On a recent episode of actor/comedian John Leguizamo's new series, Leguizamo Does America, he explores the Latino Roots of early Hip-Hop.

In the episode, Leguizamo meets up with mixtape legend Tony Touch at New York's famed Rock & Soul Records where they discuss various early contributions to the culture by Latinos. Touch credits the New York City blackout of 1977 with a rise in the number of DJs in New York.

"It boosted Hip-Hop, and everybody was robbing the electronics stores," he said. "Now we had like a thousand DJs in New York."

The duo also discussed photographer Joe Conzo who was the Cold Crush Brothers' personal photographer, and took many of Hip-Hop's earliest photos. When asked what early rap records influenced him, Tony Touch cites 1981's "Disco Dream" by the Mean Machine which features Mr. Schick who was the first MC to rhyme in Spanish on a rap record.

"We can never forget Big Punisher, the first solo [platinum] Latino rap artist," Tony Touch says before he throws on "Mentirosa" by Mellow Man Ace.

"When that song came out it was revolutionary to my ears because there were Latin words by Latin artists," Leguizamo said. "You just felt included, like you had value and were important."

This episode comes on the heels of recent discussions in Hip-Hop surrounding the Latino contribution to early Hip-Hop in New York. "We didn't invent it, but we were definitely there," Leguizamo said.

Check the episode above.