ABSTRACT
Originally published as the lead essay in a special Village Voice feature devoted to the “Hip Hop Nation,” Greg Tate’s 1988 article “It’s Like This Y’all” provides a window into a style of music that at that time was enjoying its first true taste of commercial success. Throughout the 1980s, rap music had been bubbling under as an exciting urban underground phenomenon. But by 1986 and 1987, breakthrough albums from Run D.M.C., L.L. Cool J, and others had made it clear that hip hop was crossing over into a much larger fan base. Addressing hip hop’s African American culture as a whole, Tate provides a brief overview of its various dimensions-from graffiti and break dancing to DJ scratching and rapping-while also defending the music from its various critics. His writing style suits the subject, as he mirrors rap’s rich wealth of allusions, slang, and playfully combative, boastful verse. Tate places the music within the roots of its urban environment; for example, recalling a conversation between two early 1980s downtown New York icons, graffiti/visual artist Rammellzee (1960-2010) and East Village artist and critic Nicolas Moufarrege (1947-1985). Most of all, he situates hip hop within a long musical lineage stretching from the blues and jazz to funk and fusion. Nowhere, however, does he mention rock music. Which begs the question: exactly how does hip hop relate to rock?
