Who was the first rap artist? Was it beastie boys or Ice T or even Grandmaster Flash?

Answer 1

The 1st rapper really was DJ Kool Herc... He's the founder of rap...
Kool DJ Herc, the godfather of hip-hop, was born in Jamaica in 1955. He moved to the Bronx in 1967, at the age of twelve. With his unique playlist of R&B, soul, funk, and obscure disco, Herc quickly became the catalyst of the hip-hop way of life. The kids from the Bronx and Harlem loved his ghetto style, which gave birth to the concept of the B-Boy. The B-Boy -- or beat boy, break boy, Bronx boy -- loved the breaks of Kool Herc, and as a result soon created break dancing. These were the people of the hip-hop culture. While Pete DJ Jones was #1 for the black disco crowd in NYC, Herc and the B-Boys were the essence of the hip-hop movement, because of they lived the lifestyle. The way they danced, dressed, walked, and talked was unique, as opposed to most of the disco artists and fans of the time, who were not as in touch with the urban streets of America.
Brian Chin for http://rhino.com/Features/liners/72851lin.html

Kool DJ Herc (born Clive Campbell on April 16, 1955) is a Jamaican American musician and producer, generally credited as a pioneer of hip hop during the 1970s. He was the originator of break-beat deejaying, wherein the breaks of funk songs--being the most danceable part, often featuring percussion--were isolated and repeated for the purpose of all-night dance parties (AMG). Later DJs such as Grandmaster Flash refined and developed the use of breakbeats, including cutting. --http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DJ_Kool_Herc [Jan 2005]

Answer 2

Definitely not the Beastie Boys or Ice T. Those two came out in the mid-80's. The first real popular rap "artist" was The Sugarhill Gang, but I don't think they were the first.

Answer 3

By the end of the 1970s, hip hop had spread throughout New York, and was getting some radio play. Rappers were increasingly writing songs that fit pop music structures and featured continuous rhymes. Melle Mel (of The Furious Five) stands out as one of the earliest rap innovators. From the 1970s to the early 1980s, Melle Mel set the way for future rappers through his sociopolitical content as well as his creative wordplay.

Hip hop lyricism saw its biggest change with the popularity of Run-DMC's Raising Hell in the mid-1980s. This album helped set the tone of toughness and lyrical prowess in hip hop; Run-DMC were almost yelling their aggressive lyrics. Run-DMC exerted an enormous influence on the greatly experimental golden age of hip hop, which would last until 1993. In golden age rap, internal rhyme schemes and varying cadences were commonplace. Rhyme styles continue to develop throughout the world to this day.

(((Does anyone remember "King Tut" by Steve Martin?)))

Answer 4

Grandmaster Flash



Hip-hop is a catch-all term that refers more to a black cultural movement than to a specific musical style. Rap, a musical component of hip-hop, made its mark on American popular culture with the groundbreaking single "Rapper's Delight" by the Sugar Hill Gang. Released in 1980, "Rapper's Delight" introduced a wide audience to a music that would eventually combine the motions of people on the dance floor and the politics of urban America. Through the 1980s and 1990s, rap absorbed many musical practices and experienced many changes.

Rap began as a "do it yourself" music intended to accompany large parties. Spinning records on a turntable or multiple turntables, the rap DJ of the early 1980s isolated specific parts of songs, creating long grooves from the instrumental sections of 12-inch disco singles. Over this background, a rapper or group of rappers would rhythmically speak about their own prowess as a rapper, a man, or a lover. Taking much of their style from Jamaican "toasting," the early rappers were comparable to "masters of ceremonies" (MCs) rather than musicians or singers. The term "MC" is still used in reference to artists who prefer the party-oriented music of the 1980s over contemporary styles.

In 1982, Grandmaster Flash, a DJ who was instrumental in the development of rap in the 1970s, released a record titled "The Message." This song transcended rap's party roots, addressing poverty, drug addiction, urban decay, and their psychological effects on largely black inner-city populations. Later generations of rappers would use the form to write songs protesting police brutality, politics, and the troubled history of black America. This tendency resulted eventually in the idiom known as "gangsta rap," an aggressive and outspoken music that became a political lightning rod in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Answer 5

The first mainstream rap artists were The Beastie Boys and Run DMC.

Edit: Notice how I said "mainstream" for those giving me thumbs down.

Answer 6

This is a great question, one of which I have researched and found these links:

http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761563537/Rap.html#s5 (gives the history of rap music)

www.icet.com (his official site)

http://music.yahoo.com/ar-261852-bio--Beastie-Boys (the artist page on this group)

Therefore, in order to answer this question, one must know the true history origins, but in accordance to your question...Grandmaster Flash(DJ), Beastie Boys(Punk Rock/Rap Trio), and Ice T(Rapper/Actor)...Happy Safe Holidays! (smiles)

Answer 7

No, you gotta go back way farther than that. The first rap group I remember was Sugar Hill Gang. They had a song called "Rapper's Delight". I remember that from 7th or 8th grade, which was in 1979-80.

Answer 8

TheSugarhill Gang's 1979 hit "Rapper's Delight" made it to the top 40 in the U.S. , it was the biggest rap hit for a number of years

Answer 9

The "Sugarhill Gang" was before all of them. They came out with a song in the early 80s called "rappers delight" or something like that.

Answer 10

Debbie Harry, from the group Blondie, had a rap track on their LP long before rap became popular!