Rapping
Rhythmic vocal delivery central to hip-hop music.
Rapping is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular. It is a primary ingredient of hip-hop music and is usually performed over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The components of rap include content (lyrics), flow (rhythm, rhyme), and delivery (cadence, tone).
- field
- Music
- known_for
- Vocal delivery incorporating rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular; primary ingredient of hip-hop music
- origins
- Bronx, New York City, early 1970s
- precursors
- West African griot tradition, blues, jazz, playing the dozens, 1960s African-American poetry
Lore & Background
Rapping developed from announcements made over microphones at parties by DJs and MCs in the Bronx, New York City, in the early 1970s, evolving into more complex lyrical performances. It became part of popular music later that decade. Precursors include West African griot traditions, certain vocal styles of blues and jazz, the African-American insult game called playing the dozens, and 1960s African-American poetry. The word 'rap' predates the musical form, originally meaning 'to lightly strike,' and by the 1960s became a slang term meaning 'to converse' in African American vernacular, soon after coming to denote the musical style.
Reader's Guide
Rapping has played a significant role in expressing social and political issues, addressing topics such as racism, poverty, and political oppression. By the 21st century, rap had become a global phenomenon, influencing music, fashion, and culture worldwide. Stylistically, rap occupies a gray area between speech, prose, poetry, and singing. It differs from spoken-word poetry in that it is usually performed off-time to musical accompaniment, and from singing, which varies in pitch and does not always include words. Because they do not rely on pitch inflection, some rap artists may play with timbre or other vocal qualities. Rap is usually delivered over a beat, typically provided by a DJ, turntablist, or beatboxer when performing live, though a rapper can decide to perform a cappella. In a production studio, a producer most frequently provides the beat for the MC to flow over.
Did You Know?
- The word 'rap' originally meant 'to lightly strike' and has been used in English since the 16th century.
- Rap differs from spoken-word poetry in that it is usually performed off-time to musical accompaniment.
- Precursors to modern rap include the West African griot tradition and the African-American insult game called playing the dozens.
- Rap is a primary ingredient of hip-hop music and is sometimes called 'rap music'.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Rapping?
Rapping is a vocal art form built on rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular, usually performed over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. It serves as the primary expressive ingredient of hip-hop music.
Where and when did Rapping originate?
Rapping emerged in the Bronx, New York City, during the early 1970s. Its DNA stretches back through West African griot storytelling, blues, jazz, the verbal game of playing the dozens, and 1960s African-American poetry.
What are Rapping's three core components?
The form rests on content (the lyrics), flow (rhythm and rhyme patterns), and delivery (cadence and tone). Together these elements shape how a rapper channels emotion and meaning into performance.
What role does Rapping play within hip-hop?
Rapping functions as the central lyrical and rhythmic backbone of hip-hop, the element over which beats and production are layered. Without it, hip-hop loses its defining mode of vocal expression.
What traditions came before Rapping as we know it?
Before crystallizing into its modern form, Rapping absorbed influences from West African griot oral traditions, the blues, jazz, the competitive verbal exchange called playing the dozens, and the spoken-word movements of 1960s African-American poetry.
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