Advanced Chemistry is a German hip hop group from Heidelberg, a scenic city in Baden-Württemberg, South Germany. Advanced Chemistry was founded in 1987 by Toni L, Linguist, Gee-One, DJ Mike MD and MC Torch. Each member of the group holds German citizenship, and Toni L, Linguist, and Torch are of Italian, Ghanaian, and Haitian backgrounds, respectively.
German hip hop refers to hip hop music produced in Germany. Elements of American hip hop culture, such as graffiti art and breakdancing, diffused into Western Europe in the early 1980s.
Turkish hip hop refers to hip hop music produced by members of the Turkish minority in Germany, and to a lesser degree by hip hop artists in Turkey. The Turkish minority, called the Turks, first drew inspiration from the discrimination and racism they received while living as migrant workers in Germany in the 1960s. Turkish hip hop uses Arabesk music, a folk style that finds its roots in Turkey during the 1960s, and is influenced by the hip hop music of America and Germany. Album artwork, lyrical content, and the Turkish language are used by hip hop artists to express their uniquely Turkish identity.
The Universal Zulu Nation is an international hip hop awareness group formed by and formerly led by hip hop artist Afrika Bambaataa.
Beat Street is a 1984 American drama dance film featuring New York City hip hop culture of the early 1980s, breakdancing, DJing, and graffiti.
Die Fantastischen Vier, often shortened to Fanta 4, is a German hip hop group from Stuttgart, named after the German title of Marvel's Fantastic Four. The members are Michael Schmidt (Smudo), Andreas Rieke (And.Ypsilon), Thomas Dürr, and Michael "Michi" Beck. They were, together with Advanced Chemistry, among the first groups to rap in the German language.
Tomasz Kuklicz, known professionally as DJ Tomekk, is a Polish-born German-based hip hop DJ and record producer. Rappers who have featured in his songs include Ice-T, Fatman Scoop, Khia, Xzibit, Fler, Sido, Kurupt, Lil' Kim, KRS-One, Torch, Afrob, Flavor Flav, and GZA.
Kwanza Unit (KU) was an early Tanzanian hip hop group. Its name means "First Unit" and it was formed in 1993 by a merger of several groups and solo artists. They started rapping in English, but later used Swahili as well.
Feridun Zaimoğlu is a Turkish author and visual artist.
Luis Cedeño, also known as DJ Disco Wiz is an American DJ. He is noted as being the first Latino DJ in Hip-Hop music.
"Fremd im eigenen Land" is a song produced by Advanced Chemistry in November 1992.
Krauts with Attitude was released in 1991 under the Bombastic label. The album was compiled by DJs Michael Reinboth and Katmando. It features 15 different acts; three rapped in German, eleven in English, and one in French. This release was the first compilation of German hip-hop, and essentially helped create a hip-hop scene in Germany.
Neco Çelik is a Turkish-German filmmaker.
Toni L is one of the three artists comprising the famous German rap group Advanced Chemistry formed in 1987. Born as Toni Landomini, yet often referred to as “der pate” or “the Godfather,” Toni holds German citizenship but has an Italian background. His Italian roots provide him with material for his rap songs, such as in Advanced Chemistry’s hit single “Fremd Im Eigenen Land”, where the group discusses the struggle to be accepted as a German. Toni has produced solo releases, beginning with his debut “Der Pate,” hence leading to his nickname. He has also founded the German hip-hop label MZEE.
King Size Terror is a German hip hop group of Turkish, Peruvian, and Afro-American origin.
Lance Taylor, also known as Afrika Bambaataa, is an American DJ, rapper, and producer from the South Bronx, New York. He is notable for releasing a series of genre-defining electro tracks in the 1980s that influenced the development of hip hop culture. Afrika Bambaataa is one of the originators of breakbeat DJing. Through his co-opting of the street gang the Black Spades into the music and culture-oriented Universal Zulu Nation, he has helped spread hip hop culture throughout the world. In May 2016, Bambaataa left his position as head of The Zulu Nation due to multiple allegations of child sexual abuse dating as far back as the 1970s.
Blauer Samt is the debut album by German hip hop artist Torch. It released on September 2000 by the labels V2 Records and 360° Records.
"Return of Hip Hop " is a 2001 single by DJ Tomekk from his debut album Return of Hip Hop. The song features KRS-One, Torch and MC Rene. KRS-One raps in English, Torch and MC Rene rap in German. The song peaked at No. 13 in Germany.
René El Khazraje, best known by his stage name MC Rene, is a German rapper and stand-up comedian.
Brim Fuentes, is the founding member of graffiti crew TATS CRU, and was born in the South Bronx, New York City. Brim was fortunate enough to start writing graffiti in one of the most important periods of graffiti history. He began bombing and hitting New York City Subway trains, in the late 1970s, all the way through to the mid-1980s. After the trains were cleaned in 1989 he and the rest of TATS CRU took to the streets and began bombing and creating street art all over the city.
