THE venerable National Geographic describes hip hop as the “world’s favourite youth culture”. Sadly, the Jamaican roots of this international cultural phenomenon are largely obscured. However, it is a matter of historical record that one Clive Campbell, a Jamaican who assumed the moniker Khool Herc, (after migrating to the United States) is a seminal figure in this music and movement that have now come to dominate modern popular culture.

As the story goes, Campbell and his sister Cindy would hold regular parties (during the early 1970s) in the recreational room of their apartment block located on 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the South Bronx. It is worthy of note that Herc recently prevailed in a legal battle that vindicated his position that the historic building (which he describes as the “birthplace of hip hop”) should be preserved as cultural monument. Herc introduced the idea of toasting over vocal breaks to Americans (facilitated by the use of two turntables) which allowed the selector to expand the instrumental segments of the same song through what was technically a looping process.

The transformative power of hip hop cannot be discounted. Social commentator Stephen Hager writes: “For five years the Bronx had lived in constant terror of street gangs. Suddenly in 1975 they all disappeared as quickly as they arrived. This happened because something better had come along to replace the gangs. That something was hip hop.”

Clearly hip hop has been given a bad rap… writing in 1995, famed cultural critic Roger Ebert noted that “rap has a bad reputation in white circles, yet rap plays the same role as Bob Dylan in the 1960s, giving voice to the hopes and anger of a generation and a lot of rap is powerful writing”. It might be worth noting that today the biggest consumers of Rap music are white kids. In South Africa, hip hop is Kwaito, and the youths of Palestine and Israel subscribe to their own versions of this music, reflective of their own local realities.

Yes hip hop or rap (we use the terms interchangeably, albeit perhaps inaccurately) has come a long way from the spontaneous toasting over musical breaks in sessions in the Bronx to its current status as one of the major cultural phenomena among international youth. Yet Herc did not go on to become a recording star as did some of the pioneering figures including Grandmaster Flash and the Sugar Hill Gang. This perhaps explains why Herc is a relative unknown to many of the current leading exponents of the genre which he spawned. The sad fact is that not many Jamaicans know the story of Khool Herc and hip hop. It is one of our major Jamaican cultural accomplishments which has remained unclaimed.

Correctly appropriating hip hop as an art form with Jamaican origin will no doubt reinforce the assertion that our small nation is indeed a cultural powerhouse. How many countries can claim to have produced as many internationally influential music forms as Jamaica has over the last century.

We should note that ska is now enjoying a great resurgence albeit not in Jamaica. The great Jamaican bassist Lloyd Brevett pointed out in an interview with Bob Clarke on Irie FM last year that he is still touring with the Skatalites despite the fact that he is now 76 years old. Brevett has played in venues and territories many of our current ‘stars’ can only dream about. Yet Ska is being presented as an American music construct. Toots Hibbert has great appeal amongst white teenagers due in no small measure to his impeccable Ska pedigree.

Many Jamaicans are totally unaware of Lord Flea who was an international star in the 1950s, appearing in movies well before we ever had thoughts that Jimmy Cliff and Bob Marley would have become iconic figures in pop culture. Flea was considered a calypso star but was in fact a Mento artiste. He gave us such classics as Where Did the Naughty Little Flea Go, Mr Pay Me Mi Rent and Jump In the Line. On a personal note my own father helped to teach Flea the guitar. Happily if the Jolly Boys out of Portland should have their way there could be a resurgence of mento. Their success could vindicate the faith that Jon Baker man has reposed in them. Herbie Miller is another individual who has been working with the Blue Glaze Mento Band and he has been making considerable efforts towards the revival of this important Jamaican music genre.

What is clear is that we have not been very good at laying claim to that which is ours. Our failure to claim what has been rightfully ours has had enormous consequences and will continue to have tremendous implications on our economic viability as a nation.

clyde.mckenzie@gmail.com