Wikipedia

Twin Cities hip hop

Twin Cities hip hop,also referred to asMinneapolis hip hop,is sub-genre of rap music that originates from theMinneapolis–Saint Paulmetropolitan area in theU.S. stateofMinnesota.

History

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Hip hop culture in theTwin Citiescan be traced as far back as 1981.[1]: xvi, xxxv Similar to the development of hip hop in theSouth Bronx,Twin Cities rap started as parties with a DJ and an emcee.[2]A DJ named Travitron is considered the "godfather" of hip hop in the Twin Cities,[1]: xi and began hosting Hip Hop Shop on89.9 KMOJ,the first radio station to play Hip Hop in the Twin Cities.[1]: xxxvi 

The first Twin Cities hip hop vinyl record released was from the rap group I.R.M. Crew, led by Kelly "Kel-C" Crockett from North Minneapolis. Members were Devastating Dee, TLC, Kel-C, IBM and Cuttin' Kal. "I Dream of DJ’s" was released in 1986, followed by "Baseball" in 1987. Wide Angle, which doubled as a record store and indie recording label, is considered[by whom?]the first Twin Cities independent hip-hop label, with releases on vinyl from Shampayle, the twin cities first female rapper released on vinyl.

David "T.C." Ellis was featured on aPrincesong "Graffiti Bridge" in 1990. Further, Ellis's album "True Confessions" was the first rap album released on the Paisley Park label in 1991.[3]

GraffitiandB-boycrews existed in the city. However, the first verifiable rap record to be released in Minnesota was "The Twin City Rapp," a vinyl single on TwinTown Records released in 1985. It was produced and performed by David "T.C." Ellis and C.T., and released by the Twin City Rappers.

Festivals

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The now defunct annual Twin Cities Celebration of Hip-Hop, also known asThe Hip Hop Fest,was cofounded by Larry Lucio, Jr. andToki Wrightof Amplified Life in 2002. It was hosted by Claire Redmond, FranzDiego DaHinten, Dimitris Kelly, and Alicia Steele of YO! The Movement. The event featured performances from National headlining artists and local acts.[4]

Rhymesayers Entertainmentstarted sponsoring theSoundset Music Festival,the first being held at theMetrodomeparking lot in 2008. Soundset quickly became a popular festival and moved to Canterbury Park grounds inShakopee, Minnesota,before moving to theMinnesota State Fairgrounds.[5]

Venues

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The well known Minneapolis venueFirst Avenuehas been a typical location for major performances of Twin Cities hip hop. Other common places for shows around the cities include Honey Lounge (closed), Nomad World Pub, Triple Rock (closed), Blue Nile (closed), Myth and the Fine Line. The Dinkytowner was a common place for smaller shows until its closing in 2009.[6]

Fifth Element was home to Last of the Record Buyer's showcase, which provided a platform for producers.[7]

Graffiti can be found throughout the twin cities, sanctioned and not. One popular place for writers to write legally was known as the Bomb Shelter.[8]

Hope Community is home to Graffiti and hip hop production classes; many active artists in the community have passed through its doors.[9][10]

Intermedia Arts was a nonprofit inUptown Minneapoliswhich closed in 2018. Intermedia Arts allowed public art and offered workshops/programs/ grant opportunities for artists in the cities. It was at Intermedia Arts that Desdamona co-founded the first festival dedicated to women in hip-hop, B-Girl Be.[11][12]

Notable artists

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Radio

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  • KCMP89.3 (The Current) - Home of Rhymesayer's H2 Radio[13]as well as The Local Show[14]which plays some popular local hip hop
  • KFAI90.3/106.7 FM - Hosts Soul Tools Radio every Saturday hosted by local Hip Hop artists Toki Wright.[15]
  • KMOJ89.9 FM - Home of popular show "Rush it or Flush it"[16]where artists submit music to be voted on by the audience
  • KUOM770 AM (Radio K) - University of Minnesota College Radio. They feature a "Track of the Day" from local artists.[17]
  • WMCN91.7 FM - Macalester College Radio - weekly hip hop radio shows featuring live performances and interviews with many local artists.

References

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  1. ^abcHess, Mickey (2010)."Introduction".In Hess, Mickey (ed.).Hip hop in America: a regional guide.Santa Barbara, Calif.: Greenwood Press.ISBN978-0313343216.
  2. ^"City Pages".Archived fromthe originalon 2007-12-01.
  3. ^Beaudoin, Kate[1]"This American City Has the Greatest Hip-Hop Scene You've Never Heard Of"MicMontana, Retrieved 29 May 2015
  4. ^"The Hip Hop don't stop".Vita.mn.Retrieved2015-05-06.
  5. ^"Soundset 2017".Soundset 2015.Retrieved2017-02-03.
  6. ^"The Dinkytowner Café and Bar set to close at end of the week | mndaily.com - the Minnesota Daily".Archived fromthe originalon 2016-04-28.Retrieved2015-08-04.
  7. ^"Last of the Record Buyers tonight at Fifth Element | City Pages".Archived fromthe originalon 2015-09-23.Retrieved2015-08-04.
  8. ^"Minneapolis Star Tribune | OBEY GIANT".Archived fromthe originalon 2015-09-09.Retrieved2015-08-04.
  9. ^"Hip-Hop Songwriting and Music Production | Hope Community".Archived fromthe originalon 2015-09-24.Retrieved2015-08-04.
  10. ^Mkali, Sahkeena."Power of Vision Mural Program".Hope Community.
  11. ^"Women in Hip-Hop: The B-girl be Festival".HuffPost.2010-02-04.
  12. ^"intermediaarts.org".www.intermediaarts.org.
  13. ^"H2".www.thecurrent.org.
  14. ^"Local Current".www.thecurrent.org.
  15. ^"Soul Tools Radio".KFAI - Minneapolis + St. Paul.
  16. ^"KMOJ".Archived fromthe originalon 2015-07-29.Retrieved2015-08-04.
  17. ^"Manny Phesto".Radio K.
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