Apple Music Celebrates Hip-Hop’s 50th Anniversary With ‘Hip-Hop DNA’ Series

Apple Music is joining in on Hip-Hop’s 50th anniversary celebrations with the recent launch of Hip-Hop DNA, hosted by Ebro Darden.

The 20-episode audio series has kicked off with five episodes subtitled “Origins.” The first episode, “The Intro” focuses on how rap stars learn from the greats before them. “Bronx Tale” tells the story of the legendary borough and major acts that came from it, such as Cardi B, French Montana, and KRS-One.

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Then there’s “Just Wanna Rock,” titled after Lil Uzi Vert’s smash hit. That episode focuses on the relationship between rap and rock dating back to the ’80s with Run-DMC and the Beastie Boys. “NY State Of Mind” covers those who were born where the culture was birthed, namely Rakim and A$AP Rocky. Finally, “It’s A Queens Thing, Baby” episode spotlights on the artists from the NYC borough, namely Roxane Shante, Nas, A Tribe Called Quest, and Nicki Minaj.

The subsequent Hip Hop DNA episodes, specifically six through nine, will tackle other important regions such as the entire East Coast, South, Midwest, and West Coast. Episodes 10-20 will dive deeper into the genre and elements like emceeing, production, and DJing.

This is the latest effort celebrating Hip-Hop’s major milestone. February’s Grammy Awards featured a tribute performance led by LL Cool J. Black Thought, Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five, Queen Latifah, Busta Rhymes, Missy Elliott, and more on one stage. Some of today’s superstars and rising acts joined the fun as well, namely Lil Baby, Lil Uzi Vert, and GloRilla. Since then, many tribute performances have have been announced on festival lineups and, of course, on other steaming platforms.

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