Jazz Rap
tagStarted 1988Peak 1990–1996Last big hit still active
Jazz rap uses jazz harmony, upright-bass feel, horn color, brushed or relaxed grooves, and an MC style that often favors nuance over sheer force. The mood can be cerebral, playful, Afrocentric, or smoky-lounge cool.
History
Jazz rap bloomed through A Tribe Called Quest, Gang Starr, Digable Planets, Guru's Jazzmatazz, The Roots, and Common, partly as a reaction against rap's most cartoonishly macho images and partly as a widening of hip-hop's Black musical memory. Later forms influenced neo-soul rap, live-band rap, lo-fi hip-hop, and many conscious rap branches.
Defining artists
Essential listening
Sources
- Pitchfork "Two Turntables and a Saxophone"
- Rolling Stone Tribe / jazz-rap coverage