hip-hop

noun

ˈhip-ˌhäp

variants or less commonly hip hop or hiphop

: a stylized rhythmic music of African American origin that typically features rapping (see rap entry 6 sense 2) over synthesized beats (see beat entry 2 sense 4d) or sampled tracks

… the first bits of hip-hop were born out of DJs breaking apart funk and disco beats … until all that was left was the percussion, cut up into small, danceable portions for the people in the audience to sweat to.—

Hanif Abdurraqib

… hip hop has become a form reflecting both the beauty and the belly of the beast in American society, refracted through the lens of black American culture.—

Imani Perry

The music that Charanga plays is … a combination of jazz and rumba spiced with reggae, funk and hiphop.—

Silvana Paternostro

—often used before another noun

hip-hop artists

a hip hop song

or hip-hop dance or less commonly hip hop dance or hiphop dance : syncopated dancing typically performed to hip-hop music

For decades, Harris has been swerving away from stereotypes and expectations of hip-hop dance, all while staying true to its roots.—

Brian Seibert

… an untapped market of people wanting to learn hiphop dance.—

Nick Vogel

Unlike the verticality of classical dance … hip-hop uses a horizontal body, dissonance, and ragged gesture juxtaposed with a cool, relaxed, laid-back attitude.—

Karen Lynn Smith

—often used before another noun

a hip-hop dance group/crew

… a dance team that performs hip-hop routines at most weekend home games …—

Gina Cherelus

: a cultural movement associated especially with rap music

In one sense, hip-hop had triumphed over America. … No matter the race, class, or geography, the kids wore the same clothes, spoke the same language, listened to the same music.—

Jeff Chang

In my elementary school years, everyone I knew around my age loved hip-hop. … I loved every aspect of the culture and tried my hand at all of it.—

Rakim

—often used before another noun

the hip-hop generation

Hip hop culture is a four-legged stool, its artistic pillars of deejaying, graffiti art, rapping, and b-boying coming into existence in the early 1970s and each influencing the ways in which the other evolved.—

Jelani Cobb

Examples of hip-hop in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

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Few could have predicted the lineup of artists chosen to perform, but Snoop Dogg, Nelly, Soulja Boy, and Rick Ross—four figures deeply ingrained in the fabric of hip-hop—are in the number of artists slated to perform to mark this controversial moment in history. —

Shelby Stewart, Essence, 20 Jan. 2025 More recently, Vice President Kamala Harris prominently featured Megan Thee Stallion and other hip-hop artists during her 2024 presidential campaign rallies. —

David Faris, Newsweek, 19 Jan. 2025 Tacopina has also represented other hip-hop figures, including Meek Mill and YG. —

Andrew Dalton, Chicago Tribune, 18 Jan. 2025 Dan Lewis, 45, one of the crew leaders, DJs a '90s hip-hop set for every home game. —

Isaac Avilucea, Axios, 17 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for hip-hop