As far as music is concerned, a musician’s hometown can be as heavy an influence in the development of one’s sound as is talent. In many respects, the world can be carved up into musical regions, with borders based on native sounds as distinctively clear as the geographic markers like mountain ranges that separate one place from another. From the Appalachian fiddle traditions to the Zydeco prevalent in our bayous, the United States  sports a noble history of contributing some of the world’s most eclectic and popular forms of music. Hip-Hop is no different; in fact, one could likely argue that it’s the genre most discussed in regional terms – East vs. West, Third Coast or Southern Rap, Bay Area hyphy, Los Angeles g-funk, and dozens of other terms exist for the countless subgenres that have developed in specific areas, each of which have contributed greatly to the diversity within Hip-Hop. But what part of the country aims supreme when it comes to contributing Platinum-selling records?

A new analysis seems to prove that New York City remains the headquarters for Hip-Hop, particularly when artists from New Jersey are also considered in conjunction. According to DJ Booth, the NY/NJ area is responsible for 120 of Hip-Hop’s Platinum albums, with its closest competitor being Los Angeles, with 50. That means that New York and New Jersey are responsible for more than twice the amount of Platinum albums as its closest contender, with cities like Atlanta (29), New Orleans (21), Detroit (13), Oakland (13), and Houston (10) trailing far behind. 22 cities in all were included in the DJ Booth study, which includes some impressive statistics. “The Big Apple accounts for nearly 40% of Hip-Hop’s Platinum albums, besting the entire West Coast and all of the South combined.” While the numbers probably don’t come as a surprise to Heads (after all, New York City is the birthplace of it all), it is pretty remarkable that after several decades, countless trends, and the globalization of the music that the city has managed to continue inspiring Platinum-selling artists to create music that is so popular, on such a consistent level. “New York has the first Platinum album with Whodini’s Escape reaching the milestone in 1984, and one of the last in [Jay Z’s] Magna Carta Holy Grail. In the 29 years [between the two albums], New York has failed to produce a Platinum Rap album just once (2008).”

While reasons for New York’s continued dominance remain pretty clear (sheer population numbers and a deep sense of Hip-Hop history and pride, for starters), the numbers in other cities are more confounding. “New York may be the king, but no region has had more of an impact on what Rap music sounds like today than the South,” the study argues. “Common sense says that since the South has been so influential, it should have dominated the last decade…the Platinum album era is dead and nothing demonstrates that fact more than Atlanta being so influential yet lacking in commercial success.” But, does where you come from really dictate your chances for success? “More than your label, more than your era…so much of your success as an artist depends on where you are from and the market size,” writes DJ Booth. “There is not a single Platinum-selling rapper…who hails from the Central Mid-West. There is not a single Platinum-selling rapper from Washington, D.C. or Maryland. Phoenix and San Diego are two of the most populated cities in the U.S., but neither has birthed a Platinum artist.”

So, at least for now, it seems that the Empire State will not be giving up its throne any time soon, but questions based on this study do arise. For example, do artists from smaller cities, who are equally if not more talented than New York/New Jersey artists have it as easy as their competitors? With New York’s central role in the global landscape, is it any real surprise that artists here may have better access to networking with people in the industry? Are the deserving efforts of artists from other cities simply being ignored because of sheer lack of visibility, or is there something inherently talented about artists developing their sound in the city that started it all? How does your hometown fare on this list?

Read: “Which City Has Produced the Most Platinum Hip-Hop Albums?” at DJ Booth

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