A Salute to 50 years of Hip Hop in Toys, Games, Pop Culture, AI, Metaverse and the Future

Grapevine, Texas Dec 29, 2023 (Issuewire.com) - Jacob R. Miles III, CEO and founder, of MAP Esports Network, Inc., Cultural Toys, and author of My American Toy Story announced today the release of a report chronicling the impact that hip hop has had on pop culture including toys and games, videogames, esports, comics and manga, ai, and the metaverse. 

Miles is the first African American to go straight from the streets to working with over nearly 20 Toy Industry Hall of Fame inductees throughout his expansive toy industry career. Becoming a Fortune 100 senior executive managing elaborate global entertainment projects, leading content, development, marketing, toy, film, and television-focused teams. Over the past 40 years, Miles has spearheaded many TV/film content, and product development, manufacturing, promotions, licensing, and distribution campaigns, from Asia to Hollywood, to New York, and virtually everywhere in between. Besides being a critical part of the first major toy industry TV and film production, licensing, and merchandise program to come out of Hollywood, Star Wars, he has gone on to work for Kenner Toys, General Mills Entertainment Group, Tonka, SEGA, and Hasbro, developing programming and manufacturing for such notable programs and products as the Care Bears, Batman,
Superman, The Ghostbusters, GoBots, Pound Puppies, and SEGA video games, among many others.

He has further worked side by side developing television and film properties with Lucasfilm, Jim Henson Cos., DIC, The Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros., Film Roman, NBA, MLB, NFL Hallmark Entertainment, and more. Capitalizing on his business experience and relationships, Miles founded Cultural Exchange Entertainment Corp. (CEE), and Cultural Toys, an award-winning company that focused on edutainment, and multicultural properties and designed, developed, and licensed a number of toys and entertainment properties for TV, including Hollywood Hounds, Hip-hop's C-Bear & Jamal and Dinkytown Kids toys, plus others featured on the ABC, FOX, and HBO networks. Here, he teamed up with businessman Clarence Avant, who served on CEE's Board of Directors, and as an inspiring mentor.

"Hip-hop, like Bebop and Jazz before it, has influenced every aspect of our lives," says Jacob R. Miles III, CEO of MAP Digital Network and award-winning toy industry veteran. 

Hip-hop has been a cultural phenomenon since its inception in the late 1970s. It has influenced many aspects of popular culture, including toys, animation, video games, and now AI and the Metaverse. The history of hip-hop music is rooted in the African American and Latino communities of New York City. The pioneers of hip-hop were well-versed in street culture and realized that they could create something positive out of it. The music traveled and struck the masses and began to be featured in Hollywood, discos,
cinemas, and other entertainment fields. Hip-hop's influence on the video game industry can be traced back to the early 1990s. The first video game based on hip-hop was "Rap Jam: Volume One," which was launched in 1995 for the Super Nintendo platform. The game combined NBA basketball with rap and hip-hop. Another notable game was "PaRappa the Rapper," which was launched in 1996 for Sony's PlayStation. It used cartoon designs to introduce hip-hop to children and was like an early version of Guitar Hero that involved freestyling. Hip-hop has also influenced the toy industry. Toys like Hollywood Hounds, Hip-hop Bobbleheads, and rap-based toys like Madvillain figures by Kidrobot and Travis Scott 'Rodeo' action figures are sought after. Hip-hop has also wielded a significant impact on animation. In the 1980s, hip-hop music videos began to feature animation. The music video for "The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel" was one of the first to use animation. Hip-hop has also influenced anime. Rappers like Wu-Tang Clan and MF DOOM have referenced anime in their music, and anime has been used in hip-hop music videos.
In summary, hip-hop has had a significant impact on popular culture, including toys, animation, video games, and beyond. Its influence can be seen in the development of new art forms that impact the lives of new and older generations. Clearly a global phenomenon, it continues to appeal, to adapt, and to grow. For the complete report and to be added to the list for the upcoming book, Hip-Hop in Pop Culture, Toys, Games and Technology by Jacob R. Miles III, email jmiles@milesanalystspartners.com 

Note: This report is taken from author, Jacob R. Miles III's upcoming book Hip-Hop in Pop Culture, Toys, Games and Technology, which takes a deeper dive into Hip-hop's impact on non-musical segments of play and pop culture.