In this thesis, I trace the evolution of the rap market from its emergence in 1979 in New York City to its development into a national industry in 1990. I analyze the motivations of the producers of rap and the mechanisms that led to their current organization. Independent labels were the primary producers of rap records until they made distribution deals with major record companies in the second half of the eighties. I argue that the division of labor between production and distribution, which became the most common context for the production of the music, is both the result of an organizational strategy initiated by the majors and of the negative perception their executives had of rap artists.

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