Asia's homegrown hip-hop artists are ready for the world

山东临沂市费县第一中学 郭 建

亚洲的嘻哈源于日本，主要兴于东亚。亚洲的嘻哈，能否走向全球？Only time tells.

体裁 文章词数 难度 建议用时说明文 341 ★★★ 6′

海词积累

1.trio n.三人组

2.dominance n.优势；主导

3.verse n.歌曲的段落

With a population of an estimated two billion people in the 16-34 agerange,numbers alone illustrate the Asian music market's potential.At South By Southwest（SXSW）2018,a number of hip-hop and R&B artists are out to demonstrate the region's commercial promise.

Hip hop first took root in Japan.According to Ian Condry,a professor of Japanese Cultural Studies at MIT and author of Hip-Hop Japan,the country's homegrown scene took root after Rapper's Delight made the rounds at discos in 1979.

Hip hop grew through dancing—in both the higher-class clubs and with the breakers in Tokyo's Yoyogi Park. “You have a couple of breakthrough hits in 1994,”Condry says.“Up till then the record companies were skeptical（不相信的）.”The success of rap trio Scha Dara Parr in the 1990s helped Japan's grassroots hip hop grow,and the genre is represented at SXSW by Rude-a and PRANKROOM.

What started in Japan spread to Seoul,R.O.Korea,which has asserted（声称）itself as a music hotspot with a well developed industry promoting K-pop to a worldwide audience.More recently,hip hop and R&B have challenged the K-pop establishment for commercial dominance.

“Before its rise,there were only a handful of artists that were able to make a living through hip hop and R&B music,”explains Jessica Oak,Editor-in-chief of Billboard Korea.

“The influence has been big in fashion as well.Street brands are performing far better than other lifestyle brands.Also,there's always a rap verse in most pop songs in the R.O.Korea.”

Among the most outstanding artists in the R.O.Korea at SXSW 2018 is Jay Park.The Seattle-area native started as a member of K-pop band 2PM before breaking out on his own.Since then,Park has become a major star,even signing with Roc Nation.

Rappers have also emerged （出现）from Indonesia and Vietnam.It remains to be seen whether hip hop in Asia will turn into a global phenomenon.This week,music fans at SXSW can catch some of the artists trying to make it happen.

Reading Check

1.What is the first country that hip hop took root in?（1 word）

2.Which year was very important in the development of hip hop in Japan?（1 word）

3.What are the two fields where hip hop has big influence?（no more than 5 words）

4.Will the East Asian hip hop and R&B turn into a global phenomenon?Why?

Language Study

Sentence for writing

“It remains to be seen whether（or not）...”……尚待分晓

亚洲的嘻哈是否会变成一种全球性的现象，这还有待观察。

主题应用·语库构建

I.热词积累

1.专业术语

hip hop 嘻哈乐

rap 说唱音乐

freestyle 即兴说唱

rapper 说唱歌手

the hip-hop culture 嘻哈文化

graffiti 涂鸦

MCing 说唱；说唱音乐

Bboying 霹雳舞；顶尖街舞；在舞台上跟着节奏跳街舞

DJing（电台、电视台、夜总会）唱片节目主持人

check this out 快看这个;瞧瞧这个（说唱歌曲中的常用语）

sampling technology/sampling technique 取样技术

2.起源与发展

the root/origin of hip hop 嘻哈的起源

be traced back to 被追溯到

become one of the most popular music genres around 成为世界最受欢迎的音乐形式之一

be widely regarded as the birth date of the hiphop genre 被广泛认为是嘻哈音乐的诞生之日

come a long way 有长足的发展

put forward the term break dancing 提出霹雳舞的术语

make one's way to the stage 走上舞台

become more widely accepted as a recognized art form worldwide 被更广泛地认为是世界公认的艺术形式

be referred to as a culture 被当成一种文化

infiltrate mainstream culture 渗透到主流文化中

enter everyday communication 进入日常的交际中

3.表演

showcase one's skills 充分展示某人的技巧

record one's songs 录制某人的歌曲

employ the services of small bands 利用小乐队的服务

come up with the right sounds 产生正确的声音

afford the necessary equipment 买得起必要的设备

gain the applause of the crowd 赢得群众的掌声

the center of attention 关注的焦点

wear loose fitting jeans or tracksuits 穿宽松的牛仔服或运动服

4.受众感受

sense of beauty 美感

be popular with 受……的欢迎

be crazy about 对……狂热

be addicted to 沉迷于……

appeal to sb 对某人有吸引力

abandon oneself to 沉溺于……

be fascinated by 对……着迷

be worth studying 值得研究

5.影响

hip-hop therapy 嘻哈疗法

have a far-reaching influence 有着深远的影响

have a negative effect on the perception of the young people 对年轻人的认知有负面影响

promote a culture of violence 促进暴力文化

have a space to digest sad/traumatic events 有空间消化悲伤的/创伤性事件

open sb up more 使某人更加开朗

prove to be controversial 证明是有争议的

allow students to earn credits for their study 允许学生给自己的学习赢得学分

expand one's vocabulary 扩大某人的词汇量

Ⅱ.美句背诵

1.Gangsta rap,a sub-genre of hip hop,has often been criticized for sexual images of women,guns and a gang lifestyle，which have hurt the genre.冈斯特说唱，一种嘻哈音乐的亚流派，经常因女性的性形象、枪支和帮派生活方式而受到批评，这些都伤害了这一流派。