1981 SPECIAL REPORT: "HIP-HOP"

The 1980s marked the diversification of hip-hop as the genre developed more complex styles. Early examples of the diversification process can be identified through such tracks as Grandmaster Flash’s “The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel” (1981), a single consisting entirely of sampled tracks as well as Afrika Bambaataa’s “Planet Rock” (1982), which signified the fusion of hip-hop music with electro.

Heavy usage of the new generation of drum machines such as the Oberheim DMX and Roland 808 models was a characteristic of many 1980s songs. To this day, the 808 kick drum is traditionally used by hip-hop producers. Over time sampling technology became more advanced; however, earlier producers such as Marley Marl used drum machines to construct their beats from small excerpts of other beats in synchronization. Later, samplers such as the E-mu SP-1200 allowed not only more memory, but more flexibility for creative production. This allowed the filtration and layering different hits, and with a possibility of re-sequencing them into a single piece.

The lyrical content of hip-hop evolved as well. The early styles presented in the 1970s soon were replaced with metaphorical lyrics over more complex, multi-layered instrumentals. Artists such as Melle Mel, Rakim, Chuck D, KRS-One and Warp 9 revolutionized hip-hop by transforming it into a more mature art form, with sophisticated arrangements, often featuring “gorgeous textures and multiple layers”.


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