The Bridge
MC Shan
Ladies and Gentleman We got MC Shan and Marley Marl in the house tonight They just came from off tour and they want to tell you a little story about where they come from ...
0 fans
Written by: JOHN JAMES POWELL, HANS FLORIAN ZIMMER
7 facts about this song
Artists Behind the Song"The Bridge" is a 1986 song by American rapper MC Shan. However, KRS-One, another legendary American rapper, featured the song, or rather a counter track, in a dispute which led to the historic feud popularly known as "The Bridge Wars."
|
Bridge WarsThe song "The Bridge" sparked a huge controversy in the Hip Hop world which later became known as The Bridge Wars. KRS-One and his crew, Boogie Down Productions, responded to the track with a diss track “South Bronx.” The feud was about who really started hip hop - the Bronx or Queensbridge.
|
The Bridge LyricsIn MC Shan's song, he tells the tale of the Queensbridge housing projects in Queens, New York where he was from. The lyrics of the song have been interpreted as suggesting that Hip Hop originated in Queensbridge, causing a confrontation with the Bronx artists who claimed that Hip Hop started in the Bronx.
|
Confusion around the PurposeMC Shan, in his later disclosures, clarified that "The Bridge" was never really intended to suggest that Queensbridge was the birthplace of Hip Hop, whereas KRS-One and his crew mistook it that way, leading to their retaliation.
|
Impact on the Hip Hop sceneSuch competitive dissing through songs got very popular during this "Bridge Wars" period. It created a new way in Hip Hop scene, encouraging MCs to show their supremacy through lyrics and rhymes. Thus, "The Bridge" by MC Shan and its counterresponse by KRS-One had a significant impact on how rap battles evolved.
|
KRS-One’s PerspectiveInterestingly, KRS-One later performed the lyrics to "The Bridge" during his performances, symbolizing the importance of the song in Hip Hop history, despite the feud associated with it. He clarified that his problem was not with the song but with the ideology it represented.
|
Legacy"The Bridge" due to its controversy and huge impact, is now considered a classic in Hip Hop music. This song and the resulting feud contributed to the elevation of Hip Hop from a regional to a national music form.
|
Citation
Use the citation below to add these lyrics to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"The Bridge Lyrics." Lyrics.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2023. Web. 5 Dec. 2023. <https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/1148014/MC+Shan/The+Bridge>.
Powered by CITE.ME
Discuss the The Bridge Lyrics with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In