KURTIS BLOW SPOKE about the evolution of hip hop during a Black Awareness Week event on November 2 in CII 4050. Blow, the first hip hop artist to have a contract with a record company, is widely recognized as one of the first true artists in the genre. His 1980 album “The Breaks” set off the new style of music like a firecracker. Since his fall from the charts in the late 80s, Blow has focused on the history of hip hop.