Australian Hip Hop

Australian hip hop
Stylistic origins	Hip hop, dancehall, house, funk, R&B, soul, dub, jungle, toasting, rap rock, post-punk
Cultural origins	Early 1980s Australia
Typical instruments	Keyboards, synthesizer, samplers, turntables

Australian hip hop traces its origins to the early 1980s and is largely inspired by hip hop and other predominantly African-American musical genres from the United States. As the form matured, Australian hip hop has become a commercially viable style of music that is no longer restricted to the creative underground, with artists such as Hilltop Hoods and Bliss n Eso achieving notable fame. Australian hip-hop is still primarily released through independent record labels, which are often owned and operated by the artists themselves. Despite its genesis as an offshoot of American hip hop, Australian hip hop has developed a distinct regional personality that reflects its evolution as an Australian musical style.

In 1982, the music video for Malcolm McLaren's track, "Buffalo Gals", was shown on the Australian television music show Sound Unlimited. The music show was broadcast on Network Seven. The clip was staged in a Manhattan basketball court and featured images of graffiti and break dancers. The video left an impression on Australian teenagers, who began to copy the dancers' moves.

The first Australian hip hop record released was "16 Tons" / "Humber Mania Time" by Mighty Big Crime via Virgin Records and Criteria Productions in 1987 (Catalogue number VOZC 026). The Melbourne based duo (Gumpy Phillips and Tricky J aka Justin Lodge) soon disbanded, in 1991 both were members of flower power group, Freaked Out Flower Children.

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