Filed under: Black Music Month
You're obviously a pretty big deal if you're the guy largely credited for inventing a musical genre but have no records or music videos to show for it. But that's the irony of Kool Herc's place in hip-hop. The Jamaica-born DJ born Clive Campbell is the genre's elemental figure because he introduced his home country's tradition of "sound systems" (booming mobile DJ crews) and "toasting" (ad-libbing on the mike) to South Bronx youth in the 1970s. But more importantly, he pioneered a clever technique of playing records using two side-by-side turntables.
At parties, Herc would take two copies of the same record and play the funkiest instrumental part (or, the breakbeat) of a song on one deck. Then on another turntable, he'd fade in the same break from the other copy. He'd repeat the technique over and over again, effectively extending the best part of the record. (Dancers in attendance came to be known as breakboys and breakgirls or 'b-boys' and 'b-girls.')
One of Herc's biggest rivals was Afrika Bambaataa (Kevin Donovan), a former gang leader turned DJ and activist, who also played breakbeats during his sets. Bambaataa (whose name comes from a Zulu chief) transformed his Black Spades gang into a group focused on community organizing and cultural awareness which he later called the Universal Zulu Nation.
But where Herc only had MCs who would hype the crowd on the mike at live club dates, Bambaataa took the concept a step further. Instead of just spinning other artists' records, he developed a group of rappers known as the SoulSonic Force who went on to record electro-boogie hits such as "Looking for the Perfect Beat" and "Planet Rock," a timeless slab of synth-funk and rap that used Kraftwerk's "Trans-Euro Express."
These days, Herc has struggled with kidney disease and covering exorbitant hospital bills but remains respected for his immense contribution. Bambaataa, meanwhile, is also among rap's elder statesmen. He regularly spins at parties all over the world, is still considered an activist and has been nominated to be inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Influence is felt by ... Every hip-hop DJ owes a debt of gratitude.