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Hip-Hop Belongs to Everyone

by Gary Lowder

What do you consider cultural appropriation? The things that spring to most people’s mind, especially at this time of year, are racially insensitive Halloween costumes. These are ignorant and offensive, and the people who wear them should be judged and scorned. However, in the politically correct world that we live in, there are those who have abused the term “cultural appropriation” so that it literally has no meaning anymore. The worst offenders are those who accuse white, biracial, Caribbean and Latino rappers and hip-hop artists of appropriating African American culture. This is untrue. Hip-hop is not a purely African American art form.

To understand why this is false, you have to know a little history. Like most music genres, hip hop has roots in other forms, and its evolution was shaped by many different artists. However, if you had to pinpoint a “birthplace” it would be August of 1973, at a birthday party in the recreation room of an apartment building in the west Bronx, New York City. This is where Jamaican DJ Clive Campbell (DJ Kool Herc) debuted pioneer innovations like the “break beat” and “toasting” (talking over the beat) which would later be known as rapping. Please keep in mind that at this time Herc’s stuff was really local and underground. We’re talking block parties and birthdays, a full six years before the terms “hip hop” or “rap” even entered our vocabulary. This is very well documented, even the smithsonian has articles about it https://invention.si.edu/invention-hot-spot-birth-hip-hop-bronx-new-york-1970s.

Hip-hop doesn’t just refer to music, it’s a subculture in itself. Just to make things simpler, let’s break down hip-hop into its four key stylistic elements: deejaying, rapping, breakdancing/b-boying (as it was called in the 1970s) and graffiti/street art. These are widely regarded as the four elements of hip-hop from Complex magazine to Encyclopedia Britannica. We’ve already talked about the first two. More than half of the prominent b-boys from the 1970s were not white or black. Like Richard “Crazy Legs” Colon (the most famous breakdancer) of the Rocksteady Crew, most of them were Puerto Rican. As far as the graffiti scene goes, in 1973 (the same year Herc was inventing hip-hop) the “Godfather of Graffiti” Richard “Richie” Mirando, known by his artist name “Seen,” was tagging the Bronx’s subway system. Mirando is one of the most well-known graffiti artists in the world, and he’s also a white guy.

The Sugarhill Gang recorded the first mainstream rap song(courtesy of Billboard)

But, let’s get back to the music. If we fast forward a little bit to 1976 we can see the formation of the first rap group. Composed of DJ (Grandmaster Flash) and five rappers (Melle Mel, The Kidd Creole, Keith Cowboy, Mr. Ness/Scorpio and Rahiem), the group’s use of turntables, break-beat deejaying, and actual rhyming make them the most significant group in the early development of hip-hop music. The group built their reputation performing at parties and live shows in the mid-1970s, but we’re still talking very local success. We begin to see underground radio programs (mostly run by white, biracial and Jewish college students) broadcast midnight shows featuring New York rap groups. Other notable beginning hip-hop artists at this time are Fab Five Freddy, Afrika Bambaataa and Kool Moe Dee. We’re only three years into the invention of hip-hop culture and other races have already been instrumental in its establishment. If we fast forward a little further to 1979 we get The SugarHill Gang’s hit song, “Rapper’s Delight.” This is widely considered to be the first hip-hop record to gain widespread mainstream popularity. Two years after this, in 1981, Blondie (literally the whitest band ever, it’s even in their name) releases “Rapture,” a pop song featuring one rap-style verse, in which Debbie Harry makes references to Fab Five Freddy. It was the first number one song in the U.S. to feature rap vocals.

After this, we get into the golden years of hip hop from 1983 to 1987. Hip-hop is dominated by Run DMC, Public Enemy and the Beastie Boys. What do all of these bands have in common? The answer is a hairy white guy named Rick Rubin, the founder of Def Jam Records. All of these artists were signed to Def Jam and Rubin made all of their beats. Def Jam is still active and is the label behind Kanye West, Jay Z, Shakira and Eminem, to name a few. Going into the 1990s we see MC Serch (the first white rapper) and a burgeoning Latino hip-hop scene in California.

If you think rappers who aren’t black are appropriating African American culture, then you are delusional. Just think of a few rappers who aren’t black. The first to come to my mind were Hoodie Allen, Lil Dicky, Macklemore, Eminem, The Beastie Boys, Cardi B and Post Malone. They are all making amazing music.

A rapper I’ve seen take a lot of flak recently is Macklemore. Macklemore (who has songs featuring rap pioneers Grandmaster Melle Mel, Kool Moe Dee and Grandmaster Caz) is not appropriating anyone’s culture just because he’s white. If you have a problem with Macklemore because he’s a white rapper but the rap legends that are featured in his songs aren’t bothered by his race, then hip-hop isn’t the problem. You are.

You see, it is a fact that hip-hop isn’t an exclusively African American art form. I’m not trying to deny anyone anything or take something from someone. That is not what this is. I’m just trying to point out that hip-hop is 100 percent American. That means it’s colorful. That means it’s diverse. That means it’s inclusive. This brings me to my point. You can not appropriate American culture if you are American. That’s not how it works. People of all different races, genders and nationalities have been involved in hip-hop since its inception. So, next time you hear someone say that hip-hop “isn’t for someone,” give them a history lesson. Because hip-hop is for everyone.

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