Hip Hop Evolution

2016 - 2020

The Foundation

5th September 2016

Episode 1

Bronx-based DJs set Hip-Hop's sonic foundations. MCs, inspired by African American oral traditions, create the modern template for rap music, culminating with the emergence of Hip-Hop's first crew, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.

From The Underground to The Mainstream

12th September 2016

Episode 2

Hip-Hop crews in the Bronx and Harlem begin to form around the DJs, but these pioneering groups never record any music. It would take R&B veterans to see the genre’s commercial potential and create Hip-Hop's first hit, "Rapper's Delight."

The New Guard

19th September 2016

Episode 3

Run-DMC ushers in a new era of Hip-Hop. Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin build Hip-Hop's first empire, Def Jam. An unknown producer finds a new way to make beats and launches Hip-Hop's Golden Age, culminating in the epic fury of Public Enemy.

The Birth of Gangsta Rap

26th September 2016

Episode 4

Ice-T uses Hip-Hop to reflect the violence of Los Angeles and inspires a new form of Hip-Hop: Gangsta Rap. N.W.A’s first album, Straight Outta Compton, shocks America. After the LA Rebellion, Dr. Dre makes The Chronic, and creates Hip-Hop’s first hardcore pop record

Top Cast

Grandmaster Flash•Afrika Bambaataa•Ice-T

Hip-Hop today is a global culture that has changed music, dance, fashion, language —and even politics. But where did this worldwide cultural movement begin? We trace hip-hop back to its humble beginnings, when the kids of the Bronx crammed into house parties, rec rooms, and public parks to hear music like they’d never heard it before.

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Netflix

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Full Cast

Grandmaster Flash Image

Grandmaster Flash

Self

Afrika Bambaataa Image

Afrika Bambaataa

Self

Ice-T Image

Ice-T

Self

Ice Cube Image

Ice Cube

Self

Shad

Self

Full Crew

Sam Dunn Image

Sam Dunn

Executive Producer

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