Hip-Hop Classes

Weekly Hip-Hop Classes

Every week, Chris Markel hosted hip-hop appreciation workshops at his Chicago apartment, where albums were selected every Thursday night for discussion the following Thursday night. Each assignment was carefully chosen for cultural relevance, historical significance and its embodiment of geographic regions, time periods, and subsequent production methods.

Classes were intended to serve novices and “hip-hop heads" alike, with a mission statement of open and fluent conversations in the language of hip-hop, using samples as a gateway into the appreciation of jazz, funk, soul, and other genres.

Below is a complete list of hip-hop albums discussed to date:

Little Brother's The Minstrel Show (2005) — Little Brother's The Minstrel Show (2005)

Common's Resurrection (1994) — Common's Resurrection (1994)

J Dilla's The Shining (2006) — J Dilla's The Shining (2006)

De La Soul's Stakes Is High (1996) — De La Soul's Stakes Is High (1996)

Jay-Z's Reasonable Doubt (1996) — Jay-Z's Reasonable Doubt (1996)

Wu-Tang Clan's Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (1993) — Wu-Tang Clan's Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (1993)

Nate Dogg's G-Funk Classics, Vol. 1 & 2 (1998) — Nate Dogg's G-Funk Classics, Vol. 1 & 2 (1998)

Large Professor's The LP (2009) — Large Professor's The LP (2009)

Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle (1993) — Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle (1993)

Slum Village's Fantastic, Vol. 2 (2000) — Slum Village's Fantastic, Vol. 2 (2000)

Ludacris' Word of Mouf (2001) — Ludacris' Word of Mouf (2001)

Mick Jenkins' The Waters (2014) — Mick Jenkins' The Waters (2014)

Jake's Choice: Kendrick Lamar's Section.80 (2011) — Jake's Choice: Kendrick Lamar's Section.80 (2011)

Swishahouse's The Day Hell Broke Loose (1999) — Swishahouse's The Day Hell Broke Loose (1999)

Black Star's Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star (1995) — Black Star's Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star (1995)

Dr. Dre's 2001 (1999) — Dr. Dre's 2001 (1999)

J Dilla's Donuts (2006) — J Dilla's Donuts (2006)

2Pac's Me Against The World (1995) — 2Pac's Me Against The World (1995)

DJ Quik's Safe + Sound (1995) — DJ Quik's Safe + Sound (1995)

UGK's Ridin' Dirty (1996) — UGK's Ridin' Dirty (1996)

The Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die (1994) — The Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die (1994)

The Pharcyde's Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde (1992) — The Pharcyde's Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde (1992)

The Roots' Things Fall Apart (1999) — The Roots' Things Fall Apart (1999)

Mobb Deep's The Infamous (1995) — Mobb Deep's The Infamous (1995)

WC's Ghetto Heisman (2002) — WC's Ghetto Heisman (2002)

Devin the Dude's Just Tryin' Ta Live (2002) — Devin the Dude's Just Tryin' Ta Live (2002)

Spacelee's Choice: Consequence's Don't Quit Your Day Job! (2007) — Spacelee's Choice: Consequence's Don't Quit Your Day Job! (2007)

A Tribe Called Quest's The Anthology (1999) — A Tribe Called Quest's The Anthology (1999)

Nas' Illmatic (1994) — Nas' Illmatic (1994)

Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth's The Main Ingredient (1994) — Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth's The Main Ingredient (1994)

Dela's Atmosphere Airlines Vol. 1 (2007) — Dela's Atmosphere Airlines Vol. 1 (2007)

Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly (2015) — Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly (2015)

Gang Starr's Moment of Truth (1998) — Gang Starr's Moment of Truth (1998)

Fugees' The Score (1996) — Fugees' The Score (1996)

MF DOOM's Operation: Doomsday (1999) — MF DOOM's Operation: Doomsday (1999)

People Under the Stairs' O.S.T. (2002) — People Under the Stairs' O.S.T. (2002)

AZ's Doe or Die (1995) — AZ's Doe or Die (1995)

Erick Sermon's Double or Nothing (1995) — Erick Sermon's Double or Nothing (1995)

Royce da 5'9"'s Rock City (2002) — Royce da 5'9"'s Rock City (2002)

Aaron's Choice: Kanye West's Graduation (2007) — Aaron's Choice: Kanye West's Graduation (2007)