What Led to the Evolution of Hip-Hop?

Hip-Hop Evolution season 2 on Netflix is a great mini-series to quickly and effectively learn about the story of hip-hop. It has won an International Emmy and the Peabody Award. As in season 1, the host, Shad Kabango, takes us through how the hip-hop genre developed from the 1970s to the 1990s, via interviews with influential MCs, DJs and music moguls. This is a very well produced series that goes in-depth to explain how the pioneers within each area of the US made their contribution and inspired the next act and wave of artists which together shaped the overall evolution of hip-hop.

Key Points

• Episode 1 – “The Southern Way”
  2 Live Crew popularizes the Miami bass sound and secures a victory for free speech. The Geto Boys put Houston on the map, paving the way for UGK.
  
  
• Episode 2 – “Out The Trunk: The Bay”
  In the Bay Area, Too $hort channels the pimp culture built on the many popular blacksploitation movies at the time. MC Hammer becomes rap’s first pop star, and Digital Underground introduces the world to Tupac Shakur (who claims Oakland).
  
  
• Episode 3 – “Do The Knowledge”
  Covers how KRS-one got his career started by making his mark at New York’s legendary Latin Quarter club. This bridges onto the Native Tongues who was a collective of late 1980s and early 1990s hip-hop artists known for their positive-minded, good-natured Afrocentric lyrics, and for pioneering the use of eclectic sampling and jazz-influenced beats. Its main members was Jungle Brothers, De La Soul, and A Tribe Called Quest. These groups are all covered in more detail, with voice over from Busta Rhymes as well.
  
  
• Episode 4 – “New York State Of Mind”
  In the early 1990s, a new wave of hardcore East Coast artists emerges, led by Nas, Wu-Tang Clan and the Notorious B.I.G. The episodes starts out by covering New York and the Staten Island borough. Then, we get to know the inception of Wu-Tang and their slow, raw and grimy sound. We also learn how Nas got introduced to the scene and the story behind his now infamous album Illmatic, in which we get inner-city narratives based on Nas‘ experiences in Queensbridge, New York. The album was also unique in the sense that it did not only have one producer, but large array of legends such as DJ Premier, Large Professor and Pete Rock.