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Nicki Minaj paints hip-hop pink — and changes the game

Nicki Minaj attends the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards at The Forum on August 27, 2017 in Inglewood, Calif. Frazer Harrison/Getty Images hide caption

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Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Music

Nicki Minaj paints hip-hop pink — and changes the game

The 2010 Nicki Minaj album Pink Friday brought vibrant new shades to hip-hop.

Nicki Minaj paints hip-hop pink — and changes the game

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'The South got something to say' — Outkast fulfills its prophecy on 'Aquemini'

Big Boi (L) and Andre 3000 of Outkast perform onstage during day 3 of the Firefly Music Festival on June 21, 2014 in Dover, Delaware. Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Firefly Music Festival hide caption

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Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Firefly Music Festival

Music

'The South got something to say' — Outkast fulfills its prophecy on 'Aquemini'

Hip-hop is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Commentator Kiana Fitzgerald is looking back at the albums that changed the game. Today, it's OutKast's album Aquemini.

'The South got something to say' — Outkast fulfills its prophecy on 'Aquemini'

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Three 6 Mafia turns $4,500 into $45 million with 'Mystic Stylez'

3 members of the Memphis hip-hop group Three 6 Mafia. D.J. Paul (from left), Juicy J and Crunchy Black at MTV's Total Request Live on March 22, 2006, in New York City. Peter Kramer/Getty Images Entertainment hide caption

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Peter Kramer/Getty Images Entertainment

Music

Three 6 Mafia turns $4,500 into $45 million with 'Mystic Stylez'

In 1995, the Memphis hip-hop group Three 6 Mafia took a shoestring DIY approach to recording their debut album, Mystic Stylez. Their example led to a flourishing independent hip-hop scene.

Kings and queens gathered for 'Hip Hop 50 Live' at Yankee Stadium

Darryl McDaniels (L) and Joseph Simmons (R) of Run-DMC, closing the Hip Hop 50 Live concert at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, N.Y. early Saturday morning. Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images

Culture

Kings and queens gathered for 'Hip Hop 50 Live' at Yankee Stadium

An eight-hour concert Friday night was a procession of generations of hip-hop royalty, from the Sugar Hill Gang to current stars like Lil Wayne. Run-DMC gave what was billed as their last performance.

Kings and queens gathered for 'Hip Hop 50 Live' at Yankee Stadium

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2 Live Crew fought the law with its album, 'As Nasty As They Wanna Be'

2 Live Crew in 1989 (Mr. Mixx, Brother Marquis, Luther Campbell & Fresh Kid Ice) Raymond Boyd / Contributor/Getty Images / Michael Ochs Archives hide caption

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Raymond Boyd / Contributor/Getty Images / Michael Ochs Archives

Review

Music

2 Live Crew fought the law with its album, 'As Nasty As They Wanna Be'

In 1989, 2 Live Crew's As Nasty As They Wanna Be became the first album declared legally obscene, and the group's legal battles set a precedent for the rappers that followed.

2 Live Crew fought the law with its album, 'As Nasty As They Wanna Be'

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From 'fight the power' to advertising for the power: hip-hop turns 50
Islen Milien for NPR

Code Switch

From 'fight the power' to advertising for the power: hip-hop turns 50

For hip-hop's not-official-but-kind-of-official 50th birthday, we dig into its many contradictions. From the legend of the South Bronx block party where hip-hop was born to the multi-billion-dollar global industry and tool for U.S. diplomacy it has become, America's relationship with hip-hop — and the people who make it — is complicated.

From 'fight the power' to advertising for the power: hip-hop turns 50

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Eric B. & Rakim change the flow of rap with 'Paid in Full'

Rakim (left) and Eric B., 1987 David Corio / Contributor/Getty Images hide caption

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David Corio / Contributor/Getty Images

Music

Eric B. & Rakim change the flow of rap with 'Paid in Full'

With their 1987 debut album Paid in Full, Eric B. & Rakim introduced internal rhyme schemes to rap, and changed the flow of hip-hop forever.

Eric B. & Rakim change the flow of rap with 'Paid in Full'

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Kurtis Blow breaks hip-hop nationally with his 1980 debut

American rapper, singer and songwriter Kurtis Blow, circa 1980. Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images hide caption

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Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

The History of Hip-Hop

Kurtis Blow breaks hip-hop nationally with his 1980 debut

Hip-hop is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Commentator Kiana Fitzgerald is looking back at the albums that changed the game.

Kurtis Blow breaks hip-hop nationally with his 1980 debut

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BET Awards honor hip-hop as stars pay tribute to legends such as Tina Turner

Offset, left, and Quavo of Migos perform at the BET Awards on Sunday, June 25, 2023, at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. Mark Terrill/Mark Terrill/Invision/AP hide caption

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Mark Terrill/Mark Terrill/Invision/AP

Culture

BET Awards honor hip-hop as stars pay tribute to legends such as Tina Turner

Sunday's biggest surprise at the 2023 BET Awards came when Quavo and Offset, the surviving members of Migos, performed in front of an image of Takeoff, who died in a shooting last December.

The story behind a lesser known track from hip-hop history: 'Stroke Ain't No Joke'

They're hip-hop artists who weave public-health messages into their rhymes: From left: Sister Fa, Darryl "DMC" McDaniels and Ali A.K.A. Mind perform at the Skoll World Forum 2023. During this rap, McDaniels called out: "I'm not afraid of the dark anymore/because I am the light./I'll be there at the start of the war/Because I am the fight." Skoll Foundation hide caption

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Skoll Foundation

Goats and Soda

The story behind a lesser known track from hip-hop history: 'Stroke Ain't No Joke'

For decades, the genre has had a stealth mission: promoting public health. It started with Doug E. Fresh's "Stroke Ain't No Joke."

Louder Than a Riot: Trina and her larger-than-life persona in hip-hop

Trina. Amanda Howell Whitehurst for NPR hide caption

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Amanda Howell Whitehurst for NPR

It's Been a Minute

Louder Than a Riot: Trina and her larger-than-life persona in hip-hop

From our friends at Louder Than a Riot, a look back at the origins of Miami's wildest rap icon, Trina Rockstar. Her vivacious vibes and ruthless bars helped flip the script on the double standard that women in the industry often faced. This episode looks at the unwritten rules that continue to shape hip-hop – specifically rule number four: "It ain't trickin' if you got it."

Louder Than a Riot: Trina and her larger-than-life persona in hip-hop

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The improbable fame of a hijab-wearing teen rapper from a poor neighborhood in Mumbai

A young fan came to the Mumbai home of rapper Saniya Mistri Qayammuddin – aka Saniya MQ — to pay her respects and pose for a selfie. Raksha Kumar/NPR hide caption

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Raksha Kumar/NPR

Goats and Soda

The improbable fame of a hijab-wearing teen rapper from a poor neighborhood in Mumbai

First Saniya wrote poems. Then she began rapping. Now she appears on TV and YouTube and before big crowds, spreading her message about justice. Her father the rickshaw driver is her chauffeur.

The improbable fame of a hijab-wearing teen rapper from a poor neighborhood in Mumbai

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Women in hip-hop push back against the male gaze

Illustration of DreamDoll, Doechii and Baby Tate. Amanda Howell Whitehurst for NPR hide caption

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Amanda Howell Whitehurst for NPR

Code Switch

Women in hip-hop push back against the male gaze

The male gaze objectifies, consumes and shames people for not fitting into a mold. This week, we're looking at how that affects women in hip-hop. Our play cousins at Louder Than A Riot bring us the voices of artists who won't let the male gaze dominate their careers, stories and personal lives.

Women in hip-hop push back against the male gaze

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Mazel Tov Cocktail Party: Take an ounce of hip hop, dash of polka, then square dance

Mazel Tov Cocktail Party's influences are global, but the sound they create is uniquely their own. Laura Carbone/Kathleen Tagg hide caption

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Laura Carbone/Kathleen Tagg

Culture

Mazel Tov Cocktail Party: Take an ounce of hip hop, dash of polka, then square dance

Finding a thriving dance culture in the Adirondacks Mountains inspired the band to take its sound in an unexpected direction.

Mazel Tov Cocktail Party: Take an ounce of hip hop, dash of polka, then square dance

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Hip-Hop, Mass Incarceration, And A Conspiracy Theory For The Ages

Rodney Carmichael and Sidney Madden of NPR's new podcast "Louder Than A Riot" Christian Cody and Joshua Kissi/NPR hide caption

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Christian Cody and Joshua Kissi/NPR

Code Switch

Hip-Hop, Mass Incarceration, And A Conspiracy Theory For The Ages

Why are hip-hop and mass incarceration so entangled in the U.S.? That's the question that our play cousins at NPR Music, Sidney Madden and Rodney Carmichael, set out to answer on their brand new podcast, Louder Than a Riot.

Hip-Hop, Mass Incarceration, And A Conspiracy Theory For The Ages

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In Richmond, Va., Protesters Transform A Confederate Statue

Ballerinas Kennedy George, 14, and Ava Holloway, 14, pose in front of a monument of Confederate general Robert E. Lee after Virginia Governor Ralph Northam ordered its removal after widespread civil unrest following the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in Richmond, Va., on June 5. Julia Rendleman/Reuters hide caption

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Julia Rendleman/Reuters

America Reckons With Racial Injustice

In Richmond, Va., Protesters Transform A Confederate Statue

In the midst of nationwide protests, activists have been covering a statute to Gen. Robert E. Lee with graffiti and posing for photos.

'Hip-Hop Deserves That Respect': Honoring The Notorious B.I.G., Wu-Tang Clan In NYC

Late rapper The Notorious B.I.G. performs in Chicago in September 1994. Raymond Boyd/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images hide caption

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Raymond Boyd/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

National

'Hip-Hop Deserves That Respect': Honoring The Notorious B.I.G., Wu-Tang Clan In NYC

The New York City Council voted last week to honor hip-hop greats the Notorious B.I.G. and Wu-Tang Clan with streets named after them. LeRoy McCarthy, who led the effort, says it's long overdue.

'Hip-Hop Deserves That Respect': Honoring The Notorious B.I.G., Wu-Tang Clan In NYC

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Stretch & Bobbito On Race, Hip-Hop, And Belonging

Hip Hop deejays Stretch Armstrong (right) aka Adrian Bartos and Bobbito (left) aka Robert Garcia became legends on The Stretch Armstrong Show during the 1990s. Back then, they were hip hop tastemakers on college station WKCR in New York City. Now they're back together hosting "What's Good? With Stretch and Bobbito," an NPR podcast. Nickolai Hammar/NPR/. hide caption

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Nickolai Hammar/NPR/.

Code Switch

Stretch & Bobbito On Race, Hip-Hop, And Belonging

The pioneering hip-hop radio duo drop by the Code Switch podcast to talk about making their way in a traditionally black genre and their new NPR interview show, What's Good? with Stretch & Bobbito.

Stretch & Bobbito On Race, Hip-Hop, And Belonging

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