Hip Hop became huge in the early 80's and is the culture that includes Rap music in all it's forms and doesn't necessarily have to have a rapping in it.The earliest form consisted of a DJ and MC. Inner city, ghetto and musically inspired visual art such as graffiti, tagging, and commercial art using colorful characters, wild original fonts depicting ones name, a crews name or a gangs title.Graffiti usually acts as a claim to a territory or promotes the artist,writer, bomber or tagger. Breakdancing is an integral part of Hiphop that is a massively acrobatic and original freestyle form of dancing. Alot of the art of breakdancing is based around battling. This when individuals or groups compete against each other. The clothing worn in hip hop culture varies widely but started with sweat suits from brands like Adidas, Puma and Nike, kango hats and fat shoe laces. At one point the hot fad was plain blue jeans or Dickies work clothing and white t-shirts. The style of today is usually brightly colored hooded sweatshirts and sports teams logoed active wear.The style of hiphop has evolved into many different styles and sub genres. Hip
Hop has been the biggest new music, visual art, dancing style since Rock and Roll. Now days a hiphop song may contain Rock and roll and a rock song may contain hiphop elements.

A name for the 4 elements of the late 70's New York City renaissance which includes break dancing, emceeing, (rapping) graffiti, and turntablism.

first off, if it's on mtv it's NOT hip hop (50 cent isn't fucking hip hop), secondly if it's about lots of bling with my bitches riding on my twenty's capin some mofo it's NOT hip hop, thirdly if the song is only two lines repeating over and over it's NOT hip hop, fourth if the verse is all jumbled together and not enunciated it's NOT hip hop, the above mentioned criteria constitute rap.

Hip hop typically has a social message that not just about how fucking awesome I am and how hot my bitches are, enunciated lyrics, a more complex beat, and requires serious talent. If you want to listen to hip hop, you have to seek it out. It's not going to be on MTV or clear channel

And finally if you listen to both and can't discern a single thing and think I'm full of shit go listen to Umi Says by Mos Def (you can even find the lyrics on line), at least you'll understand the differing messages between hip hop and rap

Hip hop is a culture, or a lifestyle if you wish.
the term '4 elements' was coined when there was still only 4 elements;

bboyin (not break dancing) which could mean break boy or beat boy or bronx boy depending on where you live.

emceeing, which used to be shoutouts and such later evolved into 'rapping' and no thats not what 50 cent does because 50 cent is a sellout loser that sings bout his imagineary 'hoes'.

Djing or turntablism, this started by them just replaying the break bits in funk songs so that bboys could get down, and breakbeats was the first hiphop music ('evolved' from funk music.)

Graffiti, i dont know much about this but its visual art.

The 4 elements was a good concept for a while, but hip hopp grew and became more than 4 elements, making this term invalid.

a music style created in the late seventies.what was once a cool underground movement has now mutated into corporate sexist garbage. the hip hop "artists" are more concerned about making money through image, trendy clothing styles and heavy commercialization. Not all but MOST do not care so much about making good music only to be rich and and fanous. They achieve multi platinum albums through their image and being heaviy promoted and not from musical content. hip hop is nearly dead. It has lost almost all of its aesthetics because people are doing it to be trendy. one day there will be an artist (from rock rap or even reggaeton) that will deystroy this garbage on Mtv.

a cultural movement later bastardized by corporations to give rise to rap

It's a culture, it's a state of mind, it's a language, it's fashion, it's a style, it's something you feel every moment of your day. Hip hop is not commercial shit, hip hop is deep, it has a meaning for each person. You don't just listen to hip hop music, you feel it, you respect it, understand it, share it.

culture in which there are 4 elements that compose it. Breakdancing, graffiti, Mcing, and DJing. Culture which has their own dance (breaking), art (graffiti), music, language, and its race is international. Every race can participate in this culture. Hip hop originally didn't start talking about hoes or drugs or gangbanging, it started as a way to show off how good you are at the element you are good for and talk about other subjeccts like love, party, protest against goverment, music to enjoy other elements with, and stuff like that. The real hip hop stays underground and never sells out to be mainstream. Once its mainstream, it should be called just rapping, not hip hop! Hip hop was born underground and should stay underground. Hip hop should also not be asociated with gangs and drugs.