hip hop and Barry Popik

[Baker, John]

        Although Rapture was probably the first hit cross-over rap song (certainly the first one I knew about), and although it did include the line "And you hip-hop, and you don't stop," I don't think most people understood "hip-hop" in the current sense.  I know that my white friends and I did not; we thought it was just part of the funky wording contributing to the song's distinctive style, possibly meaning to dance.  Rapture came out in 1980 (not 1981), and it was probably our favorite song of that year.

John Baker


-----Original Message-----
From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU]On Behalf
Of Mullins, Bill
Sent: Wednesday, December 01, 2004 4:37 PM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
Subject: hip hop and Barry Popik


Barry's web page on Hip Hop:

"The name  hip hop  probably emerged in 1979 for the lyric in the popular
song  Rapper s Delight.  . .  .The term  hip-hop  became known to the
general public in 1983. "

I don't disagree with that, but think some intermediate credit should be
given to Debbie Harry's group "Blondie" for their 1981 song "Rapture", which
was the first place this white boy heard the term, and which was the first
rap song to enter the white mainstream.