Hip-Hop Legend: Fab 5 Freddy

Fab 5 Freddy played a very important role in bringing Hip-Hop into the mainstream media. Along with other Hip-Hop legends like Afrika Bambaataa and Kool DJ Herc, Fab 5 Freddy could be considered one of the most important figures in Hip-Hop.

Fab 5 Freddy at Tribeca Film Festival

Born in the Bedford Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn, Freddy (born Fred Brathwaite) began his career in Hip-Hop culture as a young boy writing graffiti throughout New York City as a part of the group called "The Fabulous 5" ("Fab Five Freddy", 2012). One of his 1980 works, a subway car covered in Campbell's Soup cans (an homage to Andy Warhol), is considered to be an all-time graffiti classic.
 From there, Freddy began exhibiting his art in major galleries around the United States and abroad. He also became the liaison between the up-and-coming Hip-Hop culture and New York's downtown entertainment scenes, collaborating in shows with Bboy crews, Djs, Mcs, and other graffiti artists.


Soon after, Freddy brought to the big screen the classic 1981 Hip-Hop film, "Wild Style," which became number seven on Rolling Stone Magazine's list of top 25 music DVDs of all time ("Bio", 2012). Freddy produced and composed all the music for the film. His 1982 single "Change the Beat" is a classic that has been sampled countless times by DJs and producers in other songs.

In 1988 Fab 5 Freddy became the host of the MTV show "Yo! MTV Raps," which became the highest rated show on the channel at the time ("Bio", 2012). Freddy brought Hip-Hop even more into the public eye and it's popularity skyrocketed.

Freddy directed multiple groundbreaking music videos for artists like Nas, Queen Latifah, and Snoop Dogg. He was also known for his in depth essays and articles about pop culture in magazines and newspapers like XXL, Vibe, and the New York Times ("Bio", 2012).

Today, Fab 5 Freddy has returned to making art and is currently working on a show in Los Angles that is intended to examine the history of graffiti art.

Graffiti Spotlight: Graffiti in Art Museums

After interest in graffiti spread, the early 80s saw the introduction of graffiti into museums and art galleries (Melker, 2011). Curators are always looking for exciting new things to draw crowds in and graffiti was one of the most popular art forms at the time. The idea appeared first in New York, and since then museums and art galleries have been showing graffiti art to a small extent.

Although some writers have embraced a transition from the streets to art studios, others resist the idea. The controversy lies in an issue with exposure. Pro-gallery advocates will cite the fact that the graffiti in museums aren't illegal and don't get taken down by the city. Advocates will also state that the artists get paid for their work, but others aren't buying into it (Melker, 2011). Most people realize that art galleries have a hard time getting people in the doors. The few people to that do go to art galleries vary greatly from the type of audience graffiti writers are used to presenting to. The whole purpose of writing graffiti in public places is for the work to be seen and to gain notoriety. Graffiti artists know that their work will get a lot less exposure if they place it inside and wait for people to come to it, instead of placing it in the public's face (Melker, 2011). They also realize that they won't get the respect from other writers who can admire their work and understand the technique and preparation that went into it. In addition, since the museums and art galleries are trying to draw crowds only the best artists have spots open to them. With this in mind, most writers consider it less trouble and more rewarding to just keep their work in the streets.

DJ Spotlight: Chase Fisher

 I recently had the chance to interview Chase Fisher, an internet DJ from the University of Denver. Chase talks about what goes into being a DJ and his relationship with Djing.

Used with permission (c) 2012 Chase Fisher

How long have you been DJing?

CF: About three or four years. The first set I ever played was on a virtual club in an online game called Second Life.

 What about DJing appeals to you?

CF: Well, I like music, and I like making people happy. And I kinda go a little overboard. It's shit I can't do normally, like sometimes I get crazy freaking drunk and play a set, and people will still listen. It's kinda terrible, but I love it.

Tell us a little about the preparation that goes into DJing a set.

Used with permission (c) 2011 Chase Fisher

CF: Well when I play an online set I get my stream set up, I enter in an IP and a port to broadcast the music. Then I put like 20, 25 minutes of music up in the stack, so I have a base to work on. The rest of the time I fill with just stuff that I come across, or requests. I'm big on requests. Generally I can get whatever people want. And then I get myself psyced up enough to yell at people I don't know about music and random bullshit. [laughs] I turn up the volume and start the first song. I'll play one or two before talking about anything. It's a mind thing. I ask people what they want to hear at that point, or if I'm broadcasting to like, a lot of people I'll just give a general poll.

Is there a big difference between Djing online and performing live?

CF: You get paid when you DJ live.

Do you create any original music or do you prefer preexisting records, more like classic DJs?

CF: Well, I do have one mashup that I'm really proud of, and I'm going to be working on another, but for the most part I play preexisting tracks.

 Any advice for aspiring DJs?

CF: Give the people what they want to hear. Make sure you interact with the crowd, you know? You're part of the crowd.

Thanks for letting me interview you. Any final thoughts?

CF: Nah man, I'm good.

If you want to hear more from Chase, have a listen to his mashup, "Ch-Ch-Check Out My Supermassive Black Hole" (posted with permission from Chase):
 

A Brief History of DJ-ing

DJ history begins with the invention of the gramophone in 1892 by Emile Berliner, who began producing the first disc records available for public use ("Disc jockey", 2012). The world's first radio DJ was 16 year old Ray Newby, who began broadcasting in San Jose, California in 1909. The term DJ was coined by radio commentator Walter Winchell in 1935, referring to another popular announcer Martin Block. DJ stands for "disc jockey," describing the people who operated the records (a jockey is a person who operates machinery).

The world's first DJ dance party was held in 1943 by English DJ Jimmy Savile. Up until that point, DJs had been predominately on the radio creating the illusion of broadcasting live from ballrooms while bands played, when in reality they were just playing songs from records. Savile played jazz records live for the Loyal Order of Ancient Shepherds, a society in Otley, England. Savile is also credited with being the first DJ to use twin turntables for continuous music ("Disc jockey", 2012).

Shephard Fairey

In 1947, a nightclub called the Whiskey a Go-Go was opened in Paris, France ("Disc jockey", 2012). It was the world's first commercial disco club, and all of it's featured music came from records instead of a live band (which had been the norm up to that point). From there, discos spread throughout Europe and the United States.
 In the late 50s, sound systems were introduced from Kingston, Jamaica. Promoters began throwing large block parties in the streets centered around the DJs, who would blast music on the sound systems for people to dance to. As nightclubs and discos continued to grow, specialized DJ equipment for mixing was also introduced in the mid 60s ("Disc jockey", 2012).

DJ Francis Grasso is credited with popularizing beatmatching, the art of seamlessly transitioning between two songs with similar tempos, in 1969 at a nightclub called New York's Sanctuary ("Disc jockey", 2012).

In 1973 Kool DJ Herc,  a Jamaican immigrant widely regarded as the "father of Hip-Hop" was famous for his block parties in the Bronx. Herc noticed that some dancers would wait for the rhythmic instrumentals (the breaks) in the music to dance, so he developed a technique to prolong the breaks by mixing back and forth between two identical records (Brenner, 2002). This is considered the birth of modern turntablism, the art of using turntables to manipulate the sounds of preexisting music to create original music.

 From there the art form of DJing took off. New techniques were discovered, such as Hip-Hop DJ Grand Wizard Theodore's creation of record scratching in 1975 ("Disc jockey", 2012). Some DJs also moved away from Disco and Hip-Hop to other genres of music like House and, more recently, Dubstep.

Bboy Spotlight: Godswill Ugwa

Godswill is a Bboy from Garland, Texas who attends The University of Texas as Dallas. I have the opportunity to learn some Bboy techniques from Godswill during the year along with a few peers and was able to sit down with him for an interview. 

 What first got you interested in Bboying?

GU: My best friend in 9th grade showed me this C-walking video, so that got me into Hip-Hop culture. Also, I really wanted to learn how to dance. I went to a lot of dances and didn't know what to do, and a few girls told me that I didn't know how to dance, which bothered me. So really a combination of all those things.


What sets it apart from other forms of dance? 

GU: It's a lot more free than other dances, I feel. It's more free and it takes more. I like the athleticism that goes into it, it's like a man's sport. [laughs] Well maybe I shouldn't say that. But there's a competitive nature that goes into it, like you can't Bboy with a date and be like "watch these moves girl." But at the same time, it's not angry. Krumping is an angry dance, but Bboying doesn't have that rage with it.

Talk a little bit about your experience with the competitions.

GU: For a long time I've been really nervous about competitions. When I'm aiming to compete, I don't want to mess up and I become really stoic. But when I'm just trying to have fun I'm more relaxed, you know, I'm not all over the place. And I also go to competitions to network and to meet new people. So I think it's best when you go to competitions to go with the intent to have fun and always try to meet someone new. Also bring a camera. It's a lot of fun to go to competitions and record the battles. And always try to go to a competition, once you have a few moves down. Don't say, "Oh, I'll go to the next one." It's a good way to hone your skills and keep your blood running.

Do you think you might join or start a crew anytime soon? 

GU: Yeah. I'm aiming to next year with you guys, if you think you're ready. If not, I'll probably just join in with somebody who needs a partner whenever I'm at competitions.

Is there any cultural significance to Bboying? What does it mean to you? 

GU: I feel that it really ties me to Hip-Hop. Like the real Hip-Hop that was founded back in the day. And the reason I feel that it ties me to that is it represents that sort of aggressiveness and assertiveness that Hip-Hop music and Hip-Hop style has when you do it right, but in a way that lets you expresses yourself. There's a lot of significance to me. I was really shy and didn't really know how to express myself before, and I feel that Bboying was sort of the catalyst for who I am today.

Any advice for people who want to get into Bboying?

GU: [laughs] Yes, a lot. You've definitely heard this. The first thing that someone has to come in with is knowledge. They have to know that, one, it's going to be hard. Two, they need to know the history. History is important so that you're actually feeling what you're doing and where it comes from and you're not just out there doing moves. Three, they have to know how to come into it without getting hurt. The main other thing that you need to bring into this is determination, because you're not going to get it down overnight. You have to be willing to practice until you get it down and be willing to work past your mistakes and your injuries. The last thing I would say is to find a good group that you can join up with. Doing it by yourself, you won't really be sure if you're getting better. But it you find an established group, or even just a group of friends, they can push you to get better and give you some encouragement.

Thanks for interviewing with me.

GU: No problem. I feel special [laughs]

See some of Godswill's moves below in this video I took.

Grafitti Spotlight: Subcategories

Graffiti has accumulated a large number of devoted followers since its conception, but it's not all spray painted walls and subway cars. Multiple subcategories of graffiti have evolved and are growing in popularity among people who want to express themselves in other ways.

Street Poster Art

Street poster art is a form of graffiti in which artists post either handmade or printed out graphics on walls around the city ("Street poster art", 2012). Usually the graphics are on very thin paper that is easy to remove and the posters are kept in place using wheatpaste, a homemade adhesive made from a mixture of water and flour ("Wheatpaste", 2012).

Sticker Art

Sticker art is similar to poster art, in that the artists use printed graphics to spread their message. The graphics in sticker art are printed onto small stickers and placed by artists in as many areas around their respective cities as possible. To spread their art even further, sticker artists developed communities (mostly online communities) in which they trade stickers with people in other cities around the world. It would not be uncommon to see stickers in New York that were made by a person from Germany or London ("Sticker art", 2012).

Stencil Graffiti

Stencil graffiti is the closest subcategory on this list to original spray paint graffiti, and is sometimes used in combination with other spray paint techniques. Stencil graffiti, as the name implies, utilizes a stencil made out of paper, cardboard, or some other media to display a pre-made image or message. Artists can spray paint through the stencil (sometimes they use roll-on paint) to quickly and easily create their art, and the stencil allows for them to reproduce it anywhere with the same consistent design ("Stencil graffiti", 2012).

Yarn Bombing 

 Yarn bombing is a type of graffiti that uses knitted or crocheted yarn in place of paint or chalk. Originally used as a way to beautify public areas that seemed dull, yarn bombing is done by collectives of knitters who work together to cover their targets in colorful yarn ("Yarn bombing", 2012).

A Brief History of Bboying

In the Bronx some time around 1973, Kool DJ Herc was known for throwing block parties in different neighborhoods where everybody would come to dance and congregate. Herc would play music with breaks in it, where all the music dropped out and the only thing still going was the beat (Brenner, 2002). These parts of the songs were very popular and some people would wait just for the breaks to start dancing and showing off their moves. These people became known as Break boys and Break girls, or Bboys and Bgirls.

The actual meaning of the "break" in Bboys is disputed. Some say it came from the breaks on the records; others say that it comes from the slang term "breaking," a term which implies acting like a fool or starting trouble (Brenner, 2002). Early breaking was done predominantly on one's feet (called "toprock"). It wasn't until a couple years later that Bboys introduced flashier moves to their dancing ("footwork" and "power moves").

 Nearing the end of the decade, breaking had lost popularity as something to do at parties and only the die-hard Bboys could be seen breaking. It became more of a competitive dance. Crews (a group of Bboys) would travel around the city to dance against each other and see who had the most skill, called battling.

The big introduction of Bboying to the public eye came in the form of the Rock Steady Crew. In the early 80s, graffiti photographer Henry Chalfant realized that a lot of graffiti writers were also Bboys. He organized a show with the Rock Steady Crew and legendary Hip-Hop personality Fab 5 Freddy in which the crew would dance in front of projections images of graffiti while Freddy rapped and a DJ played music (Brenner, 2002). The show was reviewed by the New York Village Voice newspaper and from there the crew started doing more shows and battles, including one in Manhattan's Lincoln Center that was covered by National Geographic and the New York Times.

In 1982, the Rock Steady Crew was offered a job by Michael Holman doing weekly shows at a Hip-Hop club called The Grill. The next year, Fab 5 Freddy collaborated once again with the Rock Steady Crew to create the first Hip-Hop movie, called "Wild Style." This, combined with the crew's appearance in the 1983 motion picture "Flashdance,"propelled Bboying into the world's view (Brenner, 2002). It quickly spread across the country and different styles emerged from different regions. From there, Bboying shined bright and fast in regards to media popularity. It was heavily commercialized, with Bboying being featured in all sorts of movies, talk shows, and even the Olympics. But by the end of the 80s, it was replaced with the "next big thing" and Bboys fell back into relative obscurity. Some believe that Bboying was never meant to leave underground culture; others argue that the energy that they put into breaking probably would have gone into gangs if they had been introduced to the latter instead of the former (Brenner, 2002).

Today, breaking is still going strong as new generations are picking up the dance and coming up with new styles and more creative moves.

MC Spotlight: Jonathan Velazquez

I had the opportunity to interview Johnny Velazquez (aka Professor K), a 17 year old MC from Atlanta, Georgia. Johnny talks about the origins of his style and his experience performing.

Used with permission (c) 2012 Tyler Mitchell

When did you first start MC-ing and what got you interested in it?

JV: Well, I started trying out spoken word in 9th grade, but what really got me hooked on Hip-Hop was the Blue Scholars' "Hi-808" video. I remember seeing it and thinking, "I want to make music more like this." So eventually, in 11th grade I think, I tried my hand at a song. I thought it was the shit at the time, but looking back on it, it was completely horrible. [laughs]

What artists influence you?

JV: Definitely Blue Scholars, but newer age artists such as Hoodie Allen and Chiddy Bang have had a pretty big impact on me.

Describe your sound, your style of rap.

JV: That's tough. I consider it Alternative Hip-hop. It's usually a little more upbeat but it changes with each song. If I had to compare it to something, it'd probably be a Ditto (the Pokemon). I rap about how I'm feeling, certain topics that spark my interest, I even have a song that just follows the course of one day for me. It's all different. My whole philosophy around music is that it should make people feel good, so that's what I try to do. Just making the flow match the words so it can translate as "fun,"

whatever it is I talk about.

 Take us, step by step, through your creative process.

JV: Well first I smoke a whole bunch of crack. [laughs] Nah, seriously though. I just need to be inspired. I'll get a beat that just makes me say, "I need to get on that," and then I just start test running different flows over it.

Used with permission (c) 2012 Jonathan Velazquez

And how do you know when you've found the right flow?

JV: That's a good question. You just kinda know when the sounds are matching up. Its like hitting those little arrows in Dance Dance Revolution. You just feel things clicking. Once I get the flow and words on point, I go through the whole song repeatedly until I either deem it worthy or I lose my voice. [laughs] No, but its a lot of trial and error sometimes until everything works and you know "this works."

Talk a little bit about your experience performing.

JV: Well the first time I performed was last year and all I remember was being nervous as hell. People really felt it though and that kinda got me pumped. I ended up using a video of that performance to submit to some contest for 105.7 to open for Flo-Rida and Lil John. I won, but unfortunately couldn't perform because I was still under 18. [laughs] That sucked but it was a cool experience. Since then I've performed at a few festivals, showcases, and school events. It's hard to find gigs as an up and coming artist but I'm always excited when I see a new crowd of faces, however often that is.

Why is what you do important? What does Hip-Hop mean to you?

JV: Hip-hop is not only my form of self expression, it's my connection with the rest of the world. I'm trying to give people something they can relate to and something that can make them feel good. I need to do for others what music has done for me throughout my life. I guess that's why what I do is so important to me.

Thanks for sitting down with me! Any final thoughts?

JV: Nah dude, thanks for having me. I'll be coming out with some pretty cool stuff soon so stay tuned.

If you want to hear more from Johnny, follow him on Twitter @NerdyJohnny. Have a listen to one of his songs, "Paint Brushes" (posted with permission from Johnny).
 

A Brief History of Modern MC-ing

MC-ing (more commonly referred to as rapping) is by far the most well-known element of Hip-Hop culture among the general public, despite being the youngest of the four elements. MC-ing has roots tied to West Africa, where storytellers called "Griots" would tell their stories rhythmically along with drum beats in the background (Rhodes, 1993). Originally, MCs were "masters of ceremonies"; they were the hosts of any gathering, responsible for making sure the crowd was having a good time and for introducing whatever DJ or performer was about to take the stage (Walker, 1997).

The birth of the Hip-Hop MC stemmed from Kool DJ Herc, a Jamaican immigrant who gained popularity in the Bronx and is widely regarded today as the "father of Hip-Hop"(Walker, 1997). Herc would encourage dancing at his parties by saying short and simple rhymes over his music. This was inspired by the Caribbean tradition of "toasting", chanting historic tales of heroism over a beat ("Rapping", 2012). This was a hit with his audience and quickly caught on among other DJs. DJ Hollywood is regarded as the first to weave these short rhymes together to create lengthier ones. He also encouraged crowd participation through chants and crowd response (Walker, 1997).

DJ Kool Herc

 A big advocate for MC-ing and all other things Hip-Hop was Afrika Bambaataa, a DJ and MC from the Bronx. He became the self-appointed spokesperson for Hip-Hop, hoping to replace gangs and drugs with the Hip-Hop culture. In 1975, Bambaataa founded the Zulu Nation, an organization founded in order for Bboys, MCs, DJs, and Graffiti writers to form a stronger sense of community with each other (Rhodes, 1993).

Although it was growing in popularity, rap was still very much an underground movement. MCs were seen just as rebels against Disco, which was the big thing at the time, and popular opinion held that rap was a fad that would soon die out (Rhodes, 1993). The first rap song to catch the public's eye was "Rapper's Delight" by the Sugarhill Gang. The song somewhat popularized Hip-Hop and made way for other MCs to try their hand at rapping for a broader audience. Although MC-ing was still considered a fad, each new hit gave the public a more positive view of Hip-Hop. MCs began developing their own unique styles, ranging from the gangster rap of Ice-T to the political commentary of Tupac. Artists like Run DMC, The Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, Will Smith, and Vanilla Ice did a lot for bringing MC-ing into mainstream music (Walker, 1997).

Today MC-ing can no longer be considered an underground movement, but the subculture is ever-evolving and doesn't seem to be dying out anytime soon.

A Brief History of Modern Graffiti

Google defines graffiti as a writing or drawing "scribbled, scratched, or sprayed illicitly on a wall or other surface in a public place." Graffiti has been in existence almost as long as the human race itself, found alongside the earliest scientific discoveries of human life in the form of drawings on cave walls. Modern graffiti can also be traced back fairly far in human history. The earliest found instances of modern-style graffiti were found in ancient Greek and Roman cities. Residents would write things such as their names, political jokes, and even advertisements for prostitution on building walls and structures near walkways ("Graffiti", 2012). There is much disagreement on where graffiti as we know it today got its start, but a majority of people agree that New York and Philadelphia were very important places in regards to its growth and popularity.

 In urban areas, graffiti was used primarily as political statement for activists or as a way to mark territory for gangs (Felisbret, 2009). It wasn't until the late 60's that graffiti artists, termed "writers", appeared with the purpose of achieving artistic recognition through graffiti. Two of the first credited writers were Philadelphia artists Cool Earl and a high school student called Cornbread, who is rumored to have started writing to impress a girl (Melker, 2011). They made names for themselves by writing their names in as many places throughout the city as they could, an act that came to be known as tagging. Graffiti soon caught the attention of the public media.
The first major recognition of graffiti outside of its own subculture came from a 1971 New York Times article about Greek writer Taki 183, a teenager from Manhattan (Felisbret, 2009). In the article, Taki 183 was interviewed about his inspiration for writing on subway cars and ice-cream trucks and talked about how he came up with his pseudonym (Taki was his childhood nickname and 183 was the street he lived on).

Taki 183's tag

As Graffiti grew in popularity and more writers emerged, they sought new ways to distinguish themselves from others. The goal of graffiti artists from the mid 70's onward shifted from the quantity of tags around their respective cities to the quality of the pieces they were creating. This is the period in which most of the styles and techniques still used today were developed.

 Names began taking on dimensions: block and bubble letters filled with stripes, polka dots, and other patters; words were accompanied by scenery and characters and sometimes were done away with altogether in favor of bombing, or painting any graffiti illustrations besides the artist's name. The competitive nature of writing drove writers to make their works bigger and more elaborate to the point where bombing entire walls and whole subway cars was considered a standard to some (Felisbret, 2009).

Graffiti is less prevalent today due to the collective efforts of citizens and government officials concerned with city beautification, but there still exists an underground subculture of graffiti.