tribute to so many sequence of events and so many cultural influences that essentially you are seeing how Hip Hop is in everything. The Rites of Passage into this kulture became a show and prove tool that has tapped into so many hard to unlock areas and discreet counter cultural places that its actually taken on an iconic route towards the break of the century due to B boy summits and Festivals like Scribble Jam and Rock the Bells. Take the time to study how people have been and willl become successful involving these elements and you might be able to see how they have little to nothing involving the overglorified media.