Hip hop is a cultural movement that began among African Americans in the 1970s. It spread to most of Africa, including Rwanda, in the early to mid-1980s. The most prominent figure in the early Rwandan scene was DJ Berry (Nsabimana Abdul Aziz), who was a DJ for Kigali Night and Cosmos and a presenter for Radio Rwanda , in addition to being an early rapper and breakdancer. The Hutu government of the period did not approve of hip hop, however, and DJ Berry was forced into exile in Goma, Zaire, where he continued performing. He later moved on to Germany and recorded "Hey You", which became a hit on both Rwandan and Ugandan radio. After returning to Africa in 1990, Berry continued to promote hip hop in Rwanda until his death of AIDS in 1996. By the mid-1990s, hip hop was growing increasingly popular in Rwanda, due to the introduction of 101 FM Kigali and TVR in 1995, and American and French rappers like Tupac Shakur and MC Solaar became famous.

The first locally-recorded Rwandan hip hop hit was "Peaced Up" by KP Robinson from 1997. The song inspired many youths around Kigali to begin recording, beginning with the hit "Muteteri" by DJ Scooper .