Can't Stop Won't Stop (Young Adult Edition): A Hip-Hop History

LOOP 1

Reading Check

1. DJ Kool Herc (Chapter 2)

2. It was demolished for a highway. (Chapter 1)

3. Over 100 gangs (Chapter 1)

4. The Zulu Nation (Chapter 2)

5. Ronald Reagan (Chapter 6)

6. “Rapper’s Delight” by the Sugarhill Gang (Chapter 6)

Short Answer

1. The four elements of hip-hop are DJing, MCing, graffiti, and b-boying/b-girling. Each of them comes together to form a unique music culture that sprung up out of the Bronx. DJs are the people who mix the records, create beats, and use samplers and drum machines. MCs rouse the crowd, announce acts, and show off their rap rhymes. Graffiti was the visual artform hip-hop artists used to spread their name and show their worth. Breakdancing, performed by b-boys and b-girls, became the dance style that was invented when youth heard this new music. (Chapter 4)

2. Pioneer DJs in the Bronx, such as DJ Kool Herc and Afrika Bambaataa, sought to unite their community. The Bronx was torn apart by systemic neglect, which resulted in gang violence. Turf and gang wars pervaded youth culture. These DJs wanted to give the youth another way to spend their time, something new to compete over, and to unite rival gangs.