Hip hop culture has a language all it's own and each decade brings new vernacular to the genre. Once the language started crossing over to the white suburbs psychologists decided to give a name to our slang : EBONICS. But no matter what label you put on it one thing is for sure hip hop helped give a voice to a demographic in the 80's that was previously unheard.
B-Boy
The original term for style dancers. Also used to refer to pioneers of hip hop.
Beat Box
Big ass portable radio. (See L. L. Cool J’s song “Radio”)
Def
Very cool.
Use: “That beat box is def.”
Dope
More than cool.
Use: “ ‘Tougher than Leather’ is a dope album.”
Drop Science
Educate you.
Use: “KRS-1 be droppin’ science!”
Fly
Beautiful.
Use: “That girl is fly.”
Fresh
New and cool. Usually referring to the style of a person, place or thing.
Use: “You car is fresh!”
Homeboy
Partner. Friend or some other guy.
Use: “Don’t step on my Adidas, homeboy.”
Homie
Short for homeboy.
Hype
Message or propaganda. Can also refer to wild party.
Use: “Don’t believe the hype.” Or “This party is hype, man.”
Jack Move
Act of forcefully taking something from someone. Can include assault, theft, and robbery.
Use: “..ain’t no tellin when I’m down for a jack move.” Or “Those gangstas are about to do a jack move.”
Legit
Good. (Made more popular by M.C. Hammer in the 90s, but came from the 80s.)
Use: “This club is legit. It gets pretty hype at about 1am.”
NewJack
A rookie trying to prove himself on the streets. Can also be a sucka.
Step Off
Used to tell someone to stop annoying you or get out of business or just back up.
Use: “I wish my teachers would just step off!”
Sucka
A punk. A new jack. A fool. An idiot. A looser.
Use: “You think I'm a sucka, but I ain't the one.”
Posse
Group of people, friends or gang.
Use: “I was chillin’ with my posse.”
Funky Fresh Gear
Extremely cool clothes.
Rap
Urban poetry to a rhythm.
Human Beat Box
Art of urban vocal percussion; made famous by pioneers like the fat Boys, Doug E. Fresh, Biz Markie and others in the 80s.
Stupid
More than cool.
Sucka MCs
A punk, wimp, fake person attempting to rap and pretend too be tough.
Word to the Mother
Truth to the Mother land, Africa. I agree 100%.
Poppin' & Lockin'
dances with sudden stop start movements
Chill
Relax.
Use: “Just chill. You’ll get your money.”
Ill
Act like a fool. Can also refer to something slightly crazy but still cool or even something sickening.
Use: “That fool be illin’” or “That concert was ill, I liked it.” Or even “The dude threw up on stage and ate it, it was ill.”
B-Boy
The original term for style dancers. Also used to refer to pioneers of hip hop.
Beat Box
Big ass portable radio. (See L. L. Cool J’s song “Radio”)
Def
Very cool.
Use: “That beat box is def.”
Dope
More than cool.
Use: “ ‘Tougher than Leather’ is a dope album.”
Drop Science
Educate you.
Use: “KRS-1 be droppin’ science!”
Fly
Beautiful.
Use: “That girl is fly.”
Fresh
New and cool. Usually referring to the style of a person, place or thing.
Use: “You car is fresh!”
Homeboy
Partner. Friend or some other guy.
Use: “Don’t step on my Adidas, homeboy.”
Homie
Short for homeboy.
Hype
Message or propaganda. Can also refer to wild party.
Use: “Don’t believe the hype.” Or “This party is hype, man.”
Jack Move
Act of forcefully taking something from someone. Can include assault, theft, and robbery.
Use: “..ain’t no tellin when I’m down for a jack move.” Or “Those gangstas are about to do a jack move.”
Legit
Good. (Made more popular by M.C. Hammer in the 90s, but came from the 80s.)
Use: “This club is legit. It gets pretty hype at about 1am.”
NewJack
A rookie trying to prove himself on the streets. Can also be a sucka.
Step Off
Used to tell someone to stop annoying you or get out of business or just back up.
Use: “I wish my teachers would just step off!”
Sucka
A punk. A new jack. A fool. An idiot. A looser.
Use: “You think I'm a sucka, but I ain't the one.”
Posse
Group of people, friends or gang.
Use: “I was chillin’ with my posse.”
Funky Fresh Gear
Extremely cool clothes.
Rap
Urban poetry to a rhythm.
Human Beat Box
Art of urban vocal percussion; made famous by pioneers like the fat Boys, Doug E. Fresh, Biz Markie and others in the 80s.
Stupid
More than cool.
Sucka MCs
A punk, wimp, fake person attempting to rap and pretend too be tough.
Word to the Mother
Truth to the Mother land, Africa. I agree 100%.
Poppin' & Lockin'
dances with sudden stop start movements
Chill
Relax.
Use: “Just chill. You’ll get your money.”
Ill
Act like a fool. Can also refer to something slightly crazy but still cool or even something sickening.
Use: “That fool be illin’” or “That concert was ill, I liked it.” Or even “The dude threw up on stage and ate it, it was ill.”
No comments:
Post a Comment