Tracing a line through rap history is virtually impossible. With so many precursors and proto versions, it’s hard to say definitively what impacted the musical form.
But on this episode of Bring the Noise, we look at a strong contender – the radio DJ.
In fact, if it wasn’t for these early jocks having an influence on one particular club DJ, rap music might not even exist today.
And in a rare instance of the influencer becoming influenced by their proteges, a few radio DJs even tried to get in the rap game…with varying degrees of success. Learn more on the latest episode of Bring the Noise: A History of Early Hip-Hop!
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If you have Spotify, search for “Bring the Noise Podcast” and you’ll find a new playlist after each episode with songs from the featured artist, as well as others mentioned in the show. Or you can just click here for the latest playlist.
This episode contains a lot of rare tracks, so the Spotify list is not very complete. Be sure to check out this special YouTube playlist to hear all the music mentioned in this episode.
SHOW NOTES:
The Bring the Noise Spotify Playlist for Episode 3
YouTube Playlist for Episode 3 featuring more music from the show
DJ Hollywood: The Original King of New York (medium.com)
Maurice “Hot Rod” Hulbert
Paul “Fat Daddy” Johnson
Robert Weston Smith AKA Wolfman Jack
Gary Byrd
Gary Byrd in the 1970s
Gary Byrd today
Frankie Crocker
Anthony Holloway AKA DJ Hollywood
Hollywood (Left)
Hollywood on the mic
Hollywood promo photo from the 1980s
Douglas “Jocko” Henderson
Jocko in his Ace from Outer Space Rocket Ship Show space suit
Jocko Fan Club Card – 50,000 members strong
Pamphlet for the Get Ready program established by Jocko in the 1980s
My copy of Jocko’s Rhythm Talk
CORRECTION: In the section about DJ Hollywood’s record releases, his first single was Shock, Shock the House, not Shock, Shock the World. Sorry for the confusion.