In 973, Hip-hop grew out of the South Bronx ruins when DJ Kool Herc developed the breakbeat, a distinguishing feature of hip-hop, which highlights the bridge of the song over tedious parts. As Kool Hercs breakbeat gained traction, other artists took notice, two of these being Afrika Bambaataa and Grandmaster Flash. Eventually, these three together would be known as the Founding Fathers, and with the help of other hip-hop influences, created what would be known as hip-hop. As time moved forward, hip-hop slowly became ingrained in the culture, developing into a form of resistance to the subjugation of working-class African Americans in urban centers. Mostly, but not exclusively geared towards African Americans, hip-hop in its early, most real time could act as a unifying voice for social, economic, and political issues. Tricia Rose, the author of The Hip-hop Wars talks about these early times of hip-hop in her chapter, Just Keeping it Real. In this chapter, she says, Just keeping it real, refers to talking openly about undesirable or hard-to-hear truths about black urban street life. Additionally, hip-hop supporters make the just keeping it real argument:
in response to criticism that hip-hop lyrics are contributing to negative social conditions: encouraging violence, representing the criminal life, supporting sexism and homophobia (Rose). However, Rose points out that the problem with making such a stance is that it denies the immense corporate influence on hip-hops storytelling. She explains that hip-hop defenders do not recognize the negative impact that corporate record companies have on the industry. She also mentions that as a result of the commercialization of hip-hop, rappers stories reflecting the fullness of black life, humanity, and depth of perspective do not turn a profit the way stories of ghetto street criminality and excess do. In this paper, I will prove that the commercialization of hip-hop has undoubtedly moved it into a stereotyped genre, advancing the caricatures of gangstas, pimps, and hoes. However, as illustrated in the chapter, Just Keeping it Real and in the works of numerous artists, contributable investments made in the principle of Just Keeping it Real, and the backbone of hip-hop since its origination, can steer hip-hop towards a more beneficial medium for hip-hops audience.