Sure! I can answer that for you.

Rap music is the combination of rhyming and poetry to a beat. It is a subset of the Hip-Hop genre, which involves lyrics over fast-paced music. Some people feel Hip-Hop is also a way of life and a subculture, while rap is specifially a genre or subgenre of music. The Grammys for the Hip-Hop category divide it into R&B and Rap subcategories.

Culturally, Hip-Hop originated from the Bronx projects of NY in the early 1980s, where it was initially associated with impoverished minority communities (African-Americans & Latinos).  Although aspects of Rap were always present in Hip-hop, Rap wasn't considered its own genre or subgenre until the late 80s to early 90s, first in the Midwest and Southern USA.  The earliest history of both dates back to the Bronx in the 1970s, to elements believed to have been first used by a Jamaican DJ, Kool Herc, who repeated rhymes over instrumental music at parties at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue. The movement spread through the borough, taking inspiration from the rapping used by folk poets in West Africa. Hop hop culture, including graffiti and rapping, was adopted by street gangs in the Bronx as a new form of competition and one-upmanship.  In the early 1980s, Afrika Bambaataa and Soulsonic Force released an electro-funk track called “Planet Rock”, which used electronic sounds and synthesizers. These grew to become common elements of the genre. The music movement spread to minority populations through the US, and with the advent of music videos, the culture spread to Europe and beyond.


Elements of Rap generally consist of combining rhyming and poetry to a musical beat, whereas Hip-hop includes MCing, DJing, graffiti and breakdancing. Hip-hop is also associated with lifestyle trends such as clothing, slang, and mindset.  R&B and beatboxing are both elements and subgenres of Hip-hop (and sister subgenres to Rap).

Hip-hop and Rap are often easily conflated, as they both share features like witty, poetic wordplay with assonance and rhyming stanzas. Similarly, they both also share similar musical and lyrical themes, including social matters such as wealth, drug use, promiscuity, poverty, luxury, politics, etc.

Stylistically, Hip-hop originated from isolating the musical breaks in old funk/soul/jazz records that patrons of house parties could dance to and groundbreaking new poets could rhyme over.  Rap was influenced by this style, but evolved out of taking it to the streets-- inpromptu street performances on ghetto corners and parks and later mixtapes, before a studio culture eventually developed.

Principle tools and instruments of Hip-hop have always been the mic, turntable, synthesizer, drums, and bass.  Each of these are also instruments of Rap, but live vocal performance was essential to early Rap, and now Digital Audio Workstations such as FL Studio or Ableton are increasingly used.

In terms of tone, Hip-hop is an upbeat music style. It pairs lyrics with fast-paced music and discusses common relationship issues. Rap focuses more on the “here-and-now,” discussing issues such as popular culture and politics.

Derivatives of Hip-hop music (besides Rap) include Electro, Breakbeat, Hardcore, Club R&B, Funk Breaks, and Abstract Hip-hop. A derivative of Rap music is Grime. The act of apping is also used as an element in a wide variety of other genres, including Jazz, Disco, Funk and even Japanese dance music.

Hip-hop is and was often used as background for complicated dance routines, especially breakdance.  Rap is more strongly associated with Twerking, Jerkin', Nae Nae, Yeet, Crunk.

In [this video](http://rap.about.com/video/How-to-Rap-With-Ice-T--Definition-of-Rap-vs--Hip-Hop.htm), rapper Ice-T explains the difference between rap and hip-hop as follows:

> Rap is vocal delivery, hip-hop is a culture. The culture of hip hop was a movement that started over 20 years ago, 25 years ago in the south Bronx that incorporates 5 elements: the DJ, the dancer (break dancer, street dancer), graffiti artist, the MC--the rapper, and then the 5th which is the knowledge of it all and how it connects.

Other popular Hip-hop astists include Wiz Khalifa, Mos Def, Kanye West, Common, A Tribe Called Quest, Wu-Tang Clan, Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All, Notorious B.I.G., Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Nas, Kid Cudi, Mac Miller.   Some popular artists representative of Rap would be Eminem, 50 Cent and Lil Wayne, Tupac, DMX, Brother Ali, T.I, Tech N9ne, KRS-one, Three 6 Mafia, Lil Jon, Ludacris, Young Jeezy, Meek Mill.

Ultimately, the best understanding of the differences between Hip-hop and Rap will come from simply listening to each and comparing for yourself.  Give some of the artists above a try!  Good luck on your musical journey!

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