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Early '90s hip hop

Early '90s hip hop

Style marker

16th-note triplets over 16th-note swing

Many hip hop and R&B songs from the '90s and late '80s feature percussion swung at the 16th-note level. In this context, when a rapper articulates 16th-note triplets, it creates a distinctive sound commonly associated with Das EFX.

It fell out of popular use by the latter half of the decade.

Transcript of a line from Jaz-O's 1989 song Dance To This.
Jaz-O's Dance To This (1989)
Transcript of a line from Shock G, Digital Underground's 1990 song Doo Woo You.
Shock G, Digital Underground's Doo Woo You (1990)
Transcript of a line from Das EFX's 1992 song They Want EFX.
Das EFX's They Want EFX (1992)
Transcript of a line from Jay-Z on Original Flavor's's 1993 song Can I Get Open?.
Jay-Z on Original Flavor's' Can I Get Open? (1993)

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