Hip-hop's golden age is bookended by the commercial breakthrough of Run-D.M.C. in 1986 and the explosion of gangsta rap with 1993's The Chronic by Dr. Dre. Those six years witnessed the best recordings from some of the biggest rappers -- LL Cool J, Public Enemy, EPMD, Big Daddy Kane, Eric B.

Hip-hop's golden age is bookended by the commercial breakthrough of Run-D.M.C. in 1986 and the explosion of gangsta rap with 1993's The Chronic by Dr. Dre. Those six years witnessed the best recordings from some of the biggest rappers -- LL Cool J, Public Enemy, EPMD, Big Daddy Kane, Eric B. & Rakim, N.W.A, Boogie Down Productions, Biz Markie -- in the genre's history. Overwhelmingly based in New York City, golden age rap is characterized by skeletal beats, samples cribbed from hard rock or soul tracks, and tough dis raps. Rhymers like PE's Chuck D., Big Daddy Kane, KRS-One, and Rakim basically invented the complex wordplay and lyrical kung-fu of later hip-hop. The Def Jam label became the first big independent in hip-hop, while Cold Chillin', Jive, and Tommy Boy also made strides.