Hip Hop 50 <3
August 11, 2023, was excitedly the 50th anniversary of when Hip Hop was created on 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx, New York. It’s amazing to think that 50 years ago, DJ Kool Herc and his sister Cindy Campbell threw a party that would change the course of music history forever.
With this past week being the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, there was a lot of “reminiscent” conversations online - for example people discussing their favorite hip hop albums of all time, their favorite DJ’s, the first Hip hop album we’ve ever bought with our own money, and even our favorite Hip Hop album cover of all time.
With all these topics on the timeline, it encouraged me to think long and hard about some of my "favorite" things as they relate to hip-hop. For instance, the first hip-hop album I ever bought with my own money was Take Care. The first rap concert I ever attended was Drake’s Club Paradise Tour, and as many people may or may not know, J. Cole is indeed my favorite rapper of all time hahaha.
Even though these are all just ‘peeks’ inside some of my favorite things in hip-hop, seeing the open dialogue of all of these topics on social media and others opinions and memories really was amazing/nostalgic to see.
Amongst all of this nostalgia I think we can all agree that the biggest celebration for hip hop’s 50th birthday was the ‘The Hip Hop 50 Live at Yankee Stadium’ concert. Friday night, this legend-studded lineup filled the stadium with timeless memories with performances from Lil Wayne, Run DMC, Snoop Dogg, Slick Rick, Cam’Ron, and even a surprise duet performance from Nas and Lauryn Hill, and so much more!
As we bring in this 50th anniversary, it makes me wonder what the next 50 years in this genre will look like. Will we ever see another hip-hop group like The Migos, another "Big Three" like Drake, Kendrick, and Cole, or even another star-studded Bronx female rapper from the Bronx like Cardi B or Ice Spice? Will my kids live and breathe this genre as much as I do? Will they go back and listen to classic albums that were way before their time, like I once did? I guess these are all important questions for the future of this culture, but the truth is, I’m excited to see how far it continues to take us!
- @najerimonica <3
Pssssttttt! If you are still here reading, here’s some stuff I’ve been listening to + some recent releases let me know what y’all been hooooked on in the comments below!
‘Bigger then everything’ - @yeat
‘IN THIS’ - @fleeghost & @cashcobain_2x
‘Need 2 Know’ - @layaface
‘SHAKE IT’ - @globalmick
‘Sundial’ - @nonamehiding
‘Porches’ - @reasontde
‘Before The Summer’s Over’ - @crxssroadsmusic
‘Humble Soles’ - @rocnation
