Rap soon became a form of creative competition. Gang members, for example, began rapping against each other in the streets instead of doing battle in more violent ways. Afrika Bambataa, often regarded as the grandfather of rap music, was one such gang member who turned his energies to rapping and DJing. His Universal Zulu Nation group performed around New York and inspired other people to fight using words instead of violence. In addition to rapping, these“battles”often contained groups of breakdancers, who would try to outdo each other with increasingly daring and acrobatic moves.
As hip-hop grew in popularity, the DJ with his two turntables, and the MC armed with a microphone, became regular features at urban parties. Rappers would spend hours writing rhymes and practicing beats. However, they would frequently invent new rhymes on the spur of the moment, responding to both the audience and each other. This spontaneous style came to characterize rap music, and was one of the reasons it became so popular.
饒舌音樂(lè)嘻哈當(dāng)?shù)?酷炫無(wú)法擋(中)
饒舌樂(lè)很快就成為一種創(chuàng)意競(jìng)爭(zhēng)。舉例來(lái)說(shuō)，幫派成員開(kāi)始在街頭唱饒舌歌相互斗嘴，取代了以往的暴力打斗。被視為饒舌樂(lè)教父的非洲邦巴塔，原為一名幫派成員，后來(lái)將其精力轉(zhuǎn)而放在饒舌樂(lè)和擔(dān)任DJ上。他所創(chuàng)立的祖魯國(guó)家樂(lè)團(tuán)在紐約巡回演出，并鼓勵(lì)其他人用歌詞來(lái)較量，而不是使用暴力。除了饒舌歌，這些“較量”也包括街頭舞者間的比試，他們做出一個(gè)比一個(gè)大膽、高難度的舞蹈動(dòng)作，來(lái)和對(duì)方一比高下。
隨著嘻哈越來(lái)越受到歡迎，轉(zhuǎn)動(dòng)唱盤(pán)的DJ和手持麥克風(fēng)的MC成了都市派對(duì)上的固定角色。饒舌歌手會(huì)花上幾個(gè)小時(shí)構(gòu)思押韻的歌詞及練習(xí)節(jié)奏。然而，他們也常在演出中即刻創(chuàng)出新詞來(lái)回應(yīng)觀眾和對(duì)手。這種隨興而發(fā)的表演風(fēng)格成了饒舌樂(lè)的特色，也是它如此風(fēng)靡的原因之一。
Vocabulary
1.gang n. a group of criminals who work together幫派
Gangs often fight against each other in the streets of Los Angeles.
洛杉磯的街頭常有幫派成員互斗。
2.increasingly adv. more and more逐漸增加地；越來(lái)越多地
As the enemy army moved closer to the town, it became increasingly dangerous to remain there.
隨著敵軍逼近鎮(zhèn)上，留在那里越發(fā)危險(xiǎn)。
3.daring adj. involving risk and danger大膽的；冒險(xiǎn)的
That was a very daring thing to do. You could have been killed!
那樣做真是太大膽了，你可能會(huì)因此喪命！
4.rhyme n. a short poem whose lines end with the same sound押韻詩(shī)
The first rhyme she learned was:“Now I know my ABCs, won’t you come and sing with me?”
她最早學(xué)會(huì)的一段押韻詞是：“我已學(xué)會(huì)了字母，何不一同來(lái)歌舞？”
5.spontaneous adj. done without any planning自然發(fā)生的
When they heard the good news, the students burst into spontaneous cheers.
當(dāng)學(xué)生們聽(tīng)到這個(gè)好消息，不禁發(fā)出歡呼聲。
6.characterize v. to be a typical example of sth.成為……的特征
Pollution, violence, and poverty characterize many Third World cities.
污染、暴力和貧窮成了許多第三世界城市的特征。
More Information
1.Universal Zulu Nation n.祖魯國(guó)家(簡(jiǎn)稱(chēng)Zulu Nation，由Afrika Bambataa于1973年在紐約創(chuàng)立，是一個(gè)有計(jì)劃地推廣各式黑人音樂(lè)文化的組織，紐約許多重量級(jí)的嘻哈藝人與團(tuán)體都是這個(gè)組織的成員)
2.acrobatic adj.特技的；雜技的
3.turntable n. (唱機(jī)的)轉(zhuǎn)盤(pán)
4.on the spur of the moment idiom當(dāng)下；隨即