On This Day in 1973, a Dance Party in the Bronx Birthed What Many Believe To Be the Beginning of Hip-Hop Music

All of the greatest genres in music history have an origin story. And many believe that the origins of hip-hop can be traced to one particular performance back in 1973. Hip-hop music was an inevitable evolution of the changing music landscape, and like genres such as grunge and hard rock, it had to start somewhere. It might have started on August 11, 1973.

The fateful day in question was like any other ordinary day in the Bronx in the 1970s. However, a dance party kicked off, and one DJ Kool Herc performed a set with tons of instrumental breaks that his friends MCed over. The party in question took place in Herc’s living room in his apartment, and he was only 16 years old when the show took place.

The goal of the party was to raise money for his sister, who needed new school clothes. Herc charged 50 cents a pop for men and 25 cents for women to attend. DJ Kool Herc, despite being so young, was smart about the upcoming show. He made sure to advertise the party around the borough, billing the party as the Back To School Jam.

The party was a huge success. Around 300 people showed up to the gig, and those 300 people got to hear what many today believe was the first debut of a hip-hop song.

Today Might Have Marked the Origins of Hip-Hop Music in the Bronx in 1973

Realistically, there’s no way to prove that DJ Kool Herc’s set was truly the first debut of hip-hop music. For all we know, some kid in his bedroom could have come up with the concept before DJ Kool Herc debuted his unique musical stylings. However, many fans of hip-hop and music historians alike believe that this fateful gig in 1973 marked the beginning of hip-hop music as we know it.

Herc performed a medley of instrumental clips. With the music playing, Herc’s friend Coke La Rock “toasted” to the crowd, shouting out people in attendance. The whole performance was a variation of sorts on the Jamaican art of “toasting,” which involved talking over reggae music.

Word of Herc’s work spread fast. By 1974, he was putting on big outdoor parties in town. There, he started to develop breakbeats, which would go on to be a standard element in hip-hop music. At the time, Herc called this process of looping beats a “merry-go-round.”

Grandmaster Flash, Afrika Bambaataa, and other DJs began to work with Herc’s technique. And, eventually, the concept of the “rapper” was born. Today, Herc is considered the father of hip-hop.

Photo by Anna Webber/Getty Images for The Recording Academy

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