watched the transition from all the disco music we used to play at the block parties to slowly but surely hip-hop taking over. ♪ >> the music underneath rapping is called scratching, and it's a process of using two turntables and a mixer, making new sounds out of already existing albums. >> the thing that gave life to music in the '80s for me was hip-hop because it took the sounds of the '60s and '70s and brought it to the forefront. ♪ a child is born with no state of mind ♪ ♪ blind to the ways of mankind ♪ god is smiling on you but he's frowning, too ♪ ♪ because only god knows what you go through ♪ >> "the message" was the first hip-hop song that wasn't just a party song. it was talking about what was going on. it was talking about urban decay. it was talking about drugs, crime, prison. all these things that were hitting these communities really hard. ♪ smugglers scramblers, burglars, gamblers ♪ ♪ even panhandlers ♪ you say i'm cool >> when "the message" hit, man, it was okay, put that down. what did he just say?