there are some terrific indie hip hop The first indie hip hop band to achieve national attention was De La Soul with three feet high and rising, which in turn inspired groups such as Arrested Development and Digable Planets. Although indie hip hop suffered in the market place with the rise of gangster rap in the early 90s, there remained a hard core fan base which have sustained a community of backpack rappers, although this group still struggles with a lack of respect from the hip hop community at large. http://www.indi-hop.com
