roots of rap 1. ... The first rap record is generally acknowledged to have been "King Tim III" by the Fatback Band in 1979, but there were many predecessors and early indicators of the possibilities of chanting rhymes over a musical background. ... Individual performances that prefigured rap While rap as a musical genre started in the 80s, there have been many black and white performers who succeeded with rap-style performances in early jazz, blues, pop, and country performances. ... Rosalind Russell, "Swing" (1953), a "patter song" written by Leonard Bernstein for the Broadway musical Won...

• Word Count: 656
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

This nauseating, migraine-inducing background noise would play behind every song, just enough to make you wonder if you are slipping into insanity through auditory hallucinations, or if some evil bastard actually added those sounds intentionally, just to make it uncomfortable; the sort of sound that would purge a cold sweat through the pores of your skin while standing half-naked in a blizzard. ... My musical soundtrack would include a mysterious lack of rap music, and I will explain that now: I find rap music to be the audible equivalent of dollar store beef jerky; filthy, cheap, nauseating, ...

• Word Count: 720
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate