Hip-hop and industrial music had a close coming of age, and the two genres often influenced each other. Here are six artists who blended hip-hop and industrial with rap, hardcore punk, noise, and other experimental styles.
Meat Beat Manifesto
Meat Beat Manifesto formed in 1987, consistently fronted by Jack Dangers. In general, the band has had a versatile sound, ranging from hip-hop and industrial to jazz fusion and techno. Notably, however, their early work is cited as part of the foundation of 90s trip hop. But they also had an influential hand for groups like Nine Inch Nails and The Prodigy, while pulling their own electro-dance influences from The Orb and The Shamen. Mostly, MBM is notable for its use of sampling, which became a characteristic element of hip-hop.
Consolidated
Consolidated formed in 1988 with a handful of members, but after 1994 only original members Adam Sherburne and Mark Pistel remain. They began as a radical activist band, which featured heavily in their lyrics. Eventually, their sound evolved to become more alternative-industrial dance-influenced. They were close with contemporaries Meat Beat Manifesto, and they often toured together. Lyrically, Consolidated weren’t afraid to get confrontational about their beliefs. But usually, there was an undercurrent of self-deprecating humor that made them more accessible. The whole point of Consolidated working within the constraints of pop and dance music was to allow their activist message to reach a wider audience. However, their work with industrial music was a boost to the subgenre itself.
Corporate Avenger
Corporate Avenger was formed in the late 90s and had a similar political outlook as Consolidated. Their approach was different, however, as Corporate Avenger went in a rap-rock and nu-metal direction. Confrontational, aggressive, and in-your-face, the band had hardcore punk sensibilities with an industrial hip-hop vibe. The message was always front and center, and musically, they had a pretty solid style. They had a bit of Rage Against the Machine in them, but a little messier.
Ho9909
Ho99o9 emerged in 2012 as the punk-rap duo of theOGM and Yeti Bones, who were both involved in the same Newark, New Jersey arts collective. Their work pulls influences from early interests in rappers like DMX and Bone Thugs, as well as a later discovery of hardcore punk. They were regulars in the underground punk scene in Brooklyn, and, once established, toured with 3Teeth, Street Sects, Three Days Grace, Avenged Sevenfold, Korn, Alice in Chains, and even had a slot at the 2015 Gathering of the Juggalos. The duo blends industrial, hip-hop, and hardcore punk with horrorcore, thrash, and noise to create an experiment that’s been compared to both Death Grips and Black Flag.
Death Grips
Speaking of Death Grips, the trio formed in 2010 and has since created a cult-like following. Their music is hard to define, like so much that blends industrial, hip-hop, punk, and electronic. With an aggressive vocal style from MC Ride, Death Grips innovates with electropunk and noise, but their notoriety goes beyond musical influences. Generally, their live shows were chaotic but always memorable, pushing themselves to the point of injury or engaging in baffling and intense antics. Additionally, they often engaged in long stretches of improvisation. Death Grips are a bit unorthodox, and their blending of industrial hip-hop was never clear-cut. But in the past decade and change, they became highly influential for their innovation.
Clipping
Clipping formed in 2009 as the trio of Daveed Diggs (later of Hamilton fame), William Hutson, and Jonathan Snipes. They started out doing remixes, eventually releasing their first LP in 2014. Their latest album dropped in March 2025. While Clipping dabbles in industrial hip-hop and noise, they often consider themselves solely a rap group. Instead of trying to pin themselves down to complicated fusions or rejecting mainstream genres, they often cite traditional hip-hop practices in their work. These include sampling, the raw sounds of musique concrète, and experimental production styles that have long been part of both hip-hop and industrial music.
Photo by Tim Mosenfelder/FilmMagic
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