The History Of Rap. How can we truthfully tell this story? There are so many different versions. Who is correct? There were approximately ten different pioneers, each of whom stakes a claim as the originator: Pete DJ Jones, Kool DJ Herc, DJ Hollywood, Eddie Cheeba, "Love Bug" Starski, Grand Master Flash, Afrika Bambaataa, Kurtis Blow, the Sugarhill Gang, Run DMC.

The names fit together like pieces to a puzzle. And as we assemble the puzzle, we have to give equal props to all, because it is the individual contributions, pieced together, that explain the true history of this billion-dollar-a-year phenomenon.

It was Bob Marley who made reggae into an international phenomenon. In the wake of
his success in the 1970s came a host of other names, and it wasn't long before reggae became an established genre of music. But reggae was simply the growth, the development, of what had been happening in Jamaican music. Beginning with ska, and then rock steady, the loudest island in the world had declared its real musical independence, and had already made an imprint on the world, albeit a Small one.

Grandmaster Flash

Kool Herc