DJ Kool Herc

Clive Campbell was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and spent his early childhood in Trenchtown, on Second Street, a few doors from where Bob Marley grew up on First. He remembered watching Rastas stream out of the hills to greet Emperor Haile Selassie's plane, and he remembered the handcarts hauling speaker boxes to the dancehall near his home in Franklyn Town, the sound system culture that would later shape everything he built in New York.

The full story is in Early New York Hip-Hop.

At a glance

Active

1973–present

From

Kingston, Jamaica / Bronx, New York

Listening guide track

“Happiness”

Listen

In the Early New York Hip-Hop listening guide: “Happiness”

In the issues

• 012
  Early New York Hip-Hop

  Principal · 1973-1986 · Members

  Early New York Hip-Hop is a music scene from New York City, USA, 1973–1986. Its principal artists include DJ Kool Herc, Grandmaster Flash, Afrika Bambaataa and Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. This issue covers 9 essential albums and 13 dated events.

Places

• 1520 Sedgwick Avenue Recreation Room
  The Bronx · 1973-1975 · Early New York Hip-Hop

Terms

Breakbeat

A drum pattern, usually sampled from the break of a funk or soul record, with syncopated rhythms rather than a steady four-on-the-floor kick.

Sound system

A mobile setup of turntables, amplifiers, and large speaker stacks used to play recorded music at outdoor parties and dances, especially in Jamaican and Caribbean culture.