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An initial attempt at this unofficial anthropology of hip hop
I've had a long standing interest in hip-hop beginning from the early and mid 90s. I remember doing extensive research on my own to learn more about it: tracked down documentaries, movies, and a few books albeit I could investigate a bit more and read more. But since then, I've learned quite a bit and still have more to learn.
So with re-emerging spark, ignited by some cool dudes over at Cuzco eats, I thought I'ld try to make an unofficial attempt at an 'Anthropology of Hip Hop. I'll briefly talk about the elements of hip-hop and its history - fully acknowledging that I am subject to correction. Noting that each element warrants its own book, I'll shift to a little anthropology of breakdancing in Korea. So if you're interested in breakdancing in Korea and how they've played with incorporating traditional elements with the break culture, as well as some awesome contemporary crews ('Morning of Owl' is just wow), I recommend you just jump down below to the videos.
In conclusion, the discussion will be about breakdancing as an art form and social expression, as well as the possibility of considering hip-hop as a religion.
Hip Hop, in broad terms, consists of four elements: the Disc Jockey (DJ), the Master of Ceremony (MC or 'emcee'), the breakdancer (break-boy, beat-boy, b-boy or break-girl, beat-girl, b-girl), and the graffiti artist. Not only do these elements compose art forms in their own right but also represent the embodiment of these art forms in persons, thus the title.
Many tend to link hip-hop with a particular fashion, but by and large fashion has nothing to do with hip-hop. This association is only because "it" was the fashion of those persons engaged in hip-hop. Hip-hop itself is not a fashion statement. I would definitely argue against those who think so."Hip-hop fashion" is only a by-product of "hip-hop" and you can observe, and probably measure, the trend from the '80s, '90s and 2000s. Many people have witnessed the change from "baggy pants" to "skinny jeans".
So each element has its own branch of history. But hip-hop begins with the DJ. The "father of hip-hop" is credited to DJ Kool Herc who revolutionized music by playing and repeating a single "break" in the song with two identical records. Kool Herc began in the early 70s playing block parties in the Bronx, New York aka "Boogie Down Bronx". During this time we see the Zulu Nation with Afrika Bambaattaa and the organization of community. A good overal glimpse and showcase of the early hip-hop culture on film are: 'Wild Style' (1982), 'Style Wars' (1983); Flashdance (1983) and Beat Street (1984). But a good documentary on specifically this history of the DJ, and the birth of scratch, a technique that added a whole new dimension to the DJ, is Scratch (2001)
From these videos we also see some of the early Graffiti culture. The art of "tagging" is certainly complex, rich, and with its own history and trajectory intertwining into mainstream art galleries ('Wild Style' comments on this) and being championed with Warhol's introduction of Basquiat. And even today, we are still seeing great work on the streets.
The MC was the one who rhymed over the break and managed the crowd. S/he was the "Master of Ceremony". The Art of Rhyme (2000) and This is the Life (2008) are good documentaries that focus more on the art form and culture as opposed to its engulfment by capitalism. Most of the music we hear today is rap. The rapper (for me at least) is a term that represents a shift from the MC. This change is marked by the capitalist venture and the advancement of technology. The MC was initially an extension of the DJ. No MC was allowed to "rock the mic" until the DJ said so. With the culture of capitalism finding a new marketable venture in the 70s and early 80s, the MCs left the DJs (not all, but many). Beat machines, drum machines, and computers replaced DJs. A consequence of technology and market (it would be nice to see turn-tables become a legitimate instrument). So labels did not want to incorporate and pay the DJ. When this market began, many MCs left behind their DJs for the label. Now we have the birth of the rapper. This distinction is now extended into one that marks this shift but maintains the existence of the MC, KRS-One says that the "MC is a representative of hip-hop culture, a rapper is a representative of corporate interest, an MC can be a rapper, but a rapper will never be an MC." Although DJs are certainly making big waves today in the music scence especially in the area of 'Electronic' music, which I include techno, house, remixes, and so on.
During this time of capitalizing on the music we also have the birth of the beat-boxer, who is a hybrid of the MC and the DJ. Although it is an art form in its own right, it doesn't quite have its own category. Not sure exactly but I would put my money on Doug E. Fresh, Fat Boys, maybe the beginning point for the Beatbox and public culture. Not sure, but then Rahzel... and now we have international competitions.
The B-Boy or B-Girl was the title to those who danced to Kool Herc's music. They were break-dancers: break-boys and break-girls, beat-boys and beat-girls, b-boys and b-girls.You can see some of the earlier breakers in the films mentioned above. More recently, a documentary called Planet B-Boy (2007) came out covering the 2005 Battle of The Year (BOTY), which is an international breakdancing competition.
As I mentioned earlier, each element of hip-hop is rich and diverse. There is a tremendous amount of history contained in each element. Books could be devoted to just one. Any anthropology of hip-hop that would like to be comprehensive would have to cover the histories of each of these elements: where they began, where they were, the socio-economic and political climate, its ride in capitalism and the market culture, where they are now, and how different cultures around the world have adopted and made it into their own blend, etc. etc.
I couldn't possibly do all that here but would like to provide a jumpoff. Considering that this is a blog, it remains unofficial, a draft and like any work should be, open to corrections in information, dates, and persons.
Noting a phenomenon happening in Cuzco, with its own cosmos of culture, traditions, and identity, breakdancing is taking off. In the article, a member expresses ideas about fusing traditional and national facets of culture and identity with the medium of breakdancing. Not only is the name of the crew in Quechua but have taken on nicknames in their language as well. The idea they express about fusing traditional elements of dance, nicknames, and it would appear masks, into their breakdancing identity is interesting. I couldn't help but make connections with Korea. Noting that Cuzco is a city in Peru, 'Last for One' is a crew from a smaller city (JeonJu) in Korea and made it on a international scale.
What I would like to show are ways in which the traditional has fused with hip-hop (in this case, breakdancing). I can't say exactly when hip-hop came into Korea but my hunch is 'Seotaiji and Boys' from the early 90s was the group that made the biggest splash and revolutionized the atmosphere for "K-Pop".
So Gamblerz winning BOTY and then 'Last for One' in 05. And I'm sure there were probably other crews playing around with similar ideas. But after 'Last for One''s win in 2005, they gained a bunch of exposure and went on to do quite a bit of work for many stages. And one of the projects they did was this piece:
'Last for One' in a remix of Canon D:
*There's another version of this with two of the b-boys as well. For some reason, I'm not able to embed the video here. But check it out if you're interested.
Remixing Canon-D, props to the DJ (and the overal production), we have a traditional string instrument called the 'Gayageum', a beat-boxer on the mic, and b-boy Joe from 'Last for One'.
Not sure who, but there is a crew using the Canon D remix and performing at the Korean Folk Village:
As you can see one of the ways fusion has been occurring is with traditional dress and masks.
Here's another example of remixing some music and incorporating traditional dress, masks, and a theme of...the best way I can translate it is as "Trolls of the Night" or "Night Trolls". Certainly a different style from above:
And my last example is performing a contrast instead of fusing traditional and breakdancing- represented in the video below in the form of a battle. The traditional side is called 'Samulnori,' which consists of percussionists and depending on the style of group some acrobatic-type stuff.
These examples, are not meant to suggest that one caused the other or who was the first to do it, but rather highlight the ways in which they have integrated traditional Korean elements in a breakdancing capacity.
Examples of various ways expressing an imported artform with traditional and local elements of culture into a performance. The performance is now detached as 'art' in 'art' sense. In one direction, Koreans have explored and experimented with ways of integration and performance. In another direction, crews are playing around solely as a breakdancing crew.
The social and political conditions attached to the context and history in which the art came from and represented, are no longer associated. It is now a vehicle, a medium of expression.
2013: Morning of Owl Showcase
2013: Jinjo Showcase
2013: Morning of Owl vs. Drifterz battl
These are only a few, impressive, examples. What is incredible isn't necessarily the degree of skill (although this is amazing as well) but the face that something born out of a 70s culture from the Bronx has gone in 40 years to a massive influence around the world. And what we are seeing is the detachment of the culture from location and place. People are experimenting with its expression. And some examples I've presented here.
The detachment and globalization of hip-hop has transformed the advancement of art for art's sake - bridging creativity and skill to a particular medium of expression.
What is exciting and simultaneously depressing is its potential for the people and the way it has been capitalized by the industry and labels. Taking art one step further in terms of political and social movement as a form of protest is, in contemporary society, tied to the idea of a flash mob. In the past, it was the mere expression of the culture on the streets that was the political platform. But as we can readily see, it has now been bastardized into simply entertainment, promotion, and marketing - which is not necessarily bad but the severence of roots is devastating.
The idea of breakdancing, art, flash mob, and protest is explored here in 'Step up revolution'. In its typical generic fashion it's not something I would have paid two cents to, apart for my appreciation of bringing in creativity to a medium, i.e. I watched it for the dancing okay? But while I disagree with the aim of the characters I like the idea of a dancing protest.
(at 30 minutes into the film: performance art?)
Romantic and hollywood; yes, there is a ton of cheese and bad storyline. I will give kudos to the dancing and the idea, not the story, but the idea of using flash mob as a form of social protest. But this movie documents the failure in succombing to capitalistic pressures of subduction. It's hollywood. I recommend the watch but in a conscientious manner.
Hip-hop has come a long way. One index is Jay-Z: street hustler to major celebrity. And breakdancing is wonderful but there are lessons to be learned by which culture is usurped by money.
So with re-emerging spark, ignited by some cool dudes over at Cuzco eats, I thought I'ld try to make an unofficial attempt at an 'Anthropology of Hip Hop. I'll briefly talk about the elements of hip-hop and its history - fully acknowledging that I am subject to correction. Noting that each element warrants its own book, I'll shift to a little anthropology of breakdancing in Korea. So if you're interested in breakdancing in Korea and how they've played with incorporating traditional elements with the break culture, as well as some awesome contemporary crews ('Morning of Owl' is just wow), I recommend you just jump down below to the videos.
In conclusion, the discussion will be about breakdancing as an art form and social expression, as well as the possibility of considering hip-hop as a religion.
Hip Hop, in broad terms, consists of four elements: the Disc Jockey (DJ), the Master of Ceremony (MC or 'emcee'), the breakdancer (break-boy, beat-boy, b-boy or break-girl, beat-girl, b-girl), and the graffiti artist. Not only do these elements compose art forms in their own right but also represent the embodiment of these art forms in persons, thus the title.
Many tend to link hip-hop with a particular fashion, but by and large fashion has nothing to do with hip-hop. This association is only because "it" was the fashion of those persons engaged in hip-hop. Hip-hop itself is not a fashion statement. I would definitely argue against those who think so."Hip-hop fashion" is only a by-product of "hip-hop" and you can observe, and probably measure, the trend from the '80s, '90s and 2000s. Many people have witnessed the change from "baggy pants" to "skinny jeans".
So each element has its own branch of history. But hip-hop begins with the DJ. The "father of hip-hop" is credited to DJ Kool Herc who revolutionized music by playing and repeating a single "break" in the song with two identical records. Kool Herc began in the early 70s playing block parties in the Bronx, New York aka "Boogie Down Bronx". During this time we see the Zulu Nation with Afrika Bambaattaa and the organization of community. A good overal glimpse and showcase of the early hip-hop culture on film are: 'Wild Style' (1982), 'Style Wars' (1983); Flashdance (1983) and Beat Street (1984). But a good documentary on specifically this history of the DJ, and the birth of scratch, a technique that added a whole new dimension to the DJ, is Scratch (2001)
From these videos we also see some of the early Graffiti culture. The art of "tagging" is certainly complex, rich, and with its own history and trajectory intertwining into mainstream art galleries ('Wild Style' comments on this) and being championed with Warhol's introduction of Basquiat. And even today, we are still seeing great work on the streets.
The MC was the one who rhymed over the break and managed the crowd. S/he was the "Master of Ceremony". The Art of Rhyme (2000) and This is the Life (2008) are good documentaries that focus more on the art form and culture as opposed to its engulfment by capitalism. Most of the music we hear today is rap. The rapper (for me at least) is a term that represents a shift from the MC. This change is marked by the capitalist venture and the advancement of technology. The MC was initially an extension of the DJ. No MC was allowed to "rock the mic" until the DJ said so. With the culture of capitalism finding a new marketable venture in the 70s and early 80s, the MCs left the DJs (not all, but many). Beat machines, drum machines, and computers replaced DJs. A consequence of technology and market (it would be nice to see turn-tables become a legitimate instrument). So labels did not want to incorporate and pay the DJ. When this market began, many MCs left behind their DJs for the label. Now we have the birth of the rapper. This distinction is now extended into one that marks this shift but maintains the existence of the MC, KRS-One says that the "MC is a representative of hip-hop culture, a rapper is a representative of corporate interest, an MC can be a rapper, but a rapper will never be an MC." Although DJs are certainly making big waves today in the music scence especially in the area of 'Electronic' music, which I include techno, house, remixes, and so on.
During this time of capitalizing on the music we also have the birth of the beat-boxer, who is a hybrid of the MC and the DJ. Although it is an art form in its own right, it doesn't quite have its own category. Not sure exactly but I would put my money on Doug E. Fresh, Fat Boys, maybe the beginning point for the Beatbox and public culture. Not sure, but then Rahzel... and now we have international competitions.
The B-Boy or B-Girl was the title to those who danced to Kool Herc's music. They were break-dancers: break-boys and break-girls, beat-boys and beat-girls, b-boys and b-girls.You can see some of the earlier breakers in the films mentioned above. More recently, a documentary called Planet B-Boy (2007) came out covering the 2005 Battle of The Year (BOTY), which is an international breakdancing competition.
As I mentioned earlier, each element of hip-hop is rich and diverse. There is a tremendous amount of history contained in each element. Books could be devoted to just one. Any anthropology of hip-hop that would like to be comprehensive would have to cover the histories of each of these elements: where they began, where they were, the socio-economic and political climate, its ride in capitalism and the market culture, where they are now, and how different cultures around the world have adopted and made it into their own blend, etc. etc.
I couldn't possibly do all that here but would like to provide a jumpoff. Considering that this is a blog, it remains unofficial, a draft and like any work should be, open to corrections in information, dates, and persons.
Noting a phenomenon happening in Cuzco, with its own cosmos of culture, traditions, and identity, breakdancing is taking off. In the article, a member expresses ideas about fusing traditional and national facets of culture and identity with the medium of breakdancing. Not only is the name of the crew in Quechua but have taken on nicknames in their language as well. The idea they express about fusing traditional elements of dance, nicknames, and it would appear masks, into their breakdancing identity is interesting. I couldn't help but make connections with Korea. Noting that Cuzco is a city in Peru, 'Last for One' is a crew from a smaller city (JeonJu) in Korea and made it on a international scale.
What I would like to show are ways in which the traditional has fused with hip-hop (in this case, breakdancing). I can't say exactly when hip-hop came into Korea but my hunch is 'Seotaiji and Boys' from the early 90s was the group that made the biggest splash and revolutionized the atmosphere for "K-Pop".
So Gamblerz winning BOTY and then 'Last for One' in 05. And I'm sure there were probably other crews playing around with similar ideas. But after 'Last for One''s win in 2005, they gained a bunch of exposure and went on to do quite a bit of work for many stages. And one of the projects they did was this piece:
'Last for One' in a remix of Canon D:
*There's another version of this with two of the b-boys as well. For some reason, I'm not able to embed the video here. But check it out if you're interested.
Remixing Canon-D, props to the DJ (and the overal production), we have a traditional string instrument called the 'Gayageum', a beat-boxer on the mic, and b-boy Joe from 'Last for One'.
Not sure who, but there is a crew using the Canon D remix and performing at the Korean Folk Village:
As you can see one of the ways fusion has been occurring is with traditional dress and masks.
Here's another example of remixing some music and incorporating traditional dress, masks, and a theme of...the best way I can translate it is as "Trolls of the Night" or "Night Trolls". Certainly a different style from above:
And my last example is performing a contrast instead of fusing traditional and breakdancing- represented in the video below in the form of a battle. The traditional side is called 'Samulnori,' which consists of percussionists and depending on the style of group some acrobatic-type stuff.
These examples, are not meant to suggest that one caused the other or who was the first to do it, but rather highlight the ways in which they have integrated traditional Korean elements in a breakdancing capacity.
Examples of various ways expressing an imported artform with traditional and local elements of culture into a performance. The performance is now detached as 'art' in 'art' sense. In one direction, Koreans have explored and experimented with ways of integration and performance. In another direction, crews are playing around solely as a breakdancing crew.
The social and political conditions attached to the context and history in which the art came from and represented, are no longer associated. It is now a vehicle, a medium of expression.
2013: Morning of Owl Showcase
2013: Jinjo Showcase
2013: Morning of Owl vs. Drifterz battl
These are only a few, impressive, examples. What is incredible isn't necessarily the degree of skill (although this is amazing as well) but the face that something born out of a 70s culture from the Bronx has gone in 40 years to a massive influence around the world. And what we are seeing is the detachment of the culture from location and place. People are experimenting with its expression. And some examples I've presented here.
The detachment and globalization of hip-hop has transformed the advancement of art for art's sake - bridging creativity and skill to a particular medium of expression.
What is exciting and simultaneously depressing is its potential for the people and the way it has been capitalized by the industry and labels. Taking art one step further in terms of political and social movement as a form of protest is, in contemporary society, tied to the idea of a flash mob. In the past, it was the mere expression of the culture on the streets that was the political platform. But as we can readily see, it has now been bastardized into simply entertainment, promotion, and marketing - which is not necessarily bad but the severence of roots is devastating.
The idea of breakdancing, art, flash mob, and protest is explored here in 'Step up revolution'. In its typical generic fashion it's not something I would have paid two cents to, apart for my appreciation of bringing in creativity to a medium, i.e. I watched it for the dancing okay? But while I disagree with the aim of the characters I like the idea of a dancing protest.
(at 30 minutes into the film: performance art?)
Romantic and hollywood; yes, there is a ton of cheese and bad storyline. I will give kudos to the dancing and the idea, not the story, but the idea of using flash mob as a form of social protest. But this movie documents the failure in succombing to capitalistic pressures of subduction. It's hollywood. I recommend the watch but in a conscientious manner.
Hip-hop has come a long way. One index is Jay-Z: street hustler to major celebrity. And breakdancing is wonderful but there are lessons to be learned by which culture is usurped by money.
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