Hip hop music is an element within Hip hop culture, which includes MCing, DJing, graffiti and b-boying. Hip hop music originated within early-1970s block parties in New York City, specifically African American and Hispanic sections of The Bronx, as an alternative to ethnic gangs that proliferated during that era.[1] These large, often outdoor parties were thrown by owners of loud and sometimes expensive stereo equipment, which they would use for community functions, or to compete among themselves in a manner similar to Jamaican sound systems.[1]
Rap music emerged from block parties after DJs isolated and looped percussion breaks favored among dancers. Later, MCs began speaking over the beats in a manner similar to Jamaican toasting. Lil Rodney Cee, of Funky Four Plus One More and Double Trouble, cites Cowboy, of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, as, "the first MC that I know of...He was the first MC to talk about the DJ." [1]
On August 11, 1973, Jamaican-born DJ Kool Herc was a DJ and Emcee at a party in the recreation room of 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx, adjacent to the Cross-Bronx Expressway.[2] This location is ofen referred to as the "Birthplace of Hip Hop," though the genre actually developed in several places in the 1970s.[2] DJ Kool Herc:
extended an instrumental beat (breaking or scratching) to let people dance longer (break dancing) and began MC’ing (rapping) during the extended breakdancing. ... [This] helped lay the foundation for a cultural revolution.