Taking it to the Top: NYC & Francophone Hip-Hop @letsgoworldwide-blog - Tumblr Blog

You Know My Tag, Not My Story: Graffiti in 1970

In the 1970’s the youth of America desperately needed to pass the time between homework and dinner. Some kids opted to play in puddles, others stuck their noses in books, but only a select few dared to walk the high line and create a masterpiece. Today, we do not know exactly who many of these rebellious artists are, but a few have stepped forward to shed a different light on graffiti, and the world of art surrounding it.

When the budget crisis hit New York City in 1975, graffiti went from a one-man hobby to a competition between thousands. The MTA (Metropolitan Transit Authority) had a hard time finding the funds to keep the trains within the city clean, powered, and even running for that matter. Many of the train cars sat vacant and out of service for days, weeks, or months. This gave way to a huge graffiti outburst. To transit officials, it seemed as if those freshly polished train cars were turned into the canvases of the kids and teens all over the big apple in a matter of minutes.

In the late ‘70s, there was a very diverse perspective on graffiti as a whole. The unknown artists and the citizens of the five boroughs saw graffiti as an art, an expression and representation of who they are and where they come from, whereas the businessman saw the graffiti as vandalism.

Graffiti did not just give kids and teens another way to get themselves in trouble, it acted as a light of hope and excitement to the burning walls and neglected streets of 1970’s New York. Artist Christopher Ellis, who’s tag name is Daze, stated: “[he] saw the subway car paintings as a way of adding a defiant touch of life to the South Bronx when entire blocks had been obliterated.” It was a subculture for the youth, and some adults, in a time where hardship was alive and thriving. With graffiti being so public, it opened a door to younger generations and allowed them to find their true identity. “[You] don’t need money, or special knowledge, or the right outfit, or a car, or an ID to see it,” says Sociologist Professor Gregory J. Snyder of Baruch College. Race, gender, age, and class all disappeared when the paint hit the wall. The youth of New York was first known for their tag and their work, not their background.

Whereas a transit authority spokesman fights that “…if it was art, [they] wouldn’t have had to scale fences, dodge dogs and cops.” Professor Snyder once reported on a phone interview, “I’m not trying to make an argument that graffiti is art and not vandalism. I hope I’ve made it clear that it is both.”

As city officials refused to run cars that were etched in names, the hype of subway graffiti came to a close in the early 90s. Graffiti artists who fell in love with the trade continued spraying and made it into their career. Zephyr began spraying his tags all over the subway cars and set the trend for many of graffiti styles today. One of the ‘grandfathers’ of graffiti, Zephyr (Andrew Witten), has been creating masterpieces since the late 1970’s and even when the hype slowed down, he did not. He has since moved on to bigger and better things, such as opening a studio to display his great works but cannot resist the urge to tag his name every once in a while. Although Zephyr is a graffiti elder, Blade is considered the ‘King of Graffiti.’ He created almost five thousand pieces within the short time of 8 years (1972-1980). Following the crowd, Blade displayed his work on the sides of subway cars just like his predecessors but quickly moved to paint canvases allowing his name to echo off the walls of New York City.

As well as Zephyr and Blade, Mr. Ellis went from doodling in his books to opening up a studio with John Matos, better known as Crash. Both Mr. Ellis (Daze) and Mr. Matos decided the location should ensure that only serious buyers and connoisseur of graffiti would purchase their works so they settled on a studio near 149th Street and Third Avenue in the Bronx. Matos has come a long way since the beaten up days of 70s Bronx but turned his passion into a multi-million dollar career. Earlier in 2004, he traveled over to Paris to show off his talent and to his liking, a Parisian collector called his work ‘unnerving.’ Matos knew his works made the collector think deeply about what he painted about. Almost twenty-five years prior, people said the same thing to Matos, but with disgust in their voices.

In the beginning of the graffiti era, the messages were playful. The markings ranged from tags to little sayings such as “Cornbread loves Cynthia.” It was almost child’s play and was very similar to the doodles you would see in a school notebook. As time went on and the graffiti industry was ignited, the messages went for a sharper, more controversial turn. Graffiti went from tags to calling out the upper class. The more political graffiti became the more and more frustrated the MTA became. The MTA refused to admit that the kids had talent and were aware of the social and political corruption happening so instead of allowing the trains to run, they hoarded them in the yards with each painting waiting to be buffed out. Mr. Matos (Crash), although in the 70s hated to see the trains stripped of him and his friend’s hard work, now agrees with the MTA officials. He stated, “…How could I hold it against the MTA? What we were doing was illegal. We weren’t supposed to be there.”

Thanks to the kids and teens of the 70s who were trying to spare their free time and find something to call their own, people of today can study and admire the masterpieces, tags, and risks needed to make their name known. Graffiti was not just a new way for kids to get in trouble, it was a light in the dark and a name for the unknown.

-Brooke Butler, 2016

http://www.alphabetcityblog.com/2008/12/1970s-nyc-subway-graffiti.html

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/17/a-new-look-at-graffiti-writers-lives/

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/16/nyregion/remembering-and-defending-subway-graffiti.html?_r=0

http://www.widewalls.ch/10-new-york-graffiti-legends-still-kicking-ass/

http://www.widewalls.ch/20th-century-the-rise-of-graffiti/

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A Theme on 80s Dance (Caitlyn Castro), sources

Meghelli, Samir (2012). Between New York and Paris: Hip Hop and the Transnational Politics of Race, Culture, and Citizenship. New York, NY: Ph.D. Dissertation, Columbia University.

D, Davey (2001). Crazy Legs Interview. Davey D.com, 2001.

Brooks, David (10 November 2005). Gangsta, in French. The New York Times.

A Theme On 80s Dance: Paris and NYC Inspired the Golden Age of Hip Hop

Leading into the 1980s, hip hop was taking a new direction with dance. Dance is a very obscure aesthetic of hip hop’s four aesthetics, ranking just under graffiti’s anonymity. Throughout the 1980s, after the 1986 mark, hip hop culture went through the Golden Age of Hip Hop, marking a time period in which hip hop culture and hip hop music especially flourished, on both coasts at the same time, but with different types of dance. During this period, Francophone hip hop bursted into energy, hip hop shows being broadcasted on the air and famous French artists being brought into the spotlight of the world and realm of hip hop. Specifically on the east coast, dance was made up of “freestyle” and “break up rockin”; dance quickly transferred over to the African and Caribbean communities of minorities in the Francophone world as b-boying and b-girling. The group “Paris City Breakers” was modeled after the “New York City breakers” and was the leader of the hip hop dance revolution in Paris. France was also the first country in the world to have a scheduled hip hop TV show (focused on hip hop dance and hosted by Sidney Duteil). As a whole, hip hop dance comprises of four main aesthetics: DJing, MCing, graffiti, and dance. This piece explores the history behind 80s dance as a hip hop aesthetic and the connection between Francophone hip hop dance and New York City freestyle dance. Dance has always been a free form of art that has been described as poetic in many different forms. It is a core aspect to the name of hip hop.

Afrika Bambaataa, pictured above. (source)

Even before the name “hip hop” was coined as a term for the growing culture by Afrika Bambaataa, hip hop dance existed. Breaking was one of the “five pillars” that consisted of hip hop: the previous four aesthetics and knowledge. It existed as a form of dance all the way from the 1960s as popping and locking, just without the name. In the South Bronx during the 1970s, however, breaking became popular as a dance form, created by African Americans. Breaking consists of toprocking, downrocking, power moves, and freezes. (Power moves are my own personal favorite.) Breaking carried strongly through the dance community for quite some time. The Puerto Rican community of dancers eventually “kept the flame alive” per se, especially by taking from ground moves and throwing in aerial moves, which kept it interesting. President of Rock Steady Crew, Richard "Crazy Legs" Colón, talks of how he couldn’t keep up with Puerto Rican moves: “In '79 I was getting dissed. I would go into a dance and I would get dissed by a lot of brothas who would ask 'Why y'all still doing that dance? That's played out'” (Schloss 2009, p. 16).

A group of dancers pictured circa 1980. (source)

From the Bronx dance crews came the New York City Breakers, born from the legendary, history-making moment that was the battle between the Floormaster Crew and the Rock Steady Crew. Several members from the Floormaster Crew left to join what would soon become to be known as the New York City Breakers. As a group, the New York City Breakers consisted of Powerful Pexster, Action, Glidemaster, and Kid Nice from the Floormaster Crew and Lil Lep from 7 Deadly Sins, reaching a small tally of 5, not including Michael Holman, a club and party promoter. From here, the New York City Breakers grew in popularity over the years, and eventually went onto the French TV show H.I.P.H.O.P., the first TV show to be weekly broadcasted dedicated solely to hip hop. Just as jazz had become rooted in the streets, clubs, and playhouses of Harlem and then transferred to France with travel, hip hop became rooted both in NYC and Paris from the first dance group in Paris, France: the Paris City Breakers. Because of such a small community of minorities, hip hop defied expectations and took hold in Paris culture right away. MC Solaar was also a very big help as he popularized French rap in the Francophone world (Algeria, North Africa, Haiti, etc).

The NYCB. (source)

Both jazz and hip hop were created and influenced by the minority; that is what makes it so deep. It brings people together of all backgrounds and invites the majority/the native people into it as well as a sort of melting pot lifestyle. Hip hop is accessible to anyone though, not just the minority. High class or low class, black, Latinx, Asian, or white, street dancer or classroom dance teacher, hip hop is worth the experience—especially hip hop dance. Written by columnist David Brooks:

Ghetto life, at least as portrayed in rap videos,

now defines for the young, poor and disaffected

what it means to be oppressed. Gangsta

resistance is the most compelling model for how

to rebel against that oppression (Gangsta, in

French, NY Times).

Dance is a core characteristic of hip hop and its art. Hip hop also has made many contributions to modern dance, its “give-and-take” style combining hip hop with ballet, lyrical, and jazz music and dance. During a time in the 1980s, French hip hop quickly rose out of its behind-the-scenes scene, becoming a part of Paris life as much as it is part of NYC life. However it spread throughout the Francophone world, the sphere and realm of hip hop continuously expanding under Afrika Bambaataa’s influence. The arguably two most popular aspects of Francophone hip hop, b-boying/b-girling and rapping grew to fame from Paris and Algeria, respectively. The NYCB, or New York City Breakers, first inspired dance in France through Afrika Bambaataa and his influence over the creation of the Paris City Breakers. There is a thriving hip hop scene in Parisian hip hop, taking the world by storm, especially through b-boying and b-girling competitions, professional or not. Take a street in Paris and one is bound to find the dose of hip hop they need and can’t resist. Hip hop is a culture that is much deserving of the spotlight it gets, having come so far.

The NYCB, again. (source)

#hip hop aesthetics #hha #st john's university #b-boying #b-girling #hip hop #breakdancing

Jake Malloy

Professor Smalls

English 1100C

12/19/16

Rap Music of the 2000’s

Rap music has evolved throughout the decades, with each decade having its own unique characteristics of rap music and the culture adopted by the emcees of that time. The 2000’s brought about a significant change in the way rappers and emcees presented themselves and the way in which they promoted rap music and culture. The rap culture of the 2000’s was all about the bling. Rappers wanted to show off their vast amounts of money they acquired from their music, and they did so by being very flashy with lots of jewelry.

A popular way for rappers to flaunt their bling was with grills. Grills are pieces of metal jewelry that are worn over someone’s teeth. Rappers usually had grills made of gold or platinum. Sometimes grills had diamonds in them. The 2000’s are even known for having their own unique use of platinum as a precious metal for jewelry. Gold was the in thing in the 1980’s and 1990’s, but rappers were looking for something better and the 2000’s opened the door for platinum. As Christina Kim said of the jewelry of the 2000’s, “Platinum, gold, and diamonds; you name it, someone was wearing it.” (Kim).

Big flashy jewelry wasn’t the only fashion trend tied to the 2000’s. Clothing was another popular way for rappers and emcees to embrace their creativity and make bold fashion statements. Popular in the 2000’s was the sports jersey. Artists started wearing jerseys in their music videos, and in effect popularity grew as fans began wearing jerseys as well. The prominent company worn by rappers was Mitchell and Ness. Rap artists then found a way to fashionably combine their jewelry with their sports jerseys. About rapper Fabolous, Christina Kim writes “Not only was Fabolous known to wear Mitchell and Ness jerseys, but he was also known to accessorize.” (Kim).

Each decade and generation of rap music has its own styles of rap. Every decade had different styles of rap music that were popular in that specific decade, and there were new styles and genres that popped up and were known for that decade. A very popular subgenre of rap music emerged from the south during the 2000’s- crunk music. “Crunk has a high-energy and club-oriented feel.” (rapbasement.com). Crunk differs from other styles in its use of “hoarse chants and repetitive, simple refrains.” (rapbasement.com). Crunk music is able to be so popular and effective in clubs because the lyrics are based off of a rhythmic bounce. Notable crunk artists that were prominent in the 2000’s include Lil Jon, Outkast, and the Ying Yang Twins. A crunk hit that is still prominent in the clubs and on the radio is Usher’s “Yeah!”, produced by Lil Jon. Crunk was so popular in the early 2000’s that R&B stars were crossing over to make hit singles. Both Usher and Ciara made number one crunk hits with Lil Jon.

Crunk music became so popular that it even had its own subgenre. That subgenre was called snap music. Although snap music was created in Atlanta, Georgia in the late 1990’s, the subgenre did not gain widespread popularity until the 2000’s. It continued to grow in popularity, and in 2005 snap music began popping up in other southern states.

Another style that emerged in popularity in the 2000’s was alternative rap music. Many famous artists fall under the umbrella of alternative rap music such as Mos Def, Dilated People’s, The Roots, and Gnarls Barkley. Kanye West and Outkast also receive acclaim as alternative rap artists.

The 2000’s also saw various hip hop and rap feuds, or “beef”. Rappers would have issues with other rappers and go public with the beef, either by writing dis tracks or slamming their enemies in interviews. Rap beef is caused by a whole slew of reasons, from disagreements, to rumors getting into rappers heads, to stealing someone’s track, or sometimes just for plain publicity to boost record sales. Five out of the ten feuds in Rolling Stone Magazine’s “The Ten Wildest Rap Beefs of All Time” occurred in the 2000’s. These beefs were between Jadakiss and Beanie Sigel, Gucci Mane and Young Jeezy, Jay Z and Nas, 50 Cent and Ja Rule, and Eminem and The Source. The Jadakiss and Beanie Sigel beef was just pure “sport”, nothing personal. It did get heated, but both Jadakiss and Beanie Sigel remained friends afterwards. The Gucci Mane and Young Jeezy beef on the other hand, was not done on such good terms. It all started when Gucci Mane stole a collaboration track he made with Young Jeezy for Young Jeezy’s album, and put it on his own project. The beef took a turn for the worse when Young Jeezy’s friend Pookie Loc was killed. Jay Z and Nas went back and worth over dis tracks because of Jay Z’s protégé Memphis Bleek, but ended up friends again after things settled down. 50 Cent and Ja Rule went at it because 50 Cent blamed him for his being stabbed at a club. 50 Cent also beefed with Kanye West for the sole purpose of boosting record sales by saying he would retire from his rap career if Kanye West’s record outsold his. (Rosenthal).

In conclusion, the 2000’s were yet another unique decade of rap and hip hop fashion, music, and culture. The 2000’s will be remembered for many fashion trends and rap music styles, whether it be the flashy bling (watches, chains, grills, etc.), the sports jerseys that gained so much popularity in the 2000’s, or the crossover to crunk music, moving rap into the clubs and creating a new style that generated hit after hit, infiltrating the clubs and the radio stations. The 2000’s left their mark for sure, with both fashion and music trends still being popular almost two decades later. Fashion that rose to widespread popularity in the 2000’s remains in style almost 20 years later, such as the grills, chains, jerseys, and to an extent the large watches are still popular among rappers and emcees. Hit songs from the 2000’s are still played in clubs and on the radio, an example being Usher’s “Yeah!”, which has in way become a club “staple” or a club “classic”. Every decade of hip hop and rap is going to have its own unique styles of fashion and music. The 2000’s are remembered for the baggy clothing, flashy bling, crunk music, and the feuds between rap artists.

Works Cited

Admin, rapbasement.com. Crunk Music. 6 Oct. 2006. Web. 18 Dec. 2016.

Kim, Christina. The5thelementmag.com. The Decades of Hip Hop Fashion-The Late 90’s to Early 2000’s. 27 Sep. 2013. Web. 19 Dec. 2016.

Rosenthal, Jeff. Rollingstone.com. The 10 Wildest Rap Beefs of All Time. Rolling Stone Magazine, 15 Aug. 2013. Web. 19 Dec. 2016.

Welty, Matt. Complex.com. How 2000’s Hip-Hop Influenced Today’s Style Trends. 11 Jul. 2013. Web. 19 Dec. 2016.

90′s DJ - Alejandro Pavon

Word Count: 1125 Do you remember the 1990’s? Good, because I don’t, considering I was not even alive until 1998! Jokes aside, the 1990’s were considered the transitioning point for hip hop, with the form, demands and prosperity of hip hop began to adjust to the times. While I will not focus on the rapping nor dancing of such an era filled with bad fashion choices, I will, however, focus on the disk jockeys that blessed the era that so many people are nostalgic about.

“But sir, who were disk jockeys, and why are they so important, they get their own section? I’m here for important people like the Notorious B.I.G and the late works of Salt-N-Pepa!” Well, good person who isn’t exactly open minded, what of those behind the scenes? There is a lot more involved within the hip hop scene than just spitting bars into a microphone, either near recording technology or in front of an audience. To give some insight on the world of the DJ during the 90’s, this article will discuss what the disk jockey is in its most basic form, before diving into one such DJ of the 90’s during the decline and shift within the hip hop industry due to advancements in technology and changes in “tastes” from the public.

At heart, the DJ is a person who collects records for usage, and when performing or creating, they “recombined or manipulated existing recordings to create new musical expressions tailored to the emerging preferences of rap audiences” (Miller, p. 47); such creations would then be used by the lyricist as their beat to rap to, record, and market to the masses. The DJ, as a job, is supposed to identify the tastes of the audience they are going to perform for, cater to such tastes, and then exploit (Miller, p. 45). Much to the DJ’s sadness, they are usually not credited as much as the lyricist and producer, and are thus usually stuffed into the sidelines, although some have gained some recognition like DJ Tony Touch. DJ Tony Touch was referred to as a member of New York City’s mixtape pioneers by Daniel Isenberg, and rightfully so. The mixtape scene within New York City allowed for DJ’s to spread out and showcase their skills, talents and influence around New York City’s hip hop scene. Now, according to DJ Tony Touch, his way of DJing with mixtapes was all done live, “straight to cassette” as he says, with practice sessions to make sure each record “goes good going into the other,” signalling a degree of dedication and actual care for his work. His first tape, released in 1991 and simply titled “Hip Hop #1,” would spew forth a series of similarly titled tapes by DJ Tony Touch, as he stated it would then be easier for others to collect and keep track of his tapes if they were simply titled via numbers and genre (since he had done a few R&B and Reggae tapes). His distribution methods were pretty simple as well; he would sell the original to a big company so they can make multiple copies of the tape and distribute them all around, all while dealing with local stores to hand out his mixtapes so he can gain an amount of fame locally to build his reputation as a DJ and mixtape artist. With over 200 mixtapes recorded, along with DJ Tony Touch’s Power Cypha series that included the DJ working with other lyricists, such as Eminem, to freestyle on his beats, DJ Tony Touch has established himself around the world as a DJ from New York City, proudly flaunting his skills and dedication to his creations and his lifestyle. While DJ Tony Touch was considered an important member of the mixtape scene within the Hip Hop scene, the shift in demand within Hip Hop began a slight decline in the importance of DJs within an act, along with the popularity of solo hip hop artists as opposed to hip hop groups. The old was being replaced with the new, and the new included a change in lyrics, which would then cause a vacuum of other hip hop artists rapping about nearly the same thing while becoming more absurd as time goes on. Though merely a personal opinion, the nation can somewhat agree, as a resistance towards rap began to emerge, along with questions of freedom of speech in regards to the lyrics featured within contemporary rap music (Powell, p 247). Despite the changes in what is wanted out of the hip hop industry, many DJs tried adapting with the times, though there was quite the schism around the late 90’s due to developing technologies; the introduction of MP3 audio player in 1998 threw off some of the die-hard vinyl DJ’s, while other DJ’s saw a chance to adopt a new style of DJing. This new breakthrough in technology in the late 90’s led to a revolution of digital DJing, since it would be considered much easier than vinyl DJing due to better control. Along with the ease of digital DJing, those who would pioneer the new age of DJing received endorsements from manufacturers, further promoting the concept of digital DJing. The 90’s were a time of change, from the heavy usage of mixtapes to get word of DJs out into the public, the adoption of CDs to keep acquiring new songs for sampling, the adoption of MP3 audio players to further modernize the techniques of DJing, to a change in demand from the public and industry, calling for more solo artists as opposed to groups. Despite the change in the hip hop industry, along with the popularity of solo hip hop artists, there will always be the need for a DJ, whether producing the beats for the artist within the studio, or performing with the artist live so the beats can be replicated/played for the audience watching the rapper. The DJ, though not as popular as they were in the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s, will always be needed in some form or another, as they create the beats we so love. WORKS CITED MILLER, MATT. “‘The City That Is Overlooked’: Rap Beginnings, 1980–1991.” Bounce: Rap Music and Local Identity in New Orleans, University of Massachusetts Press, 2012, pp. 44–74, www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt5vk27f.7.Powell, Catherine Tabb. “Rap Music: An Education with a Beat from the Street.” The Journal of Negro Education, vol. 60, no. 3, 1991, pp. 245–259. www.jstor.org/stable/2295480.Isenberg, Daniel. "Mixtape Memories with Tony Touch." N.p., n.d. Web.Turner, David. "Is 2015 the End of the Golden Era of Rap DJs?" The Pitchfork, 19 May 2015. Web.