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Hip-Hop 50 From the Bronx to ubiquity

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'Fresh Air' celebrates 50 years of hip-hop: Questlove; Chuck D; Diddy

In his new memoir, Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson describes his life in music — and how he mimicked beats at just 10 months old. Danny Clinch/Grand Central Publishing hide caption

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Danny Clinch/Grand Central Publishing

Fresh Air Weekend

'Fresh Air' celebrates 50 years of hip-hop: Questlove; Chuck D; Diddy

Fresh Air

Questlove reflects on the Roots and his lifetime in music. Public Enemy's Chuck D discusses politically conscious rap. Hip-hop mogul Diddy says he's always been motivated to be "the best. "

'Fresh Air' celebrates 50 years of hip-hop: Questlove; Chuck D; Diddy

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Missy Elliott made hip-hop 'Supa Dupa Fly'

Missy Elliot performs at Lilith Fair at Jones Beach, New York, New York, July 16, 1998 Steve Eichner/Getty Images hide caption

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Music News

Missy Elliott made hip-hop 'Supa Dupa Fly'

Commentator Kiana Fitzgerald examines hip-hop game-changer Missy Elliott — as we celebrate 50 years of the genre.

Missy Elliott made hip-hop 'Supa Dupa Fly'

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The Culture Corner: Philadelphia's place in hip-hop history

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World Cafe Words and Music Podcast

The Culture Corner: Philadelphia's place in hip-hop history

As we celebrate 50 years of hip-hop, World Cafe takes a look at the history of the genre in Philly.

The Culture Corner: Philadelphia's place in hip-hop history

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'Louder Than A Riot' reckons with hip-hop's past and looks to a more inclusive future

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Emma McIntyre/Getty Images

Music Interviews

'Louder Than A Riot' reckons with hip-hop's past and looks to a more inclusive future

Fresh Air

Podcast hosts Sidney Madden and Rodney Carmichael say despite the misogynoir that has plagued the genre, hip-hop is poised for change. "The girls and the gays are running things," Madden says.

'Louder Than A Riot' reckons with hip-hop's past and looks to a more inclusive future

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Three 6 Mafia turns $4,500 into $45 million with 'Mystic Stylez'

3 members of the Memphis hip-hop group Three 6 Mafia. D.J. Paul (from left), Juicy J and Crunchy Black at MTV's Total Request Live on March 22, 2006, in New York City. Peter Kramer/Getty Images Entertainment hide caption

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Music

Three 6 Mafia turns $4,500 into $45 million with 'Mystic Stylez'

In 1995, the Memphis hip-hop group Three 6 Mafia took a shoestring DIY approach to recording their debut album, Mystic Stylez. Their example led to a flourishing independent hip-hop scene.

Kings and queens gathered for 'Hip Hop 50 Live' at Yankee Stadium

Darryl McDaniels (L) and Joseph Simmons (R) of Run-DMC, closing the Hip Hop 50 Live concert at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, N.Y. early Saturday morning. Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images

Culture

Kings and queens gathered for 'Hip Hop 50 Live' at Yankee Stadium

An eight-hour concert Friday night was a procession of generations of hip-hop royalty, from the Sugar Hill Gang to current stars like Lil Wayne. Run-DMC gave what was billed as their last performance.

Kings and queens gathered for 'Hip Hop 50 Live' at Yankee Stadium

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Getting lit for hip-hop's 50th birthday

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NPR

It's Been a Minute

Getting lit for hip-hop's 50th birthday

On August 11, 1973, hip-hop was born at a house party in the Bronx. 50 years later the genre has been reshaped in the image of cities and regions around the world. Brittany Luse and NPR Music's Sheldon Pearce take a tour of those regions and look at where hip-hop might go in the next 50 years.

Getting lit for hip-hop's 50th birthday

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Hip-hop at 50: A history of explosive musical and cultural innovation
Illustration by Jackie Lay/NPR

Music

Hip-hop at 50: A history of explosive musical and cultural innovation

To mark hip-hop's 50th anniversary, NPR's All Things Considered explores five moments that are integral to how the culture grew and evolved.

Hip-hop at 50: A history of explosive musical and cultural innovation

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2023 'til infinity: A vision of hip-hop's next 50 years

Hip-hop's first 50 years have yielded expansion across the globe and domination of digital spaces. As the internet has collapsed physical gaps, major artists from outside the United States, like (clockwise from top left) Little Simz, Drake, Bad Bunny, Blackpink and Rema, have been able to communicate with American rap culture in real time. Paul Bergen / Amy Sussman / Frazer Harrison / Emma McIntyre / Torben Christensen/Getty Images hide caption

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Paul Bergen / Amy Sussman / Frazer Harrison / Emma McIntyre / Torben Christensen/Getty Images

Music Features

2023 'til infinity: A vision of hip-hop's next 50 years

Giving rap the future it deserves means smashing the infrastructure as it is. But with the battle lines drawn, we can still take heart in the artists teasing just how much further the culture can go.

The birth of trap music and the rise of southern hip-hop

T.I.'s 2003 album, Trap Muzik , gave a name to a specific flavor of Atlanta rap that reflected the city's street culture. Vivien Killilea hide caption

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Vivien Killilea

Music

The birth of trap music and the rise of southern hip-hop

In 2003, T.I. and other Atlanta rappers created new subgenre of rap: trap music. Twenty years later, its influence is everywhere.

The birth of trap music and the rise of southern hip-hop

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How LA proved hip-hop could go global — by staying thoroughly local

Drakeo the Ruler, Kendrick Lamar, DJ Quik and N.W.A. Collage by Jackie Lay / NPR. Walik Goshorn / Bennett Raglin / Michael Loccisano / Theo Wargo/Getty Images / AP hide caption

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Walik Goshorn / Bennett Raglin / Michael Loccisano / Theo Wargo/Getty Images / AP

Hip-Hop 50: All Rap Is Local

How LA proved hip-hop could go global — by staying thoroughly local

There may be no better case for the power of hip-hop's geographic diversity than Los Angeles, whose sprawl of distinct creative microclimates is a genre unto itself.

2 Live Crew fought the law with its album, 'As Nasty As They Wanna Be'

2 Live Crew in 1989 (Mr. Mixx, Brother Marquis, Luther Campbell & Fresh Kid Ice) Raymond Boyd / Contributor/Getty Images / Michael Ochs Archives hide caption

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Raymond Boyd / Contributor/Getty Images / Michael Ochs Archives

Review

Music

2 Live Crew fought the law with its album, 'As Nasty As They Wanna Be'

In 1989, 2 Live Crew's As Nasty As They Wanna Be became the first album declared legally obscene, and the group's legal battles set a precedent for the rappers that followed.

2 Live Crew fought the law with its album, 'As Nasty As They Wanna Be'

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Hip-hop is 50. Its formula for global domination? Staying local
Jackie Lay & Connie Hanzhang Jin/NPR

All Songs Considered

Hip-hop is 50. Its formula for global domination? Staying local

When DJ Kool Herc spun records at a small party in the Bronx in August of 1973, no one would have predicted his unique style would give birth to the most influential and dominant music in the world: hip-hop. In this special episode, we're celebrating the 50th anniversary of the genre by looking at how and why the music has managed to remain a local phenomenon, even as it's taken hold of the world, and what's happening in some of the country's most vibrant scenes.

Hip-hop is 50. Its formula for global domination? Staying local

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How 'Yo! MTV Raps' helped mainstream hip-hop

Edo.G performs during the YO! MTV Raps 30th Anniversary Live Event in New York City in 2018. Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images hide caption

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Music

How 'Yo! MTV Raps' helped mainstream hip-hop

The MTV show Yo! MTV Raps helped bring hip-hop into mainstream American culture in the 1980s and was made by a scrappy team in the face of a skeptical corporate network.

How 'Yo! MTV Raps' helped mainstream hip-hop

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How the Bay Area became a rap incubator with a chip on its shoulder

E-40, Lil B, Too $hort and Kamaiyah. Collage by Jackie Lay / NPR. Bennett Raglin / Randy Shropshire / Taylor Hill / Gaelle Beri/Getty Images hide caption

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Bennett Raglin / Randy Shropshire / Taylor Hill / Gaelle Beri/Getty Images

Hip-Hop 50: All Rap Is Local

How the Bay Area became a rap incubator with a chip on its shoulder

Though the Bay's vibrant rap community lit the fuse on many of the stars, styles and innovations that have blown up across the map, the region might still be best known for being underestimated.

From 'fight the power' to advertising for the power: hip-hop turns 50
Islen Milien for NPR

Code Switch

From 'fight the power' to advertising for the power: hip-hop turns 50

For hip-hop's not-official-but-kind-of-official 50th birthday, we dig into its many contradictions. From the legend of the South Bronx block party where hip-hop was born to the multi-billion-dollar global industry and tool for U.S. diplomacy it has become, America's relationship with hip-hop — and the people who make it — is complicated.

From 'fight the power' to advertising for the power: hip-hop turns 50

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'Rapper's Delight': How hip-hop got its first record deal

Rap pioneers the Sugarhill Gang (left to right: Wonder Mike, Master G and Big Bank Hank) perform live circa 1979. Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images hide caption

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Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

Music

'Rapper's Delight': How hip-hop got its first record deal

Hip-hop was born at a party in 1973, but it'd be another six years until the first commercial hip-hop records. People have differing views of it, but the release of "Rapper's Delight" changed history.

'Rapper's Delight': How hip-hop got its first record deal

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How Seattle rap crashed the mainstream by swimming against the current

Sir Mix-a-Lot, Macklemore, Lil Mosey & Ishmael Butler. Collage by Jackie Lay / NPR. Sipa USA via AP / Kevork Djansezian / Bennett Raglin / Theo Wargo/Getty Images / AP hide caption

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Sipa USA via AP / Kevork Djansezian / Bennett Raglin / Theo Wargo/Getty Images / AP

Hip-Hop 50: All Rap Is Local

How Seattle rap crashed the mainstream by swimming against the current

United more by strategy than sound, the city's stars are fans-first nonconformists, who have often succeeded by doing the opposite of what the industry deems bankable.

The Sunday Story: Hip-Hop Verses That Changed Our Lives

Big Boi (left) and Andre 3000 of Outkast perform at the Firefly Music Festival in 2014. Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Firefly Music Festival hide caption

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Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Firefly Music Festival

Up First

The Sunday Story: Hip-Hop Verses That Changed Our Lives

This month marks 50 years since the birth of hip-hop, so our friends at Pop Culture Happy Hour reached out to some NPR colleagues and a few hip-hop luminaries and asked what hip-hop verse changed their lives.

The Sunday Story: Hip-Hop Verses That Changed Our Lives

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