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Popular Artists
Dj Kool Herc- Father of hip hop The Last Poets-Influential founders of the hip hop movement Afrika Bambaataa- Created the first ever hip hop organization named Zulu Nation. -
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Origins of Hip Hop
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Birth of Hiphop
DJ Kool Herc is credited for introducing a technique at a South Bronx house party that led to the creation of the hip hop genre. -
Kool Herc's Influence
After watching DJ Kool Herc, other DJs start playing in similar styles around the Bronx. DJ Pleaser Lovebug Starski first refers to this movement as “hip-hop.” -
DJ Grand Wizard
DJ Grand Wizard Theodore invents the record scratch. -
First DJ Battle
DJ Afrika Bambaataa battles Disco King Mario in the first DJ battle. -
"Rap Music" Term is Used
The music industry first uses the term “rap music,” which shifts the focus in hip hop from the deejays to the artists -
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Old School Hip hop
Old-school hip hop is the earliest commercially recorded hip hop music and original style of the genre. It typically refers to the music created around 1979 to 1983, as well as any hip hop that does not adhere to contemporary styles. -
First Successful Hip-hop song
Sugarhill Gang-Rapper's Delight
“Rapper’s Delight” might not have been the first hip hop song to be released, but it was the first to achieve commercial success. Many now trace back the popularity of the genre to this track that was said to have been recorded in a single take. -
Wu-Tang's "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Enter the Wu-Tang ushered in a new standard for hip-hop at a time when hip-hop music was dominated by the jazz-influenced styles of A Tribe Called Quest, the Afrocentric viewpoints of Public Enemy, and the rising popularity of West Coast gangsta rap. The album’s explicit, humorous, and free-associative lyrics have been credited for serving as a template for many subsequent hip-hop records. -
Ice T
Ice T pioneers rap on the West Coast. Michael Jackson does the moonwalk, borrowing from b-boy dance moves. -
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New School Hip Hop
The new school of hip hop was a movement in hip hop music, beginning in 1983–84 with the early records of Run–D.M.C., Whodini, and LL Cool J. Predominantly from Queens and Brooklyn, it was characterized by drum machine-led minimalism, often tinged with elements of rock; rapped taunts, boasts, and socio-political commentary; and aggressive, self-assertive delivery. In song and image, its artists projected a tough, cool, street b-boy attitude. -
Run D.M.C's Self titled
It was considered groundbreaking for its time, presenting a harder, more aggressive form of hip hop with the boom bap sound and some rap rock fusion. The album’s sparse beats and aggressive rhymes were in sharp contrast with the light, funky sound that was popular in mainstream hip hop at the time. With the album, the group has been regarded by music writers as pioneering the movement of new school hip hop of the mid-1980s. -
The Beastie Boys release Licensed to Ill.
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Golden Age of Hip Hop
Hip Hop crosses into the mainstream culture for the first time and is remembered for the amount of diversity, creativity, and innovation within the culture at the time. -
N.W.A's "Straight Outta Compton"
Some critics of the album expressed their view that the record glamorized Black-on-Black crime, but others stated that the group was simply showing the reality of living in the areas of Compton, California, and South Central Los Angeles. -
Kurtis Blow's Self Titled
Harlem native Kurtis Blow switched from DJing to MCing and landed the first major record deal for a solo rapper.
The sound was still heavily commercialized and polished but featured rapping throughout. Kurtis’ lyrics were simple, safe, and enthusiastic and he had a good guy image to match it. This album served as a gateway for Hip Hop to appeal to a more mainstream audience as unlike the Sugar Hill Gang’s record released earlier in the year. -
Dr. Dre’s album, The Chronic, goes multi platinum. Wu-Tang clan release 36 Chambers.
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Dr. Dre's "The Chronic"
The production on The Chronic was seen as innovative and ground-breaking, and received universal acclaim from critics. The album was noted for establishing the patented G-funk sound: fat, blunted Parliament-Funkadelic beats, soulful backing vocals, and live instruments in the rolling basslines and whiny synths. -
Nas's "Illmatic"
Illmatic has been noted as one of the most influential hip-hop albums of all time, with pundits describing it as an archetypal East Coast hip-hop album. Illmatic has been noted as a creative high point for East Coast hip hop since it featured production from renowned New York-based producers Large Professor, Pete Rock, and DJ Premier. This broke away from the idea of having single producers tied to artists and whole albums. -
Notorious Big's "Ready to Die"
Many critics applauded Notorious Big's story-telling ability. He has a loose, easy flow and a talent for piling multiple rhymes on top of one another in quick succession. The lyrics mixed autobiographical details about crime and violence with emotional honesty, telling how he felt while making a living as a drug dealer. The album is also noted for its dark tone and sinister sense of depression -
Queen Latifah wins Best Rap Solo Performance.
Queen Latifah wins a Grammy award from Best Rap Solo Performance. -
2Pac's "All Eyez On Me"
Sub-genre: Gangsta Rap, G-Funk, Crossover Rap Length: 2:12:20 Label: Death Row, Interscope Producer: Dr. Dre Notable Track(s): California Love, How Do U Want It, I Ain’t Mad at Cha, 2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted U.S. Billboard 200 Peak Position: 1 -
Jay-Z's "Reasonable Doubt"
Reasonable Doubt is the debut studio album by American rapper Jay-Z. It was released on June 25, 1996, by Priority Records and Jay-Z's Roc-A-Fella Records.Reasonable Doubt debuted at number 23 on the US Billboard 200, on which it charted for 18 weeks.n August 2019, Reasonable Doubt was released to digital and streaming platforms. -
2Pac Shot and killed
Tupac Shakur, an American rapper, was fatally shot on September 7, 1996, in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada. He was 25 years old. The shooting occurred at 11:15 p.m. (PDT), when the car carrying Shakur was stopped at a red light at East Flamingo Road and Koval Lane. -
Missy Elliott releases Supa Dupa Fly.
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Bling Era
Emergence of a new commercial sound in the hip hop scene. The name is derived from Lil Wayne's "Bling Bling" -
Notorious B.I.G. Shot and Killed
Christopher Wallace, an American rapper known professionally as the Notorious B.I.G., was murdered in a drive-by shooting in the early hours of March 9, 1997, in Los Angeles, California. He was 24 years old. In 2006, Wallace's mother, Voletta Wallace, his widow, Faith Evans, and his children filed a $400 million second wrongful death lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department alleging that corrupt officers were responsible for Wallace's death -
Lauren Hill Wins Five Grammys
Lauryn Hill’s solo album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, earns 11 Grammy nominations and five wins. -
Eminem's "Slim Shady LP
Eminem gained mainstream popularity in 1999 after the release of his major-label debut album The Slim Shady LP. The LP also earned Eminem his first Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. -
Lil Wayne's Breakthrough
Lil Wayne releases his debut solo project, "Tha Block Is Hot". It debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 229,500 copies in its first week. On December 10, 1999, the album became certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over a million copies. As of June 2012, the album has sold 1.4 million copies in the United States. -
Notorious BIG's "LIfe After Death"
U.S. Billboard 200 Peak Position: 1
Life After Death is the long awaited sophomore album from Notorious BIG. The flow was smoother than his previous work but still featured strong content that pleased a lot of audiences at once. The tracks range from the bright commercial sound to boom bap production, and the content from mafioso and hardcore rap to more personal and reflective songs. The full album has a cinematic feel. -
50 Cent Survives 9 Bullet Shots
50 Cent was 24 years old when he was shot nine times on May 24th, 2000. He survived the attack and was charged with criminal possession of a weapon. The shooting took place outside of his grandmother's former home in South Jamaica, Queens, only months before the release of his debut album Get Rich or Die Tryin'. -
50 Cent Releases "Get Rich or Die Tryin'
Get Rich or Die Tryin' is the debut studio album by American rapper 50 Cent. It was released on February 6, 2003, by Interscope Records, Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment, Eminem's Shady Records, and 50 Cent's G-Unit Records. -
Kanye West's "College Dropout"
The College Dropout is the debut studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released on February 10, 2004, by Def Jam Recordings and Jay-Z's Roc-A-Fella Records. In the years leading up to release, Kanye praise for his production work for rappers like Jay-Z but faced difficulty being accepted as an artist in his own right by figures in the music industry.The College Dropout debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200, selling 441,000 copies in its first week. -
Decline in Sales
Since 2000, rap sales dropped 44% and there were questions of the genre dying. For the first time in five years, there was no rap albums among the top 10 sellers of the year. -
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Blog Era
The Blog Era got its name because in order to gain a substantial amount of buzz during this time, most artists had to be featured on blogs. -
Wiz Kahlifa's " Kush and OJ"
In 2010, Wiz Khalifa released Kush & OJ, arguably one of The Blog Era’s most impactful and important releases. He posted the album link to his Twitter for fans to find and his social media presence was important to his success. -
Importance of Blogs
Blogs were crucial to the success and popularity of artists at the time. Popular blogs included WorldStarHipHop, Rap Radar, SOHH, OnSmash, Hot New Hip Hop, and more. -
Lil Wayne's "Young Money Entertainment"
Lil Wayne's label "Young Money Entertainment" helped the careers of artists like Drake and Nicki Minaj, who were signed to the label. -
Nicki Minaj's "Pink Friday"
In 2009, Nicki Minaj signed to Lil Wayne’s label Young Money alongside Drake. She made her first appearance on the hit “Every Girl,” Pink Friday was a blog favorite, as Nicki was one of the first female rappers in years to capture mainstream attention in the manner that she did. -
Migos Emergence
Migos released their commercial debut single "Versace" in 2013, taken from their mixtape. And had many successful tracks with their four Billboard Hot 100 top 10 entries "Bad and Boujee" (featuring Lil Uzi Vert) (2016), reaching the top, "MotorSport" (with Nicki Minaj and Cardi B) (2017), peaking at number 6, "Stir Fry" (2018), peaking at number 8, and "Walk It Talk It" (featuring Drake) (2018), peaking at number 10. -
Chance The Rapper's "Acid Rap"
In 2013, Chance The Rapper released his sophomore mixtape Acid Rap as a digital internet download, and the tape has gone down as one of The Blog Era’s most iconic. It featured artists such as Vic Mensa, Action Bronson, Childish Gambino, Ab-Soul, BJ The Chicago Kid, and more, many of whom were products of The Blog Era themselves. The tape even surpassed over one million downloads on Datpiff -
Young Thug's rise and influence
Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Young Thug received mainstream recognition in 2014 with the singles "Stoner" and "Danny Glover" Young Thug who was influenced by young thug has created a new path for artists and has influenced many including Lil Keed. Lil Gotit, NBA YoungBoy, YNW Melly, Gunna, and Lil Baby. -
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Trap Era and Rise of SoundCloud Rap
This era displayed artists getting their rise to fame from the music sharing platform SoundCloud. This era saw a continual decline in CD sales and displayed the importance of online presence. -
Speaker Knocker's Influence and Death
. After getting his start selling beats on the “type beat” site SoundClick, Speaker Knockerz landed his first placement on Meek Mill’s breakthrough Dreamchasers mixtape.From there, Speaker Knockerz produced for rappers including Gucci Mane, 2 Chainz, and French Montana, but he also made an impact with his own music. In December 2013, he scored a viral hit with “Lonely,”On March 6, 2014, Speaker Knockerz was found dead in his garage in his South Carolina home. Cause of death is still unknown. -
J. Cole's "2014 Forest Hills Drive"
The highest first-week sales rap album of 2014. Label: ByStorm, Columbia, Dreamville, Roc Nation First-week sales: 375,000 Singles: “Apparently”, “Wet Dreamz”, “No Role Modelz”, “Love Yourz” -
SoundCloud Emerges
Music sharing platform SoundCloud grows at an impressive rate of 15 to 150 million users from 2012 to 2015. SoundCloud would be the platform where an entire new generation of artists can get their name out. -
Kendrick Lamar's "To Pimp A Butterfly"
To Pimp a Butterfly sold 324,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release, earning a chart debut at number one on the US Billboard 200, while also becoming Lamar's first number-one album in the UK. It was eventually certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and sold one million copies in the United States by 2017. It also won the best rap album of the year and an Album of the Year nomination. -
Rise of Emo Rap
The Rise of Emo Rap began in the late 2010s with SoundCloud artists like Juice WRLD, XXXTENTACION, Lil Peep, and Lil Tracy popularising the sound of melodic emo rap -
XXXTENTACION Gains Traction
In 2017 "Look at Me" gained traction, peaked at number 34 on US Billboard Hot 100 and the top 40 of the Canadian Hot 100.[72] The single helped him gain more popularity due to accusations of Canadian rapper Drake using a similar rap flow in his song "KMT" -
Cole Bennet's Influential "Lyrical Lemonade"
Bennett originally founded Lyrical Lemonade as an internet blog when he was a high school student in Plano, Illinois. His mother helped him come up with the blog's name and had given him a video camera. he channel then expanded into other sub-genres of hip hop beyond the local Chicago scene, such as the emerging Soundcloud rap sub-genre. Working with Lil Pump, Ski Mask The Slump God, and Juice WRLD with "Lucid Dreams" which surpassed 840 million views on YouTube, becoming his most popular video. -
Lil Uzi Vert's Debut Studio Album
Lil Uzi Vert's debut studio album, Luv Is Rage 2, was released on August 25, 2017, and charted at number one on the Billboard 200. It included the single "XO Tour Llif3", which peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and has been Certified Diamond, by the RIAA. -
"Ye" Debuts #1
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XXXTENTACION Murdered
On June 18, 2018, 20-year-old American rapper and singer-songwriter Jahseh Dwayne Ricardo Onfroy, known professionally as XXXTentacion, was murdered in Deerfield Beach, Florida. Onfroy was fatally shot by 22-year-old Michael Boatwright after being robbed in his car by Boatwright and his accomplices Trayvon Newsome, Dedrick Williams, and Robert Allen outside RIVA Motorsports, an upscale seller of motorcycles and watercraft in Deerfield Beach. -
Mac Miller Passes
Miller struggled with addiction and substance abuse, which was often referenced in his lyrics. On September 7, 2018, Miller died from an accidental drug overdose of cocaine, fentanyl, and alcohol at his home, at the age of 26. -
Juice WRLD Passes
On December 8, 2019, Juice WRLD suffered a drug overdose after landing in Oak Lawn, Illinois, U.S -
Pop Smoke Killed
The 20-year-old New York rapper, whose legal name is Bashar Barakah Jackson, was killed on Feb. 19, 2020, at a rented home where he was staying while on a four-day trip to Los Angeles. -
Kendrick Lamar Releases "Mr Morale and The Big Steppers"
Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers is the fifth studio album by American rapper Kendrick Lamar, released on May 13, 2022, by PGLang, Top Dawg Entertainment, Aftermath Entertainment, and Interscope Records -
Metro Boomin's "Heroes and Villains"
Heroes & Villains is the second studio album by American record producer Metro Boomin, released on December 2, 2022, by Boominati and Republic Records. He primarily handled the album's production, alongside TM88, Johan Lenox, DaHeala, Allen Ritter, Honorable C.N.O.T.E., and OZ, among others.