Bulgarian Hip Hop

The Bulgarian hip hop culture development and influence is divided into two main periods. "The First Wave" ran from the mid-1980s to mid-1990s. This period is known with its underground rap and quite unfamiliar breakdancing crews, few graffiti artists and almost no DJs. At that time some of the active rappers were: In 1986 a street rapper called Ivo-Trombona recorded the first official Bulgarian rap song "This is a fake love" recorded in the only private recording studio back then - Dilema Studio in Sofia. Ivo-Trombona (later on renamed as Mc Guinness) is considered the first Bulgarian Rapper and founder of the Bulgarian rap and hip hop culture. In 1991 an eclectic group of musicians, Dobo Rap Plamen Sound, recorded an experimental live rap album in the Black Sea city of Bourgas. Another follow ups at that time era were: Dynamic ( DJ Stancho and Peter ), Gumeni Glavi, Amnistea (some members participate in Dope Reach Squad), Avi MC, Teslata and Bulldogz.

"The Second Wave" from 1999 to nowadays was a big time success in comparison to the first one, mainly due to the arrival of R'n'B and hip hop sensation, Henry Orhan Sami Beggin, otherwise known as Big Talk to his fans. . Other prominent artists from this time are Misho Shamara (now changed his name to Big Sha) with his Frontline Hustle label, DJ Stancho, Spens and Slim and their label Sniper Records. Those two labels were quite controversial in terms of "real hip-hop", sampling and mostly which is "the better one". This east-west conflict was mimicking the US hip-hop scene only for commercial reasons.

Notable acts of hip-hop positive development are the several clubs specialized in R'n'B and hip-hop music, established by Misho Shamara and his clothing line. On the other side - Sniper Records - the quite successful hip-hop magazine "Knockout", the "NGP" video shooting studio, and the several hip-hop events powered by Sniper Records such as the Cilvaringz and RZA concert in Bulgaria and the "No borders" Balkan festivals placed in Sofia. No doubt this was a big progress for the Bulgarian hip-hop.

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Wikipedia