Hip-hop culture is recognized by some of its main elements that are: breackdancing, beatbox, graffiti, etc. This are elements that the urban youth use to express things such as joy, sorrow. Hip-hop culture is often reltated with rapping. Because rapping is a way of expressing feelings, emotions, but also to show or tell what you don't like, maybe domestical abuse to women, abortion, etc. Expressing feelings is important to the Hip-hop culture, so there is the main relation.
In the 1960, the term "rap" was the slang way of saying things related to spechees. The word rap etymologically means "fast read" or "spoken fast". As I already mentioned, its main themes are based on what people think, that is why it is so popular.
I do not listen nor like rap music. I preffer listening to more agressive styles, for example: Metalcore, Screamo, and also because the style of the guitar and the sound is amazing, guitar is the instrument I play, and i like to perform covers of that style. I don't like rap because sometimes it is to repetitive on the themes, always drugs, always abuse. And basically I do not like how it sounds.
As an influential artist I choose Memphis Jug Band, which was an early blues group that firstly started to integrate fast spoken lyrics to it songs. Problaby no ine has hear of them, but their way of rapping is what developes into today's rap.
Bibliography:
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapping
