Gawker: Rap

Was Ice Cube's Good Day Actually November 30, 1988? An Alternate Theory

Max Read — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 10:42:13 EST

Last Friday, Murk Avenue's Donovan Strain changed the internet with a rigorously-researched theory: the "good day" of Ice Cube's 1993 classic "It Was a Good Day" took place on January 20, 1992. But did he get some facts wrong? Mike B. of Lahatiel enters the most important intellectual debate of the 21st century with a new hypothesis: Ice Cube's good day was November 30, 1988. More »

Here Is the Best Hip Hop Song Ever Made

Hamilton Nolan — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 08:49:02 EST

"The World Is Yours," Nas. More »

Bill O'Reilly Proclaims Self 'Brother' for Distinguishing Between Ice Cube and Ice-T

Max Read — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 10:43:50 EST

Here's Bill O'Reilly and Bernie Goldberg, arguing about who is the the most white person on the planet, and who is a "brother," based largely on who can accurately distinguish between two famous black men. I had a long rant planned about how embarrassing and irritating it is when white people play the "who's whitest" game, and all the bullshit ignorant assumptions built into it, but I think Ice T really gets to the heart of the issue in this tweet: More »

Ol' Dirty Bastard's FBI File: Wu-Crimes and Tons of Guns

Hamilton Nolan — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 12:53:10 EST

An American hero by the name of Rich Jones has obtained and published the entire 94-page FBI file of Ol' Dirty Bastard, the Wu-Tang Brooklynnnn Zuhh member who died of a wildness overdose in 2004. Some select highlights are below. [Click to enlarge the images] More »

Don't Make That Startup Video!

Ryan Tate — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 17:15:00 EST

We've explained time and time again that you should put down the camera and not make that rap video. Apparently some clarification is in order: This goes for web startups, too. In fact, web startups should avoid music videos of any sort. More »

Justin Bieber Is Going to Rap Whether You Like It Or Not

Adrian Chen — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 14:40:23 EST

It doesn't matter whether sonorous squirrel Justin Bieber is good at rapping. It doesn't matter if, as rumored, his supposed freestyles are actually ghost-written and pre-rehearsed. If Justin Bieber wants to rap, he will rap, and the world will listen. More »

Don't Make That Rap Video: J-School Edition

Hamilton Nolan — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 11:10:00 EST

Columbia Journalism School kids exploring "The Elements of Style" in hip hop form? Don't make that rap video. More »

Urgent! Chet Hanks Needs Help Finishing His Final Paper

Lauri Apple — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 07:08:00 EST

A Northwestern University student-tipster who's enrolled in the same American history class as Chet Haze—the rapping, acting, West Side (of Evanston)-dominating consequence of Tom Hanks' potent ejaculate—passed along this email that Haze sent across a listserv at 4 AM this morning: More »

The Nerdy White Rapper Who Launched Two Internet Sensations in 24 Hours

Matt Cherette — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 06:03:08 EST

Melanin-deficient battle rapper Mac Lethal's pancake-focused cover of Chris Brown's "Look At Me Now"—which he recorded while making pancakes—has garnered nearly half a million views since being uploaded to YouTube about 24 hours ago. Why? Because as you'll see above, it's amazing. But also: because it hit the top of Reddit's front page shortly after appearing online Wednesday morning, immediately taking its place in the Viral Video Hall of Fame and giving its creator some of the Internet's best temporary bragging rights. More »

GZA Finally Makes it to Harvard

Hamilton Nolan — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 12:34:09 EST

GZA, the man who becomes the head when Wu-Tang Clan forms like Voltron, will be giving a guest lecture at Harvard next month. Better than a mountain climber who plays an electric guitar, amirite? This "Ivy League lecture as album promo tour trend" is the coolest thing to happen to the Ivy League since the Dartmouth meth lab. More »

You Won't Learn Hip Hop in This Man's Classroom

Hamilton Nolan — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 11:55:39 EDT

Hip hop culture is a very deserving field of study. Rap lyrics are some of the most powerful popular poetry of the past three decades. Studying rap music in a classroom is kind of a drag compared to studying rap music, say, in a car full of weed smoke, but hey, it's not the worst thing you could do in a classroom. More »

Chet Haze's Hollywood Video Proves: Chet Haze Is Cool

Hamilton Nolan — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 11:05:15 EDT

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Great news: a new OFFICIAL video release from Chet Hanks a.k.a. Chet Haze, the Midwest's number one Northwestern University movie star scion rap artist of the present generation! This one is sure to drainerade the haterade awayerade! More »

White Girls Rapping About Rick Perry

Jim Newell — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 15:24:00 EDT

Well looky here, it's some white girls doing a rap on YouTube. There is some precedent for this. But "candy rapper and double K" could save Rick Perry's presidential campaign from its, uh, modest, transient dip over the past week, by lending him this theme song! Watch them babble nonsense for a couples of minutes without any connection to the beat, just like Rick Perry does when he tries to attack Mitt Romney. Is this parody? Whether it is or it isn't, it is. [Mother Jones via Uproxx] More »

Will the U.S. Army Ever Overcome Soulja Boy's Insult?

Hamilton Nolan — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 11:33:05 EDT

Where were you on that fateful September day when America's innocence was lost? Never forget: 9-5-11, when Soulja Boy said a shitty freestyle line that was disrespectful to the U.S. Army. Will we ever heal? More »

The Gawker Guide to Fall Music

Max Read — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 18:09:37 EDT

With the coming of Diddy's Labor Day White Party, the ancient druidic event that marks the end of the summer season, so too comes another ancient tradition: The Fall Music Preview. What delightful sounds can we expect to be emanating from stereos over the next few months? More »

Dangerous Rapper Sparks Suburban Food Court Uprising

Jeff Neumann — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 01:45:00 EDT

Young suburban rapper Machine Gun Kelly started a Flash Mob™ at a mall in Ohio on Saturday, and was ejected along with some friends by police. At one point, MGK even stood up on a food court table! That's some hardcore shit. You can watch the Official MGK Flash Mob™ version here. More »

Rapper and Compton Sheriff Squash Twitter Beef

Jeff Neumann — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 05:36:53 EDT

Last Friday, not so great rapper The Game tweeted a phone number that his followers should call about getting a music internship. The number was the Compton Sheriff's office, which was unsurprisingly bombarded with calls. After a little more shittalking, The Game decided to apologize on CNN: "My sincerest apologies to the Sheriff's Department.... It was a joke gone wrong." He then blamed the "mishap" on a friend and the L.A. County Sheriff's Department accepted. Oh God, is it still August? More »

Anne Hathaway Performs Anti-Paparazzi Rap Song on Conan

Matt Cherette — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 02:45:12 EDT

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Although Anne Hathaway stopped by Conan tonight to promote her new movie, One Day, she spent more time talking about her upcoming role as Catwoman in The Dark Knight Rises. Hathaway said that during filming she almost reached her breaking point because of the aggressive paparazzi tracking her every move, but she coped with the stress by writing a nasty rap song about them. And then she performed it. More »

Don't Make That Rap Video

Hamilton Nolan — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 11:38:59 EDT

Andover kids. Celebukids. College kids. Old people. And—especially—Kreayshawn. Let me stop you right there. Whew! Glad I caught you. Hey, small tip: do not push that button. Do not touch that mic. Do not make that rap video. More »

Rich Hil Invites Us to Suck His Dick, 'Literally'

Hamilton Nolan — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 10:40:10 EDT

Celebukids like Rich Hil are killing hip hop. Let's just say that up front, as a way of framing our overall sense of glee that there is a big story about Rich Hil—son of Tommy Hilfiger—in today's New York Observer. Does he invite us to fellate him? But of course. More »

55-Year-Old Casino Exec Releases One of the Worst Rap Videos Ever

Matt Cherette — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 02:34:49 EDT

By day, Allen Samuels is a popular casino host in Atlantic City. By night? He's A. Samuels, the illest fledgling rapper in the game, son! More »

Outkast's Big Boi Arrested Over Ecstasy, Viagra

Max Read — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 16:05:00 EDT

Atlanta rapper Big Boi—one half of Outkast along with André 3000, and star of one of the great episodes of Law and Order: Special Victims Unit—was arrested in Miami on Sunday on drug possession charges. Rappers, right? Always with ecstasy and viagra-fueled cruises! More »

Andover Has Its Own Hip-Hop Anthem

Hamilton Nolan — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 12:35:39 EDT

The only bad things about this video, "The Andover Song," are the excruciatingly earnest lyrics, the disconcerting juxtaposition of a bunch of freshly-scrubbed teenage prep school lacrosse aficionados with the format of a non-parody rap video, the horribly awkward cameo by the elderly authority figure, the depressing realization that this video's production values are much higher than those on many videos by "real" rappers, and the overarching statement that the very existence of this video makes about the dissipation and decline of hip hop culture in America. More »

Rapping Celebukids Just Don't Listen

Hamilton Nolan — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 12:40:07 EDT

So then, did you all take the time to download the hot new mixtape by Pablo Dylan, Bob Dylan's 15 year-old rapping grandson? More »

Who Gave Soulja Boy $55 Million?

Hamilton Nolan — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 09:15:27 EDT

Cartoonishly simplistic rhyme reciter Soulja Boy has allegedly purchased himself a $55 million G5 jet as a 21st birthday present. Ohh... did somebody give Soulja Boy $55 million, by accident? More »

Saving Hip Hop From the Celebukids

Hamilton Nolan — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 13:21:11 EDT

Rich Hil, the tatted-up 21 year-old son of Tommy Hilfiger, just got himself a record deal with Warner Brothers. (You can celebrate the moment with him in this video.) While Hil is, at least, more talented than Chet Haze, the rise of two celebrity scions into hip hop prominence at once makes me fear the very worst. More »

The Wonderful World of Kreayshawn

Jason Richards — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 14:30:27 EDT

Without a doubt, this year's earliest contender for song of the summer is "Gucci Gucci" by 21-year-old Oakland artist Kreayshawn. Though no one had heard of her a few months ago, she's now on pace to succeed Ke$ha as the foremost white female rapper in popular music. More »

Chet Haze Is Getting Wacker

Hamilton Nolan — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 13:39:22 EDT

Hello, America. Chet Haze—Northwestern University's most prominent rapper-actor whose father starred in Turner & Hooch— has released a new track. This one really is some janky, Justin Timberlake-grabs-the-mic-at-the-8th-grade-school-dance type shit. More so than before. Anyhow, enjoy. More »

Jon Stewart and Bill O'Reilly Will Debate Endless 'Common' Controversy

Jim Newell — Fri, 13 May 2011 15:47:54 EDT

Jon Stewart has accepted Bill O'Reilly's offer to debate the terrible scandal about rapper Common reading a poem at the White House. It will air on Monday. This story will be in the news for three more days. More »

Comment of the Day: Yo! Sarah Palin Raps

Richard Lawson — Thu, 12 May 2011 19:09:53 EDT

Today we learned that while Sarah Palin is terrified of Common, known cop killer, she is not terrified of all rap. She loves rap! She likes it so much she's written her own rap tune. One commenter got an early snippet of lyrics. More »

Sarah Palin Proves She's Not 'Anti-Rap'

Jim Newell — Thu, 12 May 2011 13:34:08 EDT

"Like Brett Baier, I know the lyrics of 'Rappers Delight' too." — Sarah Palin on Fox News last night, explaining that while she dislikes the evil rapper Common, she isn't "anti-rap" at all. She knows the first rap song! More »

Former Hot 97 DJ Killed

Jeff Neumann — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 05:13:55 EDT

32-year-old DJ Megatron, Corey McGriff, of BET's "106 & Park" was shot and killed outside his Staten Island home early Sunday morning. Before working at BET, McGriff was a DJ at New York's best radio station, Hot 97. He also played a small role in the movie Killa Season. No motive has been determined. More »

'Adios, Motherfucker': The Debut Performance of Chet Haze

Hamilton Nolan — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 11:38:37 EST

On this past Wednesday evening, the world witnessed something that it never had before: a live performance of the original hip hop music of CHET HAZE, Northwestern University's foremost MC whose father is one of the voices of a leading character in the beloved Toy Story franchise. More »

Celebukid College Joke Rap Genre Reaches Its Nadir With 'Pussy Breath'

Hamilton Nolan — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 12:57:16 EST

It's okay for college kids, or white kids, or even rich and famous kids to like rap; or even to rap themselves, if they happen to be blessed with that particular talent. But it's not okay for rich famous white college kids to butcher rap music, for laffs (on purpose, or unintentionally). Not any more, at least. Maybe it was funny the first time someone tried it, oh so many years ago? We doubt it. But maybe. Now, though... we present you with Pussy Breath. More »

Uzbekistan Scared of 'Satanic' Western Music

Jeff Neumann — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 06:30:22 EST

State-run television in Uzbekistan recently aired a documentary called "Melody and Calamity" to warn Uzbeks of the dangers of western rap and rock music, which are "approaching as dark clouds over the heads of Uzbek youth." One of the more interesting facts from the documentary states that "rap was originated by inmates in prisons, that's why rap singers wear wide and long trousers." The film also suggests that metal fans can be swayed by the soothing sound of classical Uzbek music. Makes sense! [AFP] More »

Former Music Executive Thinks the Grammys Really Suck

Brian Moylan — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 14:48:40 EST

Former music executive and current advertising guru Steve Stoute took a full-page ad out in the Sunday New York Times basically saying, "Yo, Grammys. I'm really happy for you. I'm gonna let you finish, but Eminem, Kanye West, and Justin Bieber had the best albums of all time." The sad thing is he's right. More »

The President of Uganda's Hot Rap Single

Max Read — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 01:10:00 EST

Who is the Chet Haze of Uganda? Possibly Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, who is considering releasing "quite a big album of the classics." A big rap album, he means! This may seem ambitious for a man who once said, "today these young people taught me about this 'rap'. I was not following what they were saying," but his single "You want another rap?" (listen above) has, according to Reuters, become a "smash hit," after a somewhat unorthodox recording process: More »

The Chet Hanks Mix Tape Is America's Valentine

Hamilton Nolan — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:28:07 EST

CHET HAZE, Northwestern University's most prominent aspiring West Coast rapper who is also a son of the star of the movie Castaway, has a Valentine's Day present for all of you motherfuckers: a mixtape, of Chet Haze songs. Yea, sorry. That's all. More »

Rapper Performs on an Airplane: A Cautionary Tale

Maureen O'Connor — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 15:06:33 EST

Grammy-nominated rapper B.o.B. performed his song "Airplanes" on a Delta airlines P.A. system. Now, cute as seeing this on Delta's official YouTube channel is, how annoying would it be to be forced to listen to B.o.B. warbling along to an MP3 of his own song, through a tinny airplane sound system? Can't we all just agree to sit in tense, angry silence when flying the friendly skies? More »

Rapper Juelz Santana Arrested for Weed, Guns

Jeff Neumann — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 06:05:29 EST

Rapper Juelz Santana was arrested Tuesday after police raided his New Jersey recording studio and found two loaded pistols and a bunch of "suspected marijuana" — all "within 1,000 feet of a school zone." Oops. More »