Rapper

/ˈræpər/ noun

Definition

A person who performs rap music by speaking rhythmically to a beat, or something that knocks or raps on a surface.

Etymology

From 'rap,' which may come from Scandinavian 'rappa' meaning 'to strike' or 'to snatch.' Used for knocking sounds since the 1400s; the musical meaning emerged in the 1970s with hip-hop culture.

Kelly Says

Rap music exploded in the Bronx in the 1970s when DJs extended drum breaks on records, and rappers had to improvise over these beats—now it's the fastest-growing music genre worldwide and has changed popular language forever!

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