Hardcore hip hop
| Hardcore hip hop | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins | Hip hop |
| Cultural origins | mid-1980s |
| Typical instruments | Various |
| Mainstream popularity | Made a breakthrough in the early 1990s, became popular in the mid-1990s |
| Derivative forms | Gangsta rap, Horrorcore |
| Regional scenes | |
| Southwest hip hop, West Coast hip hop, East Coast hip hop, Southern hip hop, Midwest hip hop, North Coast Hip Hop, Northwest hip hop | |
Hardcore hip hop (also hardcore rap) is a form of hip hop music that developed through the East Coast hip hop scene in the 1980s. Pioneered by such artists as Run-D.M.C., Schoolly D, Spoonie Gee, Boogie Down Productions, Public Enemy and Kool G Rap, it is generally characterized by anger, aggression and confrontation.
[edit] History
Hardcore rap began in East Coast hip hop during the 1980s when artists such as Run-D.M.C., Schoolly D, Boogie Down Productions, Spoonie Gee, Public Enemy and Kool G Rap began eschewing themes of partying, bragging and boasting. Later the reflective lyrical themes included crime, violence, sex, nudity, wars, wrath, poverty, harsh, menace, omen, rebellion, profanity, racism, substance, drugs, guns, firearms, criminal organizations, blood, street life, street violence, genocide, feuds, quarrells, violent crime, murder, homicide and social issues
[edit] Characteristics
Gangsta rap has been associated with the style; however, hardcore hip hop does not frequently generally revolve around "gangsta" lyrical themes, even though there is a great deal of overlap, especially among hardcore rappers of the 1990s.[1] Allmusic stated that hardcore hip hop is characterized by "anger, aggression and confrontation whether in the lyrical subject matter, the hard, driving beats, the noisy sampling and production, or any combination thereof."[1] Russell Potter wrote that while hardcore rap has been associated with a "monolithic 'gangsta' outlook" by the popular press, hardcore rappers have "laid claim to a wide variety of ground".[2]
[edit] References
- ^ a b Hardcore Rap. Allmusic. Accessed May 22, 2008.
- ^ Potter, Russell A. (1995). Spectacular Vernaculars: Hip-hop and the Politics of Postmodernism. p. 130. SUNY Press. ISBN 0-7914-2626-2.
