What Is Hip Hop? Dissecting The Umbrella And One Of Its Sub Genres}

What is Hip Hop? Dissecting the Umbrella and one of its Sub-Genres

by

Jack Burden

Everybody and their mother knows the answer to the question, What is hip hop? Thats what happens when people ask What is hip hop? for 30 years eventually it will reach saturation, for better or worse. But while most of the world is fixated on this umbrella genre, there are many lesser-known micro-genres that have sprouted up in the same time period.

After all, when people keep asking what is hip hop?, some are not going to be satisfied with the answer and venture out to make their own version of the now famous genre. Juggalos certainly werent satisfied. Thanks to the musical innovators of the world, one such micro-genre with obsessive Juggalo fans is that of horror rap.

What is hip hop in its purest form?

The genre largely consists of synthesized drum beats and instrument samples that are looped in frequencies of 2, 4, or 8 measures. Sometimes the pattern changes up for a chorus, but more often they stay the same throughout. The trademark of hip hop is, however, in the vocal stylings. Hip hop artists do not sing, they rap, or talk quickly and rhythmically over the music described above.

Content can range from heavy to light, but most popular hip hop is on the light side. The darkest content in hip hop belongs to that in the micro genre of horror rap, lapped up by Juggalos.

What is hip hops relation to horror rap?

Horror rap is a hip hop micro-genre that separates itself with dark, sometimes even morbid, lyrical content. The most noted act to have success with horror rap is Detroit horror rap outfit Insane Clown Posse. One look at the evil clown face paint, listen to the disturbing lyrics, or experience with Juggalos at one of the groups famous live concerts and youll have a very thorough understanding of what horror rap.

Analyzing this style of music would lead one to believe that, when unsatisfied with the typical answer to what is hip hop?, the horror rap founders believed it could be darker and less focused on care-free topics like materialism and braggadocio.

What is hip hops fan base like compared to horror raps fan base?

To start, the horror rap fan base (consisting primarily of Juggalos) is much smaller than that of general mainstream hip hop. Horror rappers appeal to their Juggalo fan base primarily through their content and legend, but also through interesting add-ons like mythology, customized horror rap music festivals, a family feeling, etc. What is hip hop and what are horror rap are two very different questions, the answers to both would best be explained by a demonstration of their various live settings. Juggalos and normal hip hop heads are very different people.

Hip hop is a major musical form that has been around since the mid 1970s, and has given birth to micro genres such as horror rap, the genre preferred by Juggalos. To learn more about

horror rap

and Juggalos, please visit http://insaneclownposse.com.

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What is Hip Hop? Dissecting the Umbrella and one of its Sub-Genres}