Leeds hip hop or New Yorkshire hip hop is the style of hip hop found in the epicentre of the New Yorkshire hip-hop movement that originated in

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

, England during the 2000s. Leeds hip hop has been noted as a revival of the purist forms of underground hip-hop and stylised by adopting classic elements of East Coast sounds which complement the Leeds underground.

Musical style

Leeds hip hop is a form of hip hop music that combines the elements of US East Coast boom bap drum patterns with the rhythms of R&B and

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

along with

UK rap UK rap, also known as British hip hop or UK hip hop, is a genre of music, and a culture that covers a variety of styles of hip hop music made in the United Kingdom. It is generally classified as one of a number of styles of R&B/Hip-Hop. Britis ...

and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

In contrast to the simplistic rhyme patterns utilized in commercial American hip hop music, New Yorkshire hip hop has been noted for its emphasis on lyrical dexterity. It has also been characterized by multi-syllabic rhymes, complex wordplay, a continuous free-flowing delivery and intricate metaphors. While Leeds hip hop does not have a uniform sound or standard style, it tends to gravitate to darker beats and

sample Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of s ...

of collages. The aggressive and hard-hitting beats of the form were emphasized by such acts as Double D Dagger, Northern Hostility and Defenders of Style while artists such as Matter, P Solja, Airman GR, Dialect, Conflict, Weezy Jefferson, D-Prince, Young-Star Simo, Instance, and Chief Wigz were noted for their lyrical skill. Key producers in the Leeds area who are at the fore front of the sound include Mike D of Subterrania Studios, Jack Danz of DS Fam, and Ghost Town. The style of the Leeds hip-hop music scene also has a very diverse sound, with some artists opting to go for more uptempo instrumentals.

Notable people

Kockee K is one of the original pioneers of the modern era of Leeds hip hop, hailing from the infamous district of Chapeltown. Known for his formidable freestyle skill, he is the product of groups such as B.T.I., Braintax, The Thief and

Kaliphz Kaliphz were a British hip hop group, formed in Rochdale by 2-Phaan (real name Mush Khan) and Jabba da Hype (real name Jabbar Khan). They began as part of the breakdance, breakdancing scene in the early 1980s before branching out into spoken wor ...

that dominated the Leeds scene and had chart success.

References

{{Hip Hop British hip hop Culture in Leeds English styles of music