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Hip-Hop In NYC

How immigrant and descendant-of-immigrant Hip-Hop Artists
  connected and interacted with the City That Never Sleeps
History of Hip-Hop
          Originated late 1970’s in the
          South Bronx

          Has its roots in the Jamaican
          tradition of toasting—stream
          of consciousness, boastful
          poetry and speech over music
          (DJ KoolHerc)

          Originators include DJ
          KoolHerc, AfrikaBambaataa, M
          elle Mel, etc.
East Coast Hip-Hop
          The original form of hip-hop

          As opposed to old school and
          west coast hip-hop, east coast
          hip-hop has a strong emphasis
          on lyrical creativity and
          dexterity, multi-syllabic rhymes
          and complex metaphors

          Also a strong emphasis on social
          consciousness and
          empowerment, as opposed to the
          laid-back attitude of old-school
          rap and the gangbanger mafioso
          rap of the west coast
Nas
      born Nasir bin OluDara Jones
      on September 14th, 1973.

      became steeped in African
      culture through both his
      father, a famous African Jazz
      musician and self instruction
      from FivePercenter
      lessons, Quran scriptures and
      the Bible.

      Grew up in the Queensbridge
      projects in Queens, one of the
      original hotbeds of rap.
“New York State of Mind” by
       Nas, selected lyrics
“Crews without guns are goners/In broad daylight, stickup
kids, they run up on us”

“I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death”

“Be having dreams that I’m a gangster—drinking
Moets, holding Tecs/ Making sure the cash came correct
then I stepped”

“The city never sleeps, full of villains and creeps/ That’s
where I learned to do my hustle had to scuffle with freaks”
“New York State of Mind” by
      Nas, lyric interpretation
Grew up in an area where crime was an everyday part of life
Nas uses braggadocio to depict the mindset he needed to be able to
survive and thrive in this atmosphere
NYC is known as the city that never sleeps, which is supposed to be an
endearing way to describe the vibrant nightlife and general thrum of
the city. However, Nas flips this to say that he never sleeps because
sleeping is a cousin of death, in other words sleeping is just another
way to fall behind in the rat race that is living in an impoverished area.
With his rhyme about dreaming about being a gangster, Nas describes
the new American Dream for the impoverished immigrant culture in
the NYC hip-hop culture: not getting out of the struggle, but becoming
rich and more powerful in the same paradigm.
Grandmaster Flash
          Born Joseph Saddler on January
          1st, 1958.

          Originally from Barbados, grew
          up in the South Bronx, one of
          the early strongholds of Hip-
          Hop along with Queensbridge.
          Also an area large in crime.

          One of the pioneers of the art
          of DJ’ing.
“The Message” by Grandmaster
  Flash and the Furious Five,
        selected lyrics
“I can’t take the smell, I can’t take the noise no more/ Got
no money to move out, I guess I got no choice”

“She went to the city and got social security/ She had to get
a pimp, she couldn’t make it on her own”

“You’ll admire all the number book takers/
Thugs, pimps, pushers and the big money makers/ Driving
big cars, spending twenties and tens/ And you want to
grow up to be just like them”
“The Message” by Grandmaster
  Flash lyric interpretations
“The Message” is a grim portrayal of the inner-city life, as depicted by one
of the earliest and most important names in Hip-Hop.

Flash describes how much you can be grinded down by the constant
reminders of desolation and depravity in the inner city, and remarks on the
fact that there is no way out for the people.

Flash sympathizes with the inhabitants of the inner city, describing how
the kids become drawn to the powerful figures in their
neighborhoods, who more often than not are involved in illegal trades.
Essentially, the ghetto becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy for the young
children of poor immigrants in the inner city.

Similarly to Nas, Flash evokes the new American Dream of getting out of
the struggle by becoming a powerful gangster, although Flash also sees that
this only enables the system in an endless circle.
Notorious B.I.G.
          born Christopher George Latore
          Wallace on May 5th, 1972.

          Of Jamaican descent (both
          parents), grew up in the Clinton
          Hill area of Brooklyn.

          Universally held as one of the
          greatest rappers of all
          time, renewed East Coast/NYC
          rap scene at a time when the
          West Coast was dominating the
          mainstream.
“Juicy” by Notorious
         B.I.G., selected lyrics
“Born sinner, the opposite of a winner/ I remember when I
used to eat sardines for dinner”

“I made the change from a common thief/ To up close and
personal with Robin Leach”

“We used to fuss when the landlord dissed us/ No
heat, wondering why Christmas missed us”
“Juicy” by Notorious B.I.G., lyric
         interpretation
This song is a personal declaration of triumph for Notorious
B.I.G., the child of Jamaican immigrants. It depicts his struggles
growing up in a poor and crime-ridden section of Brooklyn; how
he worked his way up and made it out of the struggle that traps
so many.
Biggie reminisces on eating sardines, having no heat in his small
apartment, and transitioning his life from being a common
criminal to someone admirable. He wrote this song with the
hopes that its depiction of his triumphs would inspire others
from his situation to rise above and make something of their
lives.
Conclusion
From all three artists, we see how rough it was growing up
in the poor, crime-ridden immigrant culture of NYC during
the beginnings of Hip-Hop.

Through their revolutionary music, they were able to
depict their interactions with the city on a scale such that it
resonated with generations upon generations of kids and
even adults in the same situation as they were.

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MHC 150 Final Project

  • 1. Hip-Hop In NYC How immigrant and descendant-of-immigrant Hip-Hop Artists connected and interacted with the City That Never Sleeps
  • 2. History of Hip-Hop Originated late 1970’s in the South Bronx Has its roots in the Jamaican tradition of toasting—stream of consciousness, boastful poetry and speech over music (DJ KoolHerc) Originators include DJ KoolHerc, AfrikaBambaataa, M elle Mel, etc.
  • 3. East Coast Hip-Hop The original form of hip-hop As opposed to old school and west coast hip-hop, east coast hip-hop has a strong emphasis on lyrical creativity and dexterity, multi-syllabic rhymes and complex metaphors Also a strong emphasis on social consciousness and empowerment, as opposed to the laid-back attitude of old-school rap and the gangbanger mafioso rap of the west coast
  • 4. Nas born Nasir bin OluDara Jones on September 14th, 1973. became steeped in African culture through both his father, a famous African Jazz musician and self instruction from FivePercenter lessons, Quran scriptures and the Bible. Grew up in the Queensbridge projects in Queens, one of the original hotbeds of rap.
  • 5. “New York State of Mind” by Nas, selected lyrics “Crews without guns are goners/In broad daylight, stickup kids, they run up on us” “I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death” “Be having dreams that I’m a gangster—drinking Moets, holding Tecs/ Making sure the cash came correct then I stepped” “The city never sleeps, full of villains and creeps/ That’s where I learned to do my hustle had to scuffle with freaks”
  • 6. “New York State of Mind” by Nas, lyric interpretation Grew up in an area where crime was an everyday part of life Nas uses braggadocio to depict the mindset he needed to be able to survive and thrive in this atmosphere NYC is known as the city that never sleeps, which is supposed to be an endearing way to describe the vibrant nightlife and general thrum of the city. However, Nas flips this to say that he never sleeps because sleeping is a cousin of death, in other words sleeping is just another way to fall behind in the rat race that is living in an impoverished area. With his rhyme about dreaming about being a gangster, Nas describes the new American Dream for the impoverished immigrant culture in the NYC hip-hop culture: not getting out of the struggle, but becoming rich and more powerful in the same paradigm.
  • 7. Grandmaster Flash Born Joseph Saddler on January 1st, 1958. Originally from Barbados, grew up in the South Bronx, one of the early strongholds of Hip- Hop along with Queensbridge. Also an area large in crime. One of the pioneers of the art of DJ’ing.
  • 8. “The Message” by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, selected lyrics “I can’t take the smell, I can’t take the noise no more/ Got no money to move out, I guess I got no choice” “She went to the city and got social security/ She had to get a pimp, she couldn’t make it on her own” “You’ll admire all the number book takers/ Thugs, pimps, pushers and the big money makers/ Driving big cars, spending twenties and tens/ And you want to grow up to be just like them”
  • 9. “The Message” by Grandmaster Flash lyric interpretations “The Message” is a grim portrayal of the inner-city life, as depicted by one of the earliest and most important names in Hip-Hop. Flash describes how much you can be grinded down by the constant reminders of desolation and depravity in the inner city, and remarks on the fact that there is no way out for the people. Flash sympathizes with the inhabitants of the inner city, describing how the kids become drawn to the powerful figures in their neighborhoods, who more often than not are involved in illegal trades. Essentially, the ghetto becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy for the young children of poor immigrants in the inner city. Similarly to Nas, Flash evokes the new American Dream of getting out of the struggle by becoming a powerful gangster, although Flash also sees that this only enables the system in an endless circle.
  • 10. Notorious B.I.G. born Christopher George Latore Wallace on May 5th, 1972. Of Jamaican descent (both parents), grew up in the Clinton Hill area of Brooklyn. Universally held as one of the greatest rappers of all time, renewed East Coast/NYC rap scene at a time when the West Coast was dominating the mainstream.
  • 11. “Juicy” by Notorious B.I.G., selected lyrics “Born sinner, the opposite of a winner/ I remember when I used to eat sardines for dinner” “I made the change from a common thief/ To up close and personal with Robin Leach” “We used to fuss when the landlord dissed us/ No heat, wondering why Christmas missed us”
  • 12. “Juicy” by Notorious B.I.G., lyric interpretation This song is a personal declaration of triumph for Notorious B.I.G., the child of Jamaican immigrants. It depicts his struggles growing up in a poor and crime-ridden section of Brooklyn; how he worked his way up and made it out of the struggle that traps so many. Biggie reminisces on eating sardines, having no heat in his small apartment, and transitioning his life from being a common criminal to someone admirable. He wrote this song with the hopes that its depiction of his triumphs would inspire others from his situation to rise above and make something of their lives.
  • 13. Conclusion From all three artists, we see how rough it was growing up in the poor, crime-ridden immigrant culture of NYC during the beginnings of Hip-Hop. Through their revolutionary music, they were able to depict their interactions with the city on a scale such that it resonated with generations upon generations of kids and even adults in the same situation as they were.