15 Hip Hop Pioneers Who Actually “Changed The Game”
They did something different. Then the difference became the norm.
![15 Hip Hop Pioneers Who Actually “Changed The Game”](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/3/0/824930_320x180.jpg)
Many hip hop artists claim they’ve changed the game, but the lineage of that change can mostly be traced back to hip hop’s formative years. Yes, there have been many more game-changing artists in the 90s and 21st century (which we’d love to do in a future list) but these 15 pioneers of early hip hop created and grew the culture into a worldwide phenomenon that we still enjoy today.
![DJ KOOL HERC 1520 SEDGWICK AVE. - CRACKED.COM Before you change the game, you need to first create the game. On Aug 11, 1973, DJ Kool Herc did just that with a block party at 1520 Sedgwick Ave in the Bronx. Using two turntables, Herc isolated the breakbeats of popular records, creating what he called The Merry-Go-Round. This innovation is considered the origin of hip hop music.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/3/8/824938.jpg)
Source: history.com
![DJ HOLLYWOOD & COKE LA ROCK CRACKED.COM Each is credited as the very first rapper, because Coke La Rock shouted rhymes over DJ Kool Herc's beats, and DJ Hollywood rapped an entire Isaac Hayes verse over MFSB's Love is the Message. Before this, DJs shouted, To the beat, y'all or You don't stop, but rhyming lyrics over a beat forever brought rapping to the forefront.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/3/4/824934.jpg)
Source: history.hiphop
![THE SUGARHILL GANG SugaHill SH-542-A 33 1/3 RPM OND 112RE-BW) 1977 Chie Music Inc. Music taben Good Times Sylvia Sea. Production others TIME: 11:00 RAPPER'S DELIGHT (Hemard Edwards-Nile Rodgers) CRACKED COM Released on March 25, 1979, King Tim III (Personality Jock) is cited as the first recorded hip hop song, but on Sept 16, 1979, The Sugarhill Gang's Rapper's Delight became the first hip hop single to reach the Billboard Top 40, reach #1 in Canada, and #2 all over Europe, bringing the genre to the mainstream.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/4/5/824945.jpg)
Source: thesource
![KURTIS BLOW CRACKED.COM In 1979, Kurtis Blow became the first rapper to sign with a major label (Mercury Records). Then on June 14, 1980, he released The Breaks, which became the first hip hop song to be certified gold, proving to the music industry that hip hop was good for business.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/3/7/824937.jpg)
Source: dailyrapfacts
![BUSY BEE STARSKI VS. KOOL МОЕ DEE CRACKED COM The very first rap battle! On Dec 1, 1981, Busy Bee rocked the party, calling out names at Harlem World. Не jokingly called out Kool Мое Dee, who jumped on stage and destroyed his unwitting opponent with his precise rhyming skills and sharp wit. This changed the old school party-rocker style to the more lyrical-focused one.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/3/6/824936.jpg)
Source: highsnobiety
![GRANDMASTER FLASH & & THE FURIOUS 5 CRACKED COM In the early years, hip hop lyrics were about having a good time or an MC's skills on the mic. On July 1, 1982, Grandmaster Flash & The Furious 5's hit single, The Message became the first mainstream rap song with social commentary, with Melle Mel & Duke Bootee painting an eye-opening picture of inner-city struggles.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/3/5/824935.jpg)
Source: ultimatepopculture
![THE NYC RAP TOUR CRACKED.COM In 1982, some of hip hop's most popular figures, DJ Africa Bambaataa, The Rock Steady Crew, Fab 5 Freddy, and many more, brought the culture across the Atlantic to cities like Paris and London, becoming the very first international hip hop tour.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/4/0/824940.jpg)
Source: beats-rhymes
![SCHOOLLY D Marshall CRACKED.COM In 1985, Philly rapper Scoolly D's, P.S.K. What Does It Mean? is credited as the first gangsta rap song. The drums and hardcore lyrics inspired Ice T's, 6 In The Mornin, which became the defining gangsta rap record and paved the way for N.W.A and 90s gangsta rap that incorporated gang culture.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/4/4/824944.jpg)
Source: billboard.com
![MARLEY MARL GRACKED.COM In 1985, Marley Marl discovered sampling during an internship at Unique Studios. Before this, producers extended looped breakbeats with two turntables, but he discovered, by accident, that he could take a kick or snare from any record and make his own beat.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/4/1/824941.jpg)
Source: npr.org
![RAKIM PAiD DUES CRACKED.COM In 1986, Rakim made lyricism an art form. His opening verse on Eric В. Is President immediately made the more simplistic rhyme patterns of Run-D.M.C. and LL Cool J feel old school. The complex rhyme patterns and flow of top-tier lyricists like Jay-Z, Nas, Kendrick, and Eminem can be traced back to this moment.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/4/6/824946.jpg)
Source: medium
![RUN-DMC RUN MC NG OF ROCK CRACKED COM In 1986, Run-DMC's 3rd album, Raising Hell, gave hip hop so many firsts. It was the first hip hop album to go platinum (and multi platinum), the first to be nominated for a Grammy, and although their 1984 song Rock Box is credited as the first rap rock song, Walk This Way with Aerosmith brought rap rock to the masses.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/4/2/824942.jpg)
Source: recordingarts
![SALT-N-PEPA & QUEEN LATIFAH CRACKED.COM Salt-N-Pepa's 1987 debut album Hot, Cool & Vicious became the first rap album by female act to go gold and platinum. In 1995, Salt-N-Pepa won a Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Group, and Queen Latifah won a Grammy for Best Rap Solo Performance, both becoming the first female hip hop acts to win Grammy Awards.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/4/3/824943.jpg)
Source: dailyrapfacts/salt-n-pepa
![PUBLIC ENEMY CRACKED.COM In the late 1980s Public Enemy became the first political hip-hop group. Songs like 911 is a joke and Fight The Power created a new form of social expression, speaking about injustices and lack of power. In 2005, Fight The Power was preserved in the National Recording Registry for culturally and historically significant sound recordings.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/3/9/824939.jpg)
Source: allmusic
![BIZ MARKIE LAWSUIT CRACKED COM Biz Markie, doing what everyone did back then, was sued for sampling Gilbert O'Sullivan's Alone Again (Naturally). On Dec 17, 1991, the court ruled that sampling without permission constituted copyright infringement, and since then, producers use interpolation or hire studio musicians to rarely rely on other records.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/3/3/824933.jpg)
Source: cll.com
![THE WU-TANG CLAN CRACKED.COM In 1993, Protect Ya Neck became a hit single without a hook or a chorus. This cypher of 9 MC's rapping their verses was groundbreaking, but its success helped them land a game-changing deal with Loud records, where they signed as a group and were allowed to sign with other labels as solo artists.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/4/7/824947.jpg)
Source: npr.org