Pioneering Hip-Hop Rappers of the '80s

Rap/hip-hop pioneers of the Sugarhill Gang (from left, Big Bank Hank, Wonder Mike and Master Gee) pose for a portrait circa 1979 before their "Rapper's Delight" became the genre's first Top 40 hit on Jan. 5, 1980. It ranks No. 2 on VH1s 100 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs list of 2008. (Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images )