Underground hip hop music is a type of musical genre that goes deep into the beat making culture. This freedom of expression through music and rap beats come out through a variety of mediums. Art graffiti, break dancing, mixing, sampling, synthesizing, turntables, and beat boxing all combine to give you a glimpse of underground rap and hip hop. More often than not, the beats and music that come from underground and alternative artists go against the grain of mainstream rap beat music.

One reason underground rap beats and music are so popular is that most of these artists are non-commercial and are not in the spotlight with signed contracts. The let their music and beats do the talking as well as send a message. The path of fame and being backed by a major record label is not common for the individuals in the underground scene.

The style of music as well as the lyrics also tend to be more objective with a clear message in talking about underground rap and hip hop. More often than not, there are undertones of social injustice, political ideals, and even unity among the global community.

Many underground rap beat artists feel that they are the true bearers of hip hop and rap and that the artists that sign major deals and go commercial have to slant and alter their style and music just to sell albums. Independent and underground artists don’t have this pressure and are free to experiment and express themselves regardless if they are liked or not. This is the true beauty of underground rap beats.

Underground was mainly started on the college campuses in the late 80′s and early 90′s. These pioneers in rap music were the guys selling their music on the street and out of their cars to make a living.

Some of the more popular underground artists include: Aesop Rock, Ugly Duckling, Akir, Planet Asia, Tech N9ne, Jurassic 5, Binary Star, Brother Ali, People Under the Stairs, and Zion I. We all love underground hip hop and rap beats, whether their music and lyrics are mainstream or not, alternative hip hop will always be a driving force of culture and music.