Without Akai Professional, hip hop and rap may never have become the musical and cultural powerhouse that they are. Akai Professional's line of MPC groove-building controllers offered musicians the ability to integrate digital samples into either studio projects or the live stage with ease. As the MPC continued to gain popularity, Akai Professional diversified, branching into portable hard disk recorders, MIDI wind controllers, and guitar effects, along with MPC-specific digital samples> But the MPC remains their strongest - and most culturally significant - product in Akai Professional's line-up.
