At first, there was no message. Rap was all bluff and bluster. Party stuff, straight up. Hip hop, you don't stop. Throw your hands in the air, and wave 'em like you just don't care. Somebody scream.

It’s a long way from DJ Kool Herc’s back-to-school party for his sister at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx on August 11, 1973 to a balmy late summer Saturday evening in downtown L.A. Some 50 years ...

At first, there was no message. Rap was all bluff and bluster. Party stuff, straight up. Hip hop, you don't stop. Throw your hands in the air, and wave 'em like you just don't care. Somebody scream.

GRANDMASTER FLASH AND THE FURIOUS FIVE: Ladies and gentlemen, it's now the time for the Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five MCs. (Rapping) We're coming. We're coming. We're coming. We're coming. We ...