Stuff You Should Know

Graffiti: So Cool It’s A Pillar of Hip Hop

November 20, 2025

Key Takeaways Copied to clipboard!

  • Modern graffiti has precursors dating back to 1930s Mexican mural art influencing Chicano tagging in the US, predating the invention of the spray can. 
  • The fundamental categories of graffiti—tags, throw-ups, and pieces—along with their associated styles like wild style, were largely established in New York City during the 1970s. 
  • The competitive nature of graffiti culture, where risk and skill are paramount, is one of the core elements that connects it to the other pillars of hip-hop culture. 

Segments

Graffiti Precursors and Invention
Copied to clipboard!
(00:02:29)
  • Key Takeaway: The spray can, vital for modern graffiti, was invented in 1949 by Ed Seymour and his wife Bonnie to coat radiators.
  • Summary: Graffiti has precursors in 1930s Mexican mural art, which influenced Chicano writing in LA before spray cans existed. The spray can was invented in 1949 by Ed Seymour and his wife Bonnie while attempting to create an aluminum coating for radiators. The invention of the spray can quickly paved the way for clandestine artists due to its portability and versatility across surfaces.
Early Tagging Pioneers
Copied to clipboard!
(00:06:27)
  • Key Takeaway: Cornbread, a 12-year-old from Philadelphia in 1965, is cited as one of the very first individuals to take up modern graffiti tagging.
  • Summary: Darryl McRae, known by the tag Cornbread, began writing his name in 1965 while institutionalized, later taking it to the streets of Philly in 1967. Early New York City graffiti often followed a format of a nickname followed by a number indicating the street of origin, exemplified by Julio 204 and Taki 183. Taki 183 gained significant recognition after being featured in a 1971 New York Times article, inspiring many others.
Graffiti Style Hierarchy
Copied to clipboard!
(00:13:20)
  • Key Takeaway: Graffiti styles are categorized by increasing complexity: tags (signatures), throw-ups (bubbly, multi-color), and pieces (detailed, time-intensive art).
  • Summary: Tags are the most basic form, representing a stylized signature or hand style, which can be executed in under a minute. Throw-ups are more artistic, often using bubbly letters in two or three colors, taking minutes to complete. Pieces are the most advanced, requiring days or months of work and featuring intricate details like fades and 3D effects.
Wild Style and Cholo Influence
Copied to clipboard!
(00:16:46)
  • Key Takeaway: Wild style, characterized by intricate overlapping letters, shading, and 3D effects, was established in the 1970s, despite its complex appearance suggesting a later origin.
  • Summary: Wild style is the most advanced form, involving overlapping letter patterns and intricate detail that can be illegible to the average person but understood by other artists. Cholo style, more prevalent on the West Coast, utilizes Old English or Western saloon lettering and often incorporates cartoonish figures like gangbangers with bandanas.
Subway Art and Crackdown
Copied to clipboard!
(00:11:43)
  • Key Takeaway: The subway system provided a massive, mobile canvas, and the increased risk from anti-graffiti efforts in the 70s and 80s only fueled the competitive ethos of the artists.
  • Summary: Graffiti artists targeted subway cars because they traveled all over New York, maximizing exposure for their work. Efforts by New York City officials, including Mayor Ed Koch, to stop graffiti with razor wire and police squads were largely ineffective, often escalating the challenge for writers. The MTA’s Clean Car Program, which mandated immediate cleaning of tagged cars, was one of the few measures that successfully curtailed whole-car graffiti by 1989.
Artistic Tools and Culture
Copied to clipboard!
(00:23:28)
  • Key Takeaway: Graffiti is considered the fourth pillar of hip-hop culture (alongside MCing, DJing, and breaking), with knowledge being the fifth pillar according to Afrika Bambaataa.
  • Summary: Early graffiti artists often created their own tools, such as modifying nozzles from household products like Easy-Off oven cleaner to achieve different spray effects. The removal of lead from American spray paints like Rustoleum and Krylon in the late 1970s negatively impacted paint quality, making it dry slower and appear less durable. The culture maintains strict rules, including not tagging churches, schools, or nature, and severely punishing ‘snitching’ (informing).
Mainstream Crossover and Fame
Copied to clipboard!
(00:48:04)
  • Key Takeaway: Jean-Michel Basquiat, whose tag was Samo, successfully transitioned from late 1970s graffiti to becoming one of the most expensive artists in the mainstream art world by the early 1980s.
  • Summary: Keith Haring gained fame for his chalk drawings on the blackboards exposed when subway advertisements were removed, often featuring his signature ‘radiant baby’ motif. Both Basquiat and Haring tragically passed away young, Basquiat from a heroin overdose and Haring from AIDS-related complications. Shepard Fairey, known for his ‘Andre the Giant has a posse’ stickers and the Obama ‘Hope’ poster, is another prominent artist who emerged from street art culture.