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The History of Hip Hop
In the early 1970’s, following the “funk” era,  the unnamed culture know today as “hip-hop” was forming in New York City’s Ghettos.  The South Bronx of New York is recognised as the birthplace of this incomparable musical masterpiece.  It became the Urban voice of Urban America in 4 distinct different forms, but all with the common pulse of hip hop rhythm.

Kool DJ Herc, originally from Jamaica, is crediting with forming the style he coined “Breakers”.  The term “break” referred to the section of music where the percussive rhythms were most aggressive and hard driving. DJ Herc re-cued these beats from one turntable to there other, giving dancers time to enjoy the break and react with their most impressive steps and moves. The tension mounted when the music was played and it was time to “go-off”, thus forming the creation of the dance style “Breakers”.

The style “Top-Rockin” was formed by dancers dancing upright and was influenced by various African and Native American dances.  It had an identifiable structure but given it’s highly competitive nature it wasn’t long before top rockers extended to the ground with “foot work”, later defined as “Floor-Rocking”.  “Top-Rockin” wasn’t replaced by “Floor-Rocking”, they were added together, both making key points in the execution of this dance style.  Later on moves such as swipes, dips and corkscrews were added to this style pushing it in a new direction of the so-called “power moves” era in the early 80’s.  “Power moves” brought about a series of spins including knee spins, butt spins, floats and freezes, but all these moves contributed to the make up of the unique style identified as “Top-Rockin”. In the early 70’s Brooklyn New York gave birth to another dance style in the Hip-Hop culture known as “Brooklyn Uprocking”. Inspired by similar break beats as the “Breakers” culture, “Brooklyn Uprocking” was a more confrontational form, consisting of quick arm and leg movements, turns, jumps, drops and freezes.  The origin of this style and its similarities to the “Breakers” style brought about the name of this style being deemed “BROOKLYN UPROCKING”.  Although the 2 forms “Top Rockin” and “Brooklyn Uprocking” developed simultaneously from similar inspirations, both forms kept their own identities and unique styles.

In 1976, Sam “Boogaloo Sam” Soloman of Fresno California combined incredible steps and moves to conceive the dance style he named “Popping”. This was described as a sudden muscle contraction executed by the arms, neck, chest and legs causing a quick jolting affect.  At the same time “popping” was created, Dan Campbell of Los Angeles California originated the style “Locking”. Don tried imitating the funky chicken but added the effect of locking his arm and body joints to create his signature style.  Both styles (popping and locking) appeared on the TV Program Soul Train and although created separately the styles were very similar, so merged together creating the dance style “POPPING AND LOCKING”.

The words “Hip-Hop” were originally used by MC’s as a scat style of rhyming such as “Hip Hop ya’ll and ya don’t stop, rock on, till the break of dawn”.  But in the early 1980’s DJ Afrika Bombaatoa changed the meaning of hip hop, he made a connection of the 4 separate dance styles by identifying the dynamic urban movement that had occurred and coined it “The Hip Hop Culture”.

This hip hop culture became the buzz amongst the ghettos of America, but as relatively new dance forms Breakers, Top Rockin, Brooklyn Uprocking and Popping and Locking began to be blended into one form, thus destroying their individual structures.  It was stressed that each of the styles are individual and differ, therefore is performed best with the appropriate musical influence, dress code and terminology.

Unravelling the history of Breakers, Toprockin, Brooklyn Uprockers and Locking and Popping takes a true understanding of their essence and significance in today’s world.  Hopefully we will see each form clearly distinguished and given their due respect.  The Hip Hop and West Coast funk movements have contributed to the evolution of phenomenal forms of expression.  They have succeeded in replenishing the word with new exciting dance forms which entertain and change the lives of many people worldwide.
 
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