rap

Rapid, rhythmic chant over a pre-recorded repetitive backing track. Rap emerged in New York in 1979 as part of the hip-hop culture, although the macho, swaggering lyrics with which it started have their roots in ritual boasts and insults. During the 1990s rap became increasingly commercial, and even its more extreme offshoots, such as gangsta rap, were represented in the pop charts.

Rap emerged in the USA with the release of the Sugarhill Gang's song ‘Rapper's Delight’ (1979). ‘The Message’ (1982), by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, was the first rap record to expand the content, and female rappers (the Cookie Crew, Yo-Yo, and others) have countered the sexism often associated with rap. The strong political attack of Public Enemy made it one of the most influential rap groups. A school of ‘conscious rappers’ supporting peaceful coexistence, spearheaded by the Jungle Brothers, appeared in the late 1980s. However, harsh celebration of violence and hatred of women continued with performers like NWA and Ice-T, and rap has caused repeated furores over censorship in the USA. The profile of rap music continued to rise during the 1990s, with artists such as Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg, and Eminem generating record sales and controversy in equal measure, while successful rap artists emerged from Europe as well as from the USA.