Music fans interested in the birth of hip-hop can find the real story exclusively on HBO Canada, as the network announced that the original documentary series, Hip-Hop Evolution, premieres Sunday, September 4th at 9pm. Commissioned by Bell Media, in partnership with Banger Films, the four-episode, one-hour series, which premiered at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival this past spring, explores the origins of the genre that dominates popular music culture today.
Hip-Hop Evolution travels back to 1970s Bronx and Harlem, unveiling how hip-hop evolved from its beginnings as a New York house-party experiment, to the global phenomenon it is today, and more importantly, how it created a voice for the disenfranchised.
Acclaimed Canadian MC and media personality Shad Kabango guides viewers through the evolution of the genre, travelling through NYC’s boroughs to speak with hip-hop’s originators and biggest stars. The documentary features interviews with the musical legends and pioneers that started it all.
In the first episode of Hip-Hop Evolution, Shad meets hip-hop’s “Holy Trinity,” three Bronx-based DJs – Kool Herc, Afrika Bambaataa, and Grandmaster Flash – who created hip-hop’s aesthetic and sonic foundations. Motivated by the innovations of these DJs, MCs soon follow, who, inspired by the deep oral traditions of African-American culture, change the dynamic of hip-hop and create the modern template for rap music, resulting in the emergence of hip-hop’s first supercrew – Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.
Subsequent episodes trace the explosion of groups following the genre’s first commercial hit, “Rapper’s Delight”, the Golden Age of hip-hop in the 80s, and the creation of the first hip-hop empire, Def Jam Records.
Hip-Hop Evolution
