Musical #tbt: December 20

Rice University Professor Bernard Freeman (Professor Bun to you) teaches his students that Hip Hop stands on four pillars: MC’ing, DJ’ing, B-boying (breakdancing), and graffiti. Today we celebrate the last, but definitely not the least, pillar: On this day in 1968, the world gave us Bronx graffiti great Fernando Carlo, better known to the world as the internationally renowned COPE2. COPE2 started tagging in his hometown in 1985 and has featured work on bodega walls, Paris galleries, and everywhere in between.

On December 20, 1986, The Bangles (you know, The Bangles!) rode their hit 'Walk Like An Egyptian' to the top of US charts, where it would hang out for four weeks. Foreign types with the hookah pipes say bring back the big hair and blurry videos.

And finally, today in 1990, JoJo was born. In 2004 she became the youngest solo artist to have a US No. 1 Single. The then-thirteen year old used angst and before-her-time ad-libs to propel her debut single, 'Leave (Get Out)' to No.1 on the Billboard Pop charts.