Patrick Sisson - Writer, Journalist, Cultural Documentarian, Music Lover

Chicago Hip-Hop History… A Tour: Here are some facts that shed light on the lesser-known aspects of Chicago’s hip-hop community.

Feature
Chicago Tribune
July 16, 2006

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It seems as though there has never been more attention, airplay or talent agents focused on Chicago hip-hop music than there is now. Once maligned for being the biggest urban center in the country with the fewest marquee rappers — none for much of the ’80s and ’90s — the Windy City now claims Common and Kanye West as homegrown talent, with buzzed-about local rappers such as Lupe Fiasco expected to soon follow in their footsteps.

But the city’s current crop of MCs didn’t emerge suddenly in a cultural vacuum. A diverse array of graffiti artists, breakdancers, activists, writers, rappers and producers has existed in Chicago for decades, coming together to form a hip-hop scene that rivals anything on the coasts.

Here are some facts that shed light on the lesser-known aspects of Chicago’s hip-hop community.

NATIVE SONS AND DAUGHTERS: Kanye West isn’t the only Chicago native who found hip-hop fame elsewhere. Chali 2na (Charles Stewart), the bass-heavy vocalist of L.A.-based rap group Jurassic 5, was born here in 1971. And he hasn’t lost sight of his roots, having collaborated with Chicago-area talent such as Ang13 on the track “Chicagorillas” from his “Fish Market” solo mix tape. And Shawna, an R&B vocalist and frequent Ludacris collaborator, was part of a local group called Infamous Syndicate. Also Chicago-born is Boots Riley, the politically charged rapper who fronts the Oakland group the Coup.

West’s early education: According to many local DJs, he earned his first big production credit on an album called “Down to Earth,” the 1996 Correct Records debut from local rapper Grav. Eight of the tracks are credited to simply “Kanye,” and some, such as “Sick Thoughts,” include turntable scratches from DJ Nu-Mark, then owner of the now-defunct label and current DJ for Jurassic 5.

According to legendary DJ JP Chill of WHPK-FM 88.5, the University of Chicago’s radio station, some of West’s first rhymes were recorded as part of a group called the Go-Getters, which released a modest local hit in the early ’90s called “Oh, Oh, Oh.” At one point, West even battled Common on his way up. A freestyle rap battle between the two friends, recorded at the WHPK studio in the early ’90s, has resurfaced on a variety of mix tapes.

THE FRIENDLY GHOST: According to most hip-hop heads, the first Chicago single pressed to vinyl belongs to Casper, who released the “Groovy Ghost Show” 12-inch in 1980. Produced by Dr. Groove, recorded at Sky Hero Productions in Chicago and released on now- defunct California disco label AVI Records, the dance floor- infected single is the city’s first recorded contribution to hip- hop.

CHICAGO ROCKS: This phrase is currently the name of an all-city hip-hop concert that the Molemen, a collective of underground hip- hop producers, have organized each year since 2003. The name of the annual event came from a series of street mix tapes that Molemen member PNS (Juvenal Robles) started assembling in 1996. Each of the three volumes contained tracks by Chicago artists only. But that’s not where the story ends.

That mix tape was named after the Chi-Rock Nation, a decentralized, citywide hip-hop organization started in 1985. Often compared with the Zulu Nation, the New York hip-hop group founded by Afrika Bambaataa, Chi-Rock Nation became a networking tool for breakdancers, rappers, deejays and graffiti artists, holding meetings and throwing parties throughout Chicago. William “Upski” Wimsatt, the local author and hip-hop organizer, first assembled the articles that make up his seminal book “Bomb the Suburbs” as a scrapbook to bring to Chi-Rock meetings.

In its heyday in the late ’80s and early ’90s, the group had more than a dozen chapters around the city. The Molemen, Ill-State Assassins, Legendary Traxster and Ang13 were all members. The name resurfaced in 2005, when rapper Twista started a record label called Chi-Rock Entertainment. Shabazz then took Twista to court for copyright infringement and won the legal right to the Chi-Rock name.

CHICAGO BREAKERS: The sight of breakdancers contorting on sheets of cardboard, spinning like tops and twisting in Adidas tracksuits typically is associated with New York. But over the last few decades, die-hard Chicago b-boys have made sure their city gets respect too. The local Brickheadz crew has competed around the nation and in Europe and earned a reputation as skilled and inventive.

“We formed in 1985,” said 36-year-old Eddie Edwards, better known as Pakorn. “We were a bunch of guys who still breaked after everyone stopped. We were hard-headed, hence the name.”

SPREADING THE WORD: While much of the hip-hop world remained below the radar during the ’80s and ’90s, many aspiring writers made it their mission to get the word out. Artistic of the Chi-Rock Nation put out Chicago Rocks, an early ’90s hip-hop magazine. When he was 14, Wimsatt printed a newsletter called “It’s Yours” that he distributed on the subways. Named after a song by T La Rock, it covered graffiti and politics in the mid-’80s.

Kevin Beecham, who currently works at the Rhymesayers record label in Minneapolis, used to run the Rage Hip Hop Info Line out of his house in Waukegan in the late ’80s. Callers would dial an 800 number to hear a message that included show information and music from a four-track recorder hooked up to his phone. It cost as much as a regular phone call. At one point, the message included exclusive freestyles from Kool Keith.

“It was one straight message, and I think it could only be like three minutes max,” Beecham said. “It was low-budget, but it was cool.”

HYDE PARK: Chicago has had its share of hip-hop hangouts, such as Steps, an all-ages club on Clark Street that hosted breakdancing and hip-hop events in the late ’80s. But few neighborhoods had as much of an impact as Hyde Park. Rappers have been tuning in to WHPK for 20 years to hear JP Chill broadcast local hip-hop. Many have even visited the station during his show to perform or hand him demo tapes. Common gave him tracks when he was part of a group called CDR. And Rhymefest and Juice asked him to do a voiceover for their “How We Chill” single.

“It was funny,” the radio jock said. “I did a radio intro to their song. I guess they liked my voice because I have sort of a distinctive, odd delivery.”

Another important Hyde Park landmark was a building called the Blue Gargoyle. It was actually the University Church, located across from the WHPK studios at 57th Street and University Avenue, but was known as the Blue Gargoyle because a social service agency of the same name used to be housed there. Occasionally rented out for all- ages hip-hop shows, it was a formative spot for many hip-hop fans. Edward “Panik” Zamudio, a member of the Molemen, remembers seeing early performances by Twista and Common at the Blue Gargoyle.

GRAFFITI SCENE: From the beginnings of hip-hop in Chicago, when crews such as CTA, GGC (Graffiti Groove Crew) and ABC (Artistic Bombing Crew) spray-painted the city’s walls and trains in the early ’80s, the graffiti scene has been dynamic. From 1985-1987, Youth Guidance, a social service agency, ran a summer program called GATE (Graffiti Artists Through Education) at Roberto Clemente High School that steered taggers toward legal artistic careers. A highway underpass on 18th Street was known as the Wall of Fame, and was covered with dozens of murals and pieces by 1989. Common shot scenes for the “I Used to Love H.E.R.” video in front of the wall.

DJ JP Chill used to have a short Graffiti Report on his show from 1986 – ’87. Taggers would call in to brag about their work or diss that of other taggers. During that era, graffiti artists also took advantage of something called a Supertransfer, an all-day Sunday- only CTA pass that cost $1.75 and allowed them to put up pieces in a variety of neighborhoods in one day. That made Sunday graffiti day, according to JP Chill and Take2 (a member of ABC), and it was even memorialized in a nostalgic 1996 song by local rap group Stony Island called “Supertransfer.” The lyrics talked about “Eight steel elephant caravan careening/the Krylon’s cool’s kicked on,” referencing a popular brand of spray paint.

MAYOR DALEY’S GRAFFITI BLASTERS: One person who doesn’t appreciate graffiti art — at least, when it’s illegal — is Mayor Daley. In 1993, he initiated Mayor Daley’s Graffiti Blasters, a program that has proved to be a successful response to the problem, according to Matt Smith of the Streets and Sanitation Department. Any private property owner can request the free service, which dispatches one of 14 paint to or 16 blast crews tdo remove the graffiti. Smith said the service erases 1,500 to 4,000 tags a week.

Says Take2, a member of the Artistic Bombing Crew: “There’s an underground graffiti scene now. If you’re not in it, you won’t even know about it. People do pieces, and sometimes they won’t even last for more than 24 hours. Now people just trade photos of their pieces with other artists.”

  1. Stony Island; they were unbelievable! I met Lavie (LP Raven) when we were both working for Greenpeace back in the early 90s. They used to come up on stage with my old band, Quaker Youth Ensemble; we even wrote a song together called “F*ck the PMRC”, which was a real honor for me.

    I heard that Wyatt (Attica) died a few years back, but never heard the details.

    Does anyone know how to get ahold of those guys? I’d love to get my hands on some of that old vintage Stony Island stuff (Nalej Eye, B-Boy Laundry, Trains Roll Slowly, etc.)…

    Thanks for the article!

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