Sonic Connections
A Mother's
Love Scored
in Soul and
Hip-Hop
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Heart of Glass
Blondie
1978
The disco-punk breakthrough
Released in 1978, Blondie’s “Heart of Glass” blurred CBGB’s punk grit with disco polish. Anchored by a Roland CR-78 drum machine and icy synths, it became the band’s first U.S. No. 1 and a blueprint for genre-bending on the dancefloor.
The loop that hooked pop
Its metronomic drum machine and sleek electronics were radical for a punk-rooted band. That rhythmic backbone proved timeless, carrying forward not just Blondie’s sound, but the possibilities of merging club beats with rock and pop.
Work It
Missy Elliott
2002
Missy flips the script
On “Work It” (2002), Missy Elliott and Timbaland sample Blondie’s “Heart of Glass” drum loop. The Roland CR-78 beat becomes the backbone of a hip-hop classic, linking late-’70s New York cool with 2000s swagger.
Two icons, one groove
Blondie and Missy Elliott both broke barriers and earned Rock Hall inductions. “Work It” shows how a 1978 disco-punk groove still shapes pop and hip-hop, with Blondie’s beat reborn for 21st-century dancefloors.
