Best Rap Songs of the '80s, Vol. 1

At the dawn of the '80s, hip-hop had just begun to migrate from block parties to studio creations. And after lyrical breakthroughs like Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five's “The Message” and the sonic experiments of Afrika Bambaataa, the genre blossomed along disparate lines like De La Soul's psychedelic walls of samples, N.W.A.'s West Coast gangsta rap and The 2 Live Crew's profane Miami bass.