BY KAREN BOSSICK

It was 50 years ago that hip hop, or rap, originated in the Bronx with its rhyming speech and rhythmic music built around drum beats.

Accompanied by break dancing, it caught the public’s fancy as it emerged from the Black ghetto. And it spurred the rise of hip hop deejays who used two turntables, needle dropping and a way of sliding the record back and forth under the needle to create scratching.

Celebrate a half-century of hip hop when DJ BearSkinRug, aka Ernie Trevino, presents his “50 Years of Hip Hop” party at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 15, at The Argyros in Ketchum. BearSkinRug will take attendees on a journey through the history of the culture and music. And attendees can dance up a storm as the seats will be pushed back to make room for a dance floor.

Tickets are $10, available at https://ci.ovationtix.com/35937/performance/11388655.