During an interview with Vlad TV, Hip Hop pioneer Afrika Bambaataa was asked to share his thoughts on Lord Jamar previously stating that white artists “are guests in the house of Hip Hop” and need to pay respect to those before them.
In response to Jamar’s comments, which were made in 2013, Bambaataa revealed that anyone who comes into Hip Hop, regardless of their race, should pay respect to the originators of Hip Hop. He then added that although the movement started with Blacks and Latinos, race isn’t as important now that Hip Hop is part of the “world community.”
“Well, that’s true with anybody that really gets in Hip Hop,” Afrika Bambaataa said in response to Lord Jamar’s comments. “Whites definitely was guests, but now they’re part of Hip Hop. Cause Hip Hop now is a world phenomenon. And it’s respected in many different countries, towns, and cities on our great planet. And yes, it started in the Black, Latino community…It started from our community and now it’s a world community.”
Bambaataa also spoke on the moment he began to see white emcees and deejays in Hip Hop. He says the introduction of white Hip Hop artists came with those in the punk rock scene.
“Well, that came more when we started doing many of the travels into many different places,” he said. “Hitting the downtown scene. When we started playing like Club Negril, The Roxys, Tramps, and all the punk rock scenes. That’s when a lot of Europeans started getting into it. Cause the punk rockers are the first of the whites that started grabbing hold to the Hip Hop. And that’s when you started seeing European rappers coming out of England…Big-ups a lot to the punk rock movement that helped bring about that cause.”
Prior to speaking on matters of race and Hip Hop, Bambaataa spoke on the origins of the word “Hip Hop.” He revealed that the actual term comes from Keith Cowboy and Lovebug Starsky, a fact also mentioned by Grandmaster Caz in a recent interview, but was chosen as a word to represent the movement by the Universal Zulu Nation.
“The term itself comes from the clichéd raps of Keith Cowboy and Lovebug Starsky, who was using it in they raps,” Afrika Bambaataa said. “When we decided to call the culture Hip Hop, it came from us. When they wanted to give it a name. I looked back at what they was saying and I said ‘You know what? This is Hip Hop. Cause it’s something that’s hip and it makes you hop to the groove, to the beat.’ Cause we didn’t have no name before it. We was calling it [bo-yong-yong], the go-off, and all types of other names we used to call it. So, it was really Universal Zulu Nation that we decided to call the whole culture, movement, Hip Hop. Cause it was no culture. It was nothing under that until we decided to say ‘Come on, b-boys. Come on, deejays. Come on, emcees. Come on, aerosol writers.’ And adding that fifth element to it, called knowledge. And calling it elements came from the Universal Zulu Nation.”
Respect to a legend, Bambaataa a real one.
Yeah Dat!
thats how it should be, black ppl can play ball, white ppl can rap, asians, indians and latinos can do both. when somethings created it becomes for the world to enjoy.
glad bambaataa has the knowledge and forsight to see what jamar lacks. refreshing.
The writing skills of today’s journalists are very mediocre.
Whites were into hip hop the same time as Latinos, everyone needs to stop acting like Latinos and Blacks are the same shit. They just didn’t LIKE how white people were involved.
never understood why americans call hispanics “latino” or “latin”………latin is fuckin GREEK. smh.
Latin (language) is not Greek. Latin was the language of the Roman Empire. In the US, Hispanics are called Latinos/Latin because they hail from Latin America. Shocker! How hard is that to understand? Latino/Latin/Hispanic are interchangeable.
Real Talk. Its 2015 get over the hate.
Peace,love, unity= Hip hop
Spoken like a true pioneer! You got to understand too that Jamar is from the Golden ERA, he’s witnessed what it’s evolved into, while “Hip Hop” may have been formed/found in the late 70/80’s by LoveBug Starsky and Keith Cowboy.
The artform flourished in the 90’s also known as the Golden ERA of Hip Hop with legendary MC’s and duo’s/groups. You had to have real talent to make it during that time.
But Now, in contemporary times, the artform has yet changed again, with a whole new cast of cultures and races, it’s not featuring predominantly black urban culture as in the 90’s, now you have sounds and acts from all over the globe with their own original local style and the artform continues to evolve.
What I think it needs is to be broken down into different genre’s, so that everything doesn’t get filed under one umbrella.
makes sense, id like to see that happen too
Exactly! Much of the mainstream music out now is hip-hop based but as we know it’s not necessarily “hip-hop” in terms of the culture. Just because you rap doesn’t make you hip-hop!
Peace and Blissings , in my teachers (Afrika Bambaataa) own words, Hip Hop is the Culture, it don’t matter what music you listen too, if you listen to Sly and the Family Stone or you listen to the Sex Pistols or you listen to Donald Byrd or James Brown, if that makes you move and you feel that within you then that is your Hip Hop.
It was media that needs to put labels and pigeon hole everything into a category ,
Peace and Empowerment,
Min. King Excel
Universal Zulu Nation
Jewels from the god
It’s about time Bam spoke on it. I don’t trust Jamar’s input being that he’s promoted violence (Punks Jump Up) and homophobia (unreleased demo of Georgie Porgie by ATCQ)and the whole “white man is the devil” speel (Brand Nubian) – Basically most of what Jamar promoted in the past through his music was Anti-hip hop. It was mostly “beat down punks” and “fuck the white man” and various misogynistic phrases in his lyrics..
Bam is on point.