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Genre · The Bronx, New York, 1970s

Hip-hop

Where to start with hip-hop: The Low End Theory, then seven more albums below, in order.

Hip-hop began in the Bronx in the 1970s, at block parties where DJs such as Kool Herc looped the instrumental breaks of funk and soul records and MCs talked over them. Rapping, DJing, breakdancing and graffiti grew up together as one culture.

Listen for three things. The beat, often built out of samples of older records. The flow, the rhythm of the rapper's words against that beat. And the sound of a place: New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Houston each made hip-hop sound different.

Start listening8 albums, in order →
  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
If you only play oneThe Low End TheoryA Tribe Called Quest · 1991

If you only play one hip-hop album, make it this one: jazz bass lines, crisp drums and two rappers trading verses.

Part of Jazz rap →
Step 1

Where to start: 8 hip-hop albums, in order

Click a cover to hear 30-second previews. Start at the top; each record takes you a little further.

  1. 01

    The Low End Theory

    A Tribe Called Quest · 1991

    Ron Carter plays upright bass on one track, and Q-Tip and Phife Dawg trade lines over sampled jazz; 'Scenario' closes it with a posse cut.

    Jazz rap
  2. 02

    Illmatic

    Nas · 1994

    Ten tracks of Queensbridge life told in dense, vivid verses, over beats by DJ Premier, Pete Rock, Q-Tip and Large Professor.

    East Coast hip-hop
  3. 03

    Paid in Full

    Eric B. & Rakim · 1987

    Rakim's smooth, intricate rhymes over Eric B.'s sampled beats; 'Eric B. Is President' and 'I Know You Got Soul' changed how MCs put words together.

    Classic hip-hop
  4. 04

    The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill

    Lauryn Hill · 1998

    Rapping and singing on the same record, with 'Doo Wop (That Thing)' and 'Ex-Factor'; hip-hop with soul and reggae close by.

  5. 05

    Aquemini

    Outkast · 1998

    Live instruments, funk and harmonica in Atlanta rap; 'Rosa Parks' and 'SpottieOttieDopaliscious' show the range of the Southern sound.

    Southern hip-hop
  6. 06

    Paul's Boutique

    Beastie Boys · 1989

    Built with the Dust Brothers out of hundreds of samples, layered so densely it became a landmark of sample-based production.

    Alternative hip-hop
  7. 07

    Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)

    Wu-Tang Clan · 1993

    RZA's dusty, eerie beats and nine rappers out of Staten Island, raw and unpolished, with kung fu film dialogue between the songs.

    Hardcore hip-hop
  8. 08

    My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

    Kanye West · 2010

    Choirs, strings and long outros around 'Power' and 'Runaway': hip-hop as a big, maximal production.

Previews courtesy of Apple Music.

Which one did you like best? Its tag below the cover is the branch to dig into next.

Step 2

How hip-hop grew

5 periods, each with the branches that appeared in it. Branches with a dot have their own page.

  1. 1970s

    Block parties

    DJs in the Bronx looped breakbeats and MCs rapped over them at parties and in parks. The first rap records appeared at the end of the decade.

    Political hip-hopWest Coast hip-hopEast Coast hip-hop

    On the route: record 2

  2. 1980s

    Drum machines and samplers

    Run-DMC brought rap onto rock radio, Public Enemy made it political, and De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest opened it to jazz and humor. Samplers let producers build beats out of whole libraries of records.

    Progressive rapSouthern hip-hopPop rapRap rockMiami bassJazz rapBoom bapAlternative hip-hopHardcore hip-hopG-funk

    On the route: record 1, record 5, record 6, record 7

  3. 1990s

    The coasts and the South

    Dr. Dre's G-funk defined Los Angeles, New York answered with Nas and the Wu-Tang Clan, and Atlanta, Houston and New Orleans grew sounds of their own.

    TrapBounce musicLatin hip-hopTurntablismChopped and screwedCrunkHyphy
  4. 2000s

    Hits and the internet

    Producers such as Kanye West brought soul samples back to the charts, trap spread out of Atlanta, and the internet let new rappers reach listeners without a label.

    Lofi hip-hopCloud rapPunk rapInternet rap
  5. 2010s onward

    Streaming

    Streaming made hip-hop one of the most played genres in the world, and styles such as emo rap and afroswing mixed it with rock and African pop.

    Mumble rapEmo rapAfroswingDigicore
The full lineage tree
↘ 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s JazzJazz · 1917 Gangsta rapGangsta rap · 1985 Hip-hopHip-hop · 1973 Political hip-hopPolitical hip-hop · 1970 West Coast hip-hopWest Coast hip-hop · 1975 East Coast hip-hopEast Coast hip-hop · 1978 Southern hip-hopSouthern hip-hop · 1980 Progressive rapProgressive rap · 1980 Pop rapPop rap · 1980 Rap rockRap rock · 1982 Jazz rapJazz rap · 1985 Miami bassMiami bass · 1985 Boom bapBoom bap · 1987 Alternative hip-hopAlternative hip-hop · 1988 Hardcore hip-hopHardcore hip-hop · 1988 G-funkG-funk · 1989 TrapTrap · 1990 Bounce musicBounce music · 1990 Latin hip-hopLatin hip-hop · 1990 TurntablismTurntablism · 1990 Chopped and screwedChopped and screwed · 1992 CrunkCrunk · 1997 HyphyHyphy · 1998 Lofi hip-hopLofi hip-hop · 2000 Cloud rapCloud rap · 2006 Punk rapPunk rap · 2007 Internet rapInternet rap · 2008

Bright border: has its own pageDashed: sources that flowed inSolid line: documented stylistic originFaint dashes: grouped under hip-hopHover a genre to see where it came from and went

Step 3

Pick a branch of hip-hop

The 8 branches people play most. Each has its own 8 albums and lineage.

  1. 1970sEast Coast hip-hopHard drums, sampled loops and dense, wordy verses.Open on the genre map →
  2. 1970sWest Coast hip-hopLaid-back funk grooves and melodic synth lines.Open on the genre map →
  3. 1980sSouthern hip-hopBooming bass, slower tempos and regional slang.Open on the genre map →
  4. 1980sJazz rapRapping over jazz samples and live jazz players.Open on the genre map →
  5. 1980sG-funkSlow P-Funk grooves, whining synths and sung hooks.Open on the genre map →
  6. 1990sTrapRolling hi-hats, heavy 808 bass and dark synths.Open on the genre map →
  7. 1980sAlternative hip-hopPlayful, open-minded hip-hop outside the gangsta mold.Open on the genre map →
  8. 1980sBoom bapPunchy kick and snare under sampled loops.Open on the genre map →
Step 4

Go deeper

What we have written about hip-hop, newest first.

  1. What Is Crate Digging? Where It Came From and Five Ways to Dig for MusicCrate digging means hunting down good music you haven't heard yet, instead of waiting for a recommendation. Where the term came from, and five leads to follow: credits, labels, a genre's roots, samples and the record shop.
  2. Nujabes: The Hidden Samurai Champloo! A Glimpse of Jazz Rap!In 1995, 21-year-old Jun Seba opened a record store in Udagawacho, Shibuya. By day he flipped through records; by night he made beats. He rarely appeared in public throughout his life, yet he looped two bars from old records into lo-fi beats that spread across the world. From his store and his collaborators to Samurai Champloo, plus nine recommended albums for further listening.

See hip-hop on the genre map

Its place among more than 1,200 genres, next to its neighbors.

Open the genre map →

Keep digging hip-hop in Cratto

Scan your records, light up your own genre globe, and see how much of your shelf is hip-hop.

Get Cratto →
All 42 subgenres of hip-hopby decade

1970s

Political hip-hopWest Coast hip-hopEast Coast hip-hop

1980s

Pop rapProgressive rapPsychedelic rapSouthern hip-hopRap rockChristian hip-hopJazz rapMiami bassBoom bapAlternative hip-hopComedy hip-hopHardcore hip-hopUnderground hip-hopG-funk

1990s

Bounce musicLatin hip-hopTrapTurntablismChopped and screwedChopper (rap)NerdcoreCrunkHyphy

2000s

Lofi hip-hopRap operaJewish hip-hopCloud rapPunk rapInternet rap

2010s

Mumble rapHipdutEmo rapAfroswingDigicoreSigilkore

2020s

Jerk (music genre)

Undated

Classic hip-hopFrat rapFreestyle rap
Genres hip-hop directly influenced31
Thai pop musicSampledeliaElectropopAfrican hip-hopContemporary R&BTeen popAustralian hip-hopFreestyle musicGangsta rapJapanese hip-hopUK rapBreakbeatHip houseBreakbeat hardcoreChicano rapCountry rapHip-hop soulK-popKorean hip-hopElectronicaTrip hopShibuya-keiIgbo rapGrime musicDancehall popJersey clubAlternative R&BEDM trap musicHyperpopWave musicRage (music genre)

Genre names and classification follow Wikipedia (Hip-hop, List of music genres and styles), CC BY-SA 4.0; lineage lines follow the stylistic origins each genre's entry records. Album artwork and previews come from Apple Music.