<P> As hip hop has a seen a shift in the means by which its artists express their masculinity, from violence and intimidation to wealth - flaunting and entrepreneurship, it has also seen the emergence of rapper branding . The modern - day hip hop artist is no longer limited to music serving as their sole occupation or source of income . By the early 1990s, major apparel companies "(had) realized the economic potential of tapping into hip hop culture...Tommy Hilfiger was one of the first major fashion designer (s) who actively courted rappers as a way of promoting his street wear". By joining forces, the artist and the corporation are able to jointly benefit from each other's resources . Hip Hop artists are trend - setters and taste - makers . Their fans range from minority groups who can relate to their professed struggles to majority groups who cannot truly relate but like to "consume the fantasy of living a more masculine life". The rappers provide the "cool, hip" factor while the corporations deliver the product, advertising, and financial assets . Tommy Hilfiger, one of the first mainstream designers to actively court rappers as a way of promoting his street wear, serves a prototypical example of the hip hip / fashion collaborations: </P> <Table> <Tr> <Td> "</Td> <Td> In exchange for giving artists free wardrobes, Hilfiger found its name mentioned in both rhyming verses of rap songs and their' shout - out' lyrics, in which rap artists chant out thanks to friends and sponsors for their support . Hilfiger's success convinced other large mainstream American fashion design companies, like Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein, to tailor lines to the lucrative market of hip hop artists and fans . </Td> <Td>" </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Td> "</Td> <Td> In exchange for giving artists free wardrobes, Hilfiger found its name mentioned in both rhyming verses of rap songs and their' shout - out' lyrics, in which rap artists chant out thanks to friends and sponsors for their support . Hilfiger's success convinced other large mainstream American fashion design companies, like Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein, to tailor lines to the lucrative market of hip hop artists and fans . </Td> <Td>" </Td> </Tr> <P> Artists now use brands as a means of supplemental income to their music or are creating and expanding their own brands that become their primary source of income . As Harry Elam explains, there has been a movement "from the incorporation and redefinition of existing trends to actually designing and marketing products as hip hop fashion". </P>

Who came up with the term hip hop