Bboying/Breakin' (Breakdance) Music and a little Hip Hop history.

Hellooooooo!

Today I thought I would share a little information about the kind of the music I play when I'm at breakin' events. For those that don't know, Breakin or Bboying is the actual name for what you may know as breakdancing! And the music is a particular niche too.

Rock Steady Crew - probably the most well known crew ever.

The original Bboys and Bgirls would get down to the break of the record that was common in Funk and Rock music of the 70s. The break is the part of the song that usually has just the drums or percussion and is synonymous with high energy by having other instruments fade out or support the drummer's solo. It became quite common for the pioneer deejays to eventually loop that part of the record (because breaks are generally only a small part of the entire song) so the dancers would dance for longer.

Clyde Stubblefield, famous and pioneer drummer who played for James Brown.

This also allowed for the evolution of emcees, who would host parties and rhyme over the break as the dancers were getting down. Eventually, when rapping became a recognised art and skill, Hip Hop producers would sample drum breaks to create the music in the 80s and 90s that is so popular even to this day. That's basically the short version of how Breakin' and Rapping came about and is still around today, although on a much grander scale (Hip Hop/Rap music is a billion dollar industry).

RUN DMC

So, here's a mix I've done that would be a good insight into the music that gets played in today's times - as with anything, the music has evolved too and it doesn't necessarily sound the same it would have done back in the good old days. Today, you tend to hear a mix of Funk, Rock, Hip Hop and Breaks produced or remixed specifically for dancers. But I love my classics and I try to make such mixes enjoyable even for those who don't necessarily break themselves.

Hope you enjoyed the read and learned something new and I hope you enjoy the mix =D

P.s. There's also a link to a video of an event I played at in 2016 so you can see modern Breakin' in action.

https://soundcloud.com/khanfu/official-uk-champs-2017-bboybgirl-mix

Peace n Love,
KhanFu