August 11, 1973. At 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx, 18-year-old DJ Kool Herc plays his first New York City party. The dance floor is packed, the energy is wild, and Herc gives the performance of a lifetime featuring one very specific innovation on the turntables. Herc and the partygoers don’t know it yet, but this event will go down in history as the birth of one of the most popular musical genres—hip hop. How did this party give way to a multi-billion dollar industry? And how has hip hop become so much more than the music?
Special thanks to our guest, Dr. Mark Anthony Neal and to DJ Silva Sirfa and D-Nasty Tha Master for the music in this episode.
To our listeners, thank you for subscribing to History This Week. We want to hear your feedback: https://bit.ly/3a4FGqJ
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Reflecting on History
History’s Undelivered Speeches
Special Announcement
The Donner Party Turns Deadly
Destroyer of Worlds (Replay)
Barbie for President!
John Muir’s Quest to Save the Great Outdoors
The USS Indianapolis’ Secret Mission Turns into Tragedy
Chasing Utopia
The Tupperware Queen
Two Fathers, One Fight (Replay)
Ma Rainey's Mic Drop
Mary Shelley Brings Frankenstein to Life
FDR Tries to Pack the Court
Bonnie and Clyde’s Final Ride
A Teenage Girl Saves France
The Spy Who Fooled the FBI
Bonus: The Coronation of King Charles III (feat. Katie Nicholl)
The World’s First Budget Airline Takes Off
A Concubine Rises to Rule China
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
The Food That Built America
Not What You Thought You Knew
Letters of Love in WW2