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 increasinglydaring 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.




饶舌音乐嘻哈当道 酷炫无法挡(中)
　　饶舌乐很快就成为一种创意竞争。举例来说，帮派成员开始在街头唱饶舌歌相互斗嘴，取代了以往的暴力打斗。被视为饶舌乐教父的非洲邦巴塔，原为一名帮派成员，后来将其精力转而放在饶舌乐和担任DJ上。他所创立的祖鲁国家乐团在纽约巡回演出，并鼓励其他人用歌词来较量，而不是使用暴力。除了饶舌歌，这些"较量"也包括街头舞者间的比试，他们做出一个比一个大胆、高难度的舞蹈动作，来和对方一比高下。

　　随着嘻哈越来越受到欢迎，转动唱盘的DJ和手持麦克风的MC成了都市派对上的固定角色。饶舌歌手会花上几个小时构思押韵的歌词及练习节奏。然而，他们也常在演出中即刻创出新词来回应观众和对手。这种随兴而发的表演风格成了饶舌乐的最大特色，也是它如此风靡的原因之一。

　　Vocabulary

　　1.gang n. a group of criminals who work together帮派

　　Gangs often fight against each other in the streets of Los Angeles.

　　洛杉矶的街头常有帮派成员互斗。

　　2.increasingly adv. more and more逐渐增加地；越来越多地

　　As the enemy army moved closer to the town, it became increasingly dangerous to remain there.

　　随着敌军逼近镇上，留在那里越发危险。

　　3.daring adj. involving risk and danger大胆的；冒险的

　　That was a very daring thing to do. You could have been killed!

　　那样做真是太大胆了，你可能会因此丧命！

　　4.rhyme n. a short poem whose lines end with the same sound押韵诗

　　The first rhyme she learned was:"Now I know my ABCs, won't you come and sing with me?"

　　她最早学会的一段押韵词是："我已学会了字母，何不一同来歌舞？"

　　5.spontaneous adj. done without any planning自然发生的

　　When they heard the good news, the students burst into spontaneous cheers.

　　当学生们听到这个好消息，不禁发出欢呼声。

　　6.characterize v. to be a typical example of sth.成为......的特征

　　Pollution, violence, and poverty characterize many Third World cities.

　　污染、暴力和贫穷成了许多第三世界城市的特征。

　　More Information

　　1.Universal Zulu Nation n.祖鲁国家(简称Zulu Nation，由Afrika Bambataa于1973年在纽约创立，是一个有计划地推广各式黑人音乐文化的组织，纽约许多重量级的嘻哈艺人与团体都是这个组织的成员)

　　2.acrobatic adj.特技的；杂技的

　　3.turntable n. (唱机的)转盘

　　4.on the spur of the moment idiom当下；随即