From MPCs to FL Studio sessions, one thing remains consistent across generations of Hip Hop and R&B: The power of the sample. With that said, few eras have been mined more heavily than the 1980s. With ...

In August 1973, the Jamaican-born Clive “DJ Kool Herc” Campbell held his first block party in the Bronx, bringing the Jamaican sound system culture to America and inadvertently providing the first ...

This article has been handpicked from the Okayplayer editorial archives and included in our Hip Hop 50 collection as a noteworthy inclusion to the genre's rich and diverse narrative. The article has ...

“The Message” is often credited with stretching what hip-hop could be — not just party music but also social commentary. Big Daddy Kane, Daddy-O of Stetsasonic and longtime hip-hop promoter Charlie ...

Before hip-hop topped charts, it was raw, political, and underground. From New York basements to 2Pac’s rage, here’s how “street music” broke through. From the underground of New York to Philadelphia, ...

Hip-hop, a genre that has dominated the music industry globally, has a long history of innovative lyricism and cultural impact. Although it’s frequently considered male-dominated, women in hip-hop ...