Encyclopedia of Rap and Hip Hop Culture

Hip Hop music is comprised of several art forms: 1) MC-ing or rapping 2)B-boying or breakdancing 3)Deejaying (music) and 4) Graffiti art (visual art). This encyclopedia examines all four elements of Hip Hop Culture, providing students, scholars, and music fans with a complete history of the thirty-year music genre. Tracing its early roots from black DJs talking over music in the 1960s, the B-boy dancers in the 1970s, and the scratching and sampling techniques of the ’80s to the founding of Def Jam productions, the current East Cost-West Coast rivalry, and superstars such as Eminem and 50 Cent, hip hop fans will find this an indispensable resource.This encyclopedia includes approximately 100 photographs, discographies after each entry, and a for further listening list at the end of the volume. Also included is the Hip Hop Declaration of Peace.