Reddit reviews Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation
We found 24 Reddit comments about Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Picador USA
Not really. Hip Hop wouldn't spread globally until years later. And the people who accomplished that didn't get their DJ equipment in 1977.
What had a much bigger impact on hip hop was the 1971 south Bronx gang truce that allowed people to go to clubs and block parties without worrying about crossing rival gang territory.
The book Can't Stop Won't Stop covers it extremely well.
https://www.amazon.com/Cant-Stop-Wont-History-Generation/dp/0312425791
The Caribbean New York link is often cited as one of the key factors in the formation of hip hop. I strongly recommend you read Jeff Chang’s book Can’t Stop Won’t Stop to find a more detailed narrative on the link. It dedicates a chapter to the socio-economic conditions in NYC the late 60s and early 70s and another chapter to sound system culture in Jamaica which really set the scene what how and why hip hop emerged.
As a fan of early hip hop, I just want to stress that in 1970s in NYC the Caribbean influence was present in not only in rapping style, but in DJing style too, perhaps even more so. It was really the sound-system DJ culture of Jamaica that first made its way into the parks, streets and house parties in New York. It was the rapping that followed. This interview with DJ Kool Herc gives some indication of how one led to the other. The book “Last Night A DJ Saved My Life illuminates this further.
Lastly, while there is a strong Jamaican link to the origins of rapping, it is important to note that it was not only the source of influence. There were many other American artists from different backgrounds included raps and spoken word in their songs.
As a record collector, some of the more interesting examples that I have come across in my time include.
Also, rap made some appearances in country music too.
P.s. the first rap record is generally regarded to be
Personality Jock by King Tim III and the Fatback Band not Rappers Delight, which was released a couple of months later.
EDIT: I Just noticed you mentioned you were from the UK. You might be interested in checking out this website and articles by DJ Greg Wilson. He gives a good overview of the musical landscape in the UK in the late 70s and early 80s when hip hop was first being made. Of particular interest to you might be how US hip hop made it to the UK, and the role that of Caribbean kids in that movement, and subsequently dance music in the UK. He doesn't go into this in detail, but does allude to it. You should give him call, I'm sure he'd be happy to discuss.
I feel like this argument ^(apologies ^if ^I ^misinterpreted ^it!) is always brought up whenever new technology gets introduced. New technology threatens an old system of music production and while it frees up artistic creativity because of its availability, some people point to the perceived value of loss of musical integrity.
People will say something like "It's just not as good as it was before", that there are too many people diluting what x music should be.
A particular example I'm thinking about is the deejaying aspect of hip-hop in the 1970s; at first, it was just only people who had the resources to purchase turntables and speakers. Who had the double turntable/loudest was king. The rap aspect took the backseat to the dub/deejay aspect. In the early days, it was all about having a good time, getting people to come to your party, and keeping the music playing.
But then when radio discovered what was going on in New York, power dynamics changed. Rapper's Delight by The Sugarhill Gang was recorded and broadcasted in 1979 and the entire hip-hop landscape changed. Hip-hop was no longer viewed as a simple extracurricular activity, but the possibility of a potential profitable career. The live aspect of deejaying yielded to the much more profitable rapping aspect.
And this made some people upset. These rappers were diluting the already "good" deejaying scene. If you were big and didn't adapt to these new changes, you basically lost.
What do I think? I think over-saturation is great! I don't need to depend on filters to find good music; I can be in a small town in Kentucky and still find cool musicians who play in Austin, TX. While I do occasionally use BIRP and some indie youtube channels/tumblr pages, I am able to make value decisions. From my computer. I simply need a library account to access the computer and I have access to a world of music. It is super egalitarian in my mind.
Hipster moment here: I remember when I listened to Zoe Yin's Midnight back when it had a hundred something views. She's incredibly talented imho. I don't know her, probably wouldn't have seen her live even if she was in my town. But because she uploaded her stuff on the internet, I was able to find it in my free time. That's cool!
But I do acknowledge that there are some poorly mastered mixes out there. That's the nature of the beast. With ease of availability comes inexperience.
Another example (not music-related, but very relevant): film photography vs. digital photography. I learned how to take photos with b&w 35 mm film. It was expensive and it demanded a lot of time. Hours and days were put into developing/burning/dodging that I wanted my pictures to count. So, I worked and only took photos that passed a threshold of interest (due to the limitations of materials, expense, and time). Therefore, what I produced had a significant amount of thought and effort into them. And people liked it.
But now we have instagram, mobile phone cameras, and inexpensive point and shoots. More importantly, we have SD cards. Now instead of limited to 24 shots, you can take thousands! And it is reusable!
What does this mean? It means the effort behind the photo is reduced. Just a simple click with minimal thought. A lot of stuff I see on Facebook or Twitter... Well, it isn't that "good". But that doesn't mean it isn't art. And it doesn't mean we get to immediately write it off. We just need to look at it differently with the technical process in mind. Who is taking it? Who is their audience? What is their intention? How did they do it? Just like the internet scene, photography is going through the same debates.
And the best advice I can give is... just go with it! Find stuff. Hate it, love it, be indifferent. As long as you keep questioning the basis of your value system and don't hold on to a traditional viewpoint of what x should be every time/all the time... You'll be good!
^Jesus... ^this ^was ^long, ^thanks ^for ^reading ^if ^you ^made ^it ^this ^far
Citations:
Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation by Jeff Chang
tl;dr: the perception of oversaturation is just a mindset; allow yourself to be open from whatever old nostalgic system of value you hold and you can find some really cool stuff out there
If you're interested in a great book about early hip hop, check this one out-
https://www.amazon.com/Cant-Stop-Wont-History-Generation/dp/0312425791
The author Jeff Chang was a founder of the Solesides collective/label in 1991, along with DJ Shadow, Lyrics Born, and Blackalicious.
Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation Really enjoyable and exhaustive history of hip-hop from its roots through 2005
after reading Can't Stop Won't Stop by Jeff Chang, I can counter with the fact that in 1978 there were just as many antagonist cops looking to put black kids into jail for having stereos and being associated with 'gangs' and that decisions were made in the police administration to both (1) let the Bronx burn and (2) instigate violence between gangs in Harlem.
That's the Joint is a good academic anthology: https://www.amazon.com/Thats-Joint-Hip-Hop-Studies-Reader/dp/0415873266
Can't Stop, Won't Stop is a very good popular history:
https://www.amazon.com/Cant-Stop-Wont-History-Generation/dp/0312425791/
Can't Stop Won't Stop: http://www.amazon.com/Cant-Stop-Wont-History-Generation/dp/0312425791
a lot of this is covered in the phenomenal Can't Stop, Won't Stop by Jeff Chang. i highly recommend it
Can't Stop Won't Stop by David Chang. A GREAT look at hip hop's first years and cultural context. Highly recommended.
Only one book is necessary to get you pointed in the right direction: Can't Stop Won't Stop by Jeff Chang
For a book about hip hop culture, you might want to check out Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation by Jeff Chang.
Here are some links for the product in the above comment for different countries:
Amazon Smile Link: Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation
|Country|Link|
|:-----------|:------------|
|UK|amazon.co.uk|
|Spain|amazon.es|
|France|amazon.fr|
|Germany|amazon.de|
|Japan|amazon.co.jp|
|Canada|amazon.ca|
|Italy|amazon.it|
|China|amazon.cn|
To help donate money to charity, please have a look at this thread.
This bot is currently in testing so let me know what you think by voting (or commenting). The thread for feature requests can be found here.
One of the best papers I've read on this topic that gives a comprehensive review on the policy, history, and urbanization of racial ghettos is this one (its really really dense and goes in depth on a lot of material but its extremely comprehensive).
On general matters of race and civil rights, you can't go wrong with The Autobiography of Malcolm X.
If you want a more hip hop based approach, I recommend Jeff Chang's Can't Stop Won't Stop . This one is more of a history on the hip hop generation in general but gives a great background on how hip hop rose out of racial conflict.
I took a history of hip hop course at my uni, and if you're looking for a book check out Jeff Chang's "Can't Stop, Won't Stop". Starts at the very beginning, and moves forward. My professor had us read bits and pieces, and I learned a ton.
Link: http://www.amazon.com/Cant-Stop-Wont-History-Generation/dp/0312425791
Jeff Chang's Can't Stop Won't Stop might be a good place to start http://www.amazon.com/Cant-Stop-Wont-History-Generation/dp/0312425791
There is actually a decent amount of academic literature on hip-hop culture here in the States
I highly recommend this book; lots of historic Hip Hop related photos, interviews etc. Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation
Another great one is Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation. Basically starts in Jamaica with Herc and ends in the late 90s/early 2000s. A bit lengthy but a great read.
I tend to avoid mindless rock god memoirs. I'd highly recommend these...
I'll check it out, thanks. I'm reading this right now and really enjoying it.
Plugging Can't Stop Won't Stop as it's one of the best chronicles of the origins of the movement/music/culture. DJ Kool Herc was definitely the father of it all.
The book even traces the exact day he took to the turntables at a dance hall for his sisters birthday. Hip Hop history is truly amazing.
Ca mi-am amintit, recomand asta, are ditamai capitolul despre PE. Bine, continutul e la fel ca documentarul bun despre rap de pe Netflix dar care nu mai stiu cum se cheama...
Yeah
I want to recommend Jeff Chang's "Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation". It's about the origin of hip hop https://www.amazon.com/Cant-Stop-Wont-History-Generation/dp/0312425791
If anyone wants to learn more about hip hop being created in the South Bronx in the 70s and 80s, check out this fantastic book-
Amazon Link