Hip-hop in its earliest incarnations was an experiential thing — not just because rappers and DJs had yet to secure the backing of major labels, but because their work depended on the texture and ...

“The smooth criminal on beat breaks / Never put me in your box if your shit eats tapes,” rapped Nas on his 1994 classic “N.Y. State of Mind.” Like other underground genres that hit their stride in the ...

This year, the musical, cultural, political and economic phenomenon that is hip-hop officially turned 50, with hip-hop’s origin traced back to a back-to-school party in the Bronx on August 11, 1973.

There’s a raw energy in the air—a palpable, jittery anticipation as the old guard of hip-hop production gets tossed aside by the relentless force of technological innovation and cultural upheaval.