What does Hip Hop actually mean?

Answer 1

Over the past 30 years, hip hop culture has evolved significantly and attained global recognition, but with this growth has come many costs. Multi-billion dollar corporations like Sony, Viacom, Bertelsmann and Vivendi Universal, which own Roc-A-Fella Records, Def Jam Records, Rush Communications Inc., No Limit Records and Cash Money Records, respectively, have bought the rights to public airwaves, record companies and production businesses throughout the world. They have acquired the power to dictate what artists will be heard and how hip hop will be defined in mainstream popular culture. These companies have nearly destroyed the essence of hip hop. They are to blame for the misconstrued idea that hip hop is nothing more than a money-hungry industry that encourages materialism, misogyny, violence, and drug addiction in order to glorify a "gangsta" lifestyle that has corrupted our generation.

Hip hop came about in the 1970s from the Universal Zulu Nation as a vehicle to teach awareness, knowledge, and positive thought. As a predominantly black movement, hip hop culture originated in the Bronx with the goal of ending gang violence. The term "hip hop" was coined by Lovebug Starki, and was later made public by a man named Afrika Bambaataa, known today as the founder of hip hop culture.

In 1979 Bambaataa declared, "When we made hip hop, we made it hoping it would be about peace, love and unity and having fun, so that people could get away from the negativity that was plaguing our streets, like gang violence, drug abuse, self-hate, and racism."

Hip hop culture includes five main elements: rapping, deejaying, breakdancing, graffiti, and knowledge. Respect, unity, and knowledge make up the tripod foundation on which hip hop stands. For this reason, on May 16, 2001, the United Nations recognized hip hop as a non-governmental organization. So why do artists like 50 Cent now make millions of dollars by acting like uneducated barbarians?

The answer is simple. When an artist is signed to a major record label, they will inevitably play into whatever role the label demands. Consequently, certain artists will "sell out" in exchange for a large sum of money. Companies like Vivendi Universal and Viacom have plagued hip hop and destroyed today's youth by promoting violence and chauvinism in their music. By labeling a predominantly black culture as violent and uneducated, they successfully manage to keep themselves at the top of today's economy. all the best Stuart Ellis aka dj jest

Respectfully not wishing to disagree with the person who posted the most excellent answer above. I thought this was a really good question and I have no knowledge about the subject whatsoever, I'm too old. I checked Wikipedia for the answer and I found that Keith "Cowboy" Wiggins, a rapper with Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five has been credited with the coining of the term 'hip hop'.

Are they wrong?