![]() Jitu also talked about The Chi’s early graf scene with pioneers like Warp One. A good part of House music was born out of that void. He also drew parallels to how the lack of public school after school programs and music classes forced many to turn to deejaying as a way to express themselves musically. He also talked about how the House music deejays forced everyone to step up their deejay skillz and that it was not unusual to have b-boys and b-girls at House music parties and events. Jitu goes into depth about the important role Kool Rock played. He talked about the Hip House movement that came about in the late 80s with key players like Fast Eddie, Tyree, JMD and the late Kool Rock Steady being not only household names in the Chicago, but in many ways ambassadors for the city around the world. He reminds us that House is a Black music genre that at least in the Chi was enjoyed by cats that lived in the hood. Jitu broke down the important connection between Hip Hop and House. He talked about how Afrika Bambaataa’s Universal Zulu Nation set up a chapter under pioneer Lord Cashus D in ‘78. For example, he talked about Hip Hop first emerging in the Chi around the late 70s. In our interview he gave a serious rundown of the city’s history. Back in 91, Jitu the lead rapper was and to this day remains an activist who saw the power of Hip Hop and decided to use his talents to spark political thought and hopefully change. For those who are unfamiliar ten Tray was the first group to be signed to major label. This is now spurning up a new generation of Chi-Town Hip Hoppers to start organizing to bring about change.ĭuring the recently held National Hip Hop Political Convention (2006) we sat down with one of Chicago’s premier pioneering emcees, Jitu the Juggernaut of the group Ten Tray. Sadly despite those heroic efforts of the past, today, many local artists who are not signed to a major record label or coming out of Kanye or Common’s camp find that many outlets like radio and even nightclubs are closed to them. Many will forget that back in the late 80s there was a movement called the New World Order which brought many of Chicago’s Hip Hop community together as they fought for change and respect. ![]() They used to roll up on nightclubs, radio stations and even label executives demanding to be recognized. Unsung heroes like Dr Groove, Lord Cashus D, DA Smart, Black Allies, Sugar Ray Dinky, George Daniels, World wide Posse, God Squad, The Chi Rock Nation, Ill State Assassins, and the late DJ Pink House all played crucial roles in organizing, pushing the envelop and seeing to it that the Windy City get its respect. The battle to establish ‘Tha Chi’ within Hip Hop was about as brutal as its political landscape. Many within the music industry were only willing to embrace the nation’s third largest city as the Mecca for House Music and somehow managed to disconnect that music form from Hip Hop when in many ways the two are intertwined, especially along the lines of deejay culture. In fact much of the Chi-Town’s success is a direct result of organized effort by it’s pioneering Hip Hop community that grew frustrated from being locked out by the industry that saw Chicago, more as a consumer market as a opposed to a place where stars are born. Yes, the Chi seems to have established itself in the world of Hip Hop, but it wasn’t always like that. On the political front acts like Rebel Diaz and Lah Tere have proven to be no joke.Others like DJ Third Rail, DJ Illanoize, and the late DJ Pinkhouse to name a few have not only made names for themselves as deejays not to be toyed with but also provided important platform for local artists. If you dig a little deeper and check out Hip Hop’s underground, you’ll discover that very few people are willing to roll up and do battle with esteemed Chi-town lyricists like M’Rald and of course Juice. Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, Common, Rhymefest, Twista, Da Brat, Shawnna, Doe or Die and Crucial Conflict seem to have firmly positioned themselves over the years as household names within the mainstream.In recent days many have come to know Chicago rappers via the exploits of Chief Keef. Nowadays it’s hard to turn on the radio and not hear music from one of Chicago’s many music superstars. ![]()
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