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Cultural movement · 1973–now

Hip-Hop

A global culture — DJing, MCing, breaking, and graffiti — born in the Bronx.

On the timeline

  1. August 11, 1973
    Hip-hop is born in the Bronx

    DJ Kool Herc's back-to-school party launches a culture that will conquer the world.

  2. September 1979
    "Rapper's Delight"

    The Sugarhill Gang's single becomes the first rap record to reach the pop charts, taking hip-hop to the masses.

  3. July 1982
    "The Message"

    Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five prove hip-hop can carry serious social narrative.

  4. June 28, 1988
    Public Enemy's "It Takes a Nation of Millions"

    A politically explosive album that reshapes hip-hop's sound and ambition.

  5. August 8, 1988· debated
    N.W.A's "Straight Outta Compton"

    The founding gangsta-rap album puts West Coast hip-hop and Black anger over policing on the map.

  6. August 25, 1998
    "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill"

    Lauryn Hill's genre-bridging debut wins five Grammys and becomes a generational touchstone.

  7. February 16, 2018
    Black Panther

    Ryan Coogler's film becomes a global cultural phenomenon and box-office landmark.