sub-genre /~1985 · new york city

Boom Bap

Anchor moment: Paid in Full is released

Musical signatures

Hard-hitting drum-machine kicks ('boom') and crisp snares ('bap') typically programmed on the E-mu SP-1200 or Akai MPC60; chopped jazz, soul, and funk samples layered with turntable scratches; tempos generally 85–95 BPM; lyrically focused on lyricism, battle rhymes, and street narrative.

Pioneers

Associated scenes

  • new-york-golden-age

Moments in this sub-genre 1

Notes

Term popularized by KRS-One's 'Outta Here' (1993) and used retroactively; the sound itself crystallized with Marley Marl's late-1980s Juice Crew productions and was canonized by DJ Premier, Pete Rock, and Large Professor.

Citations 2

  1. B
    Wikipedia — Boom bap Retrieved 2026-05-24.
  2. B
    AllMusic — East Coast Rap Retrieved 2026-05-24.

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