... Don't stop! The beat on the street has never been so neat. Rappers in the charts, dancing on the streets — and our man Nick Smash with the way it all began

Hip-Hop

Once an underrated underground movement, hip hop has turned out to be one of the most influential musical developments of the last decade. Nigel Lord takes the rap in MT's regular drum programming series.

An in-depth dissection of electro-pop; how to create it, how to adapt it but not how to dance to it.

UK Fresh '86

Simon Trask leaves all that MIDI jargon behind to check out Britain's first major live hip hop event. How are the DJs and the rappers making technology tick?

They're the biggest, they're the baddest. They're the most successful Hip Hop act in history. Garfield raises hell with Run an' da boyz...

More news from cyberspace

Addis Ababa

You don't have to go to Ethiopia to reach Addis Ababa, as Pete Gleadall discovers

Getting philosophical about the new British hip hop. Tim "homeboy" Ponting raps with Wize man DJ Jemski about sampling, sequencing and bringing the drum kit into hip hop.

Is hip hop an unending stream of monotonous, empty rhythms, or the brightest star in the use of modern musical technology? Tim Goodyer cross-questions MC Tee and DJ Mantronik.

Hip-hop beats, anarchic industrial noise and the odd jazz lick are the hallmarks of The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy’s debut album Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury. Kean Wong drops in on San Francisco’s uncompromising renegades and discovers which are the sharpest tools at the cutting edge of rap

Winning the '89 Technics World DJ Mixing Championship has allowed Cutmaster Swift to plough the prize money into his studio. Simon Trask talks samples and scratches with the Champion.

House from home. Nicholas Rowland talks to a British house band who have developed their music from television advertising jingles to chart success.

Vie Marshall raps with the bad young brother himself about Ataris, Creator and reader-friendly manuals

Boogie Down Productions

music with a message from KRS-One

From the New York roots of hip hop, KRS One talks about street-level production values and samples as the poor musician's alternative to real musicians. Simon Trask listens to the Music of the Spheres.

What spew!

When you come across a hi-tech band who won't even use commercial synths for fear of being imitated, they must have something special to protect. Simon Trask pays a visit to Leeds to check out the mysterious Nightmares on Wax.

In keeping with the ideals of the hip hop movement, the Stereo MCs new LP sees ingenuity and talent used to wring the most out of a minimum of equipment. Simon Trask elevates his mind.

The band called it music, the press called it confrontational noise, and the public bought it and danced to it. Stephen Hillier talks to the men behind Renegade Soundwave.

Jungle

We profile three of the hottest production teams in jungle

In a career spanning 30 years, including stints with Art Blakey and Miles Davis and a string of hit fusion albums, Lonnie Liston Smith has seen the changing role of the jazz pianist at first hand. In London for a rare live outing, Lonnie talks keyboards while Simon Trask clicks his fingers, shuts his eyes and goes "yeahhh"

In spite of The Turtles' attempts to sue them to death, De La Soul is Dead remains simply the title of their second long player. Mark van Schaick talks samples and success with Maseo.