As the fiftieth anniversary of hip-hop comes to an in depth, the Recording Academy has one final trick up its sleeve to honor the pillars of the tradition.
The Academy joins forces with CBS for “A Grammy Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop,” an aural spectacular that’s as a lot an ode to the tradition as it’s a documentation of it. Throughout the two-hour particular (airing Sunday evening from 8:30-10:30 p.m. ET/PT, with stay and on-demand streaming on Paramount+), rappers and DJs from all walks of life come collectively to have fun what began within the Bronx within the Nineteen Seventies and unfold internationally, charting its influence by a powerful lineup of rappers, beatboxers, dancers, DJs and presenters.
The particular, filmed at Inglewood’s YouTube Theater on Nov, 8, contains a laundry record of performers spanning each a long time and areas. Just a sampling of the artists: Queen Latifah, Common, Public Enemy, Rakim, Doug E. Fresh, MC Lyte, Rick Ross, Jeezy, Jermaine Dupri, YG, Too Short, E-40, De La Soul, Akon, Black Thought, Nelly, Gunna and Chance the Rapper every take turns rocking the mic, dropping a verse or two throughout medley performances that convey the breadth in model and substance in rap music.
One of the extra notable moments comes on the finish, when Will Smith — aka the Fresh Prince — reunited with DJ Jazzy Jeff for a medley of each solo and collaborative hits. Questlove, greatest often called the drummer for the Roots, offers a glowing introduction to the pair, who had been the primary hip-hop act to obtain a Grammy award for hip-hop in 1989 with “Parents Just Don’t Understand.”
“In a year and a night full of hip-hop moments, this is a big one,” says Questlove. “I grew up idolizing these two from my hometown of Illadelpho. They were the first artist to ever receive a Grammy award for hip-hop. Back then, they weren’t invited to perform or accept their award on camera, which led to the hip-hop community sitting things out that year. But thankfully, a year later, their hip-hop invitation did show up and they did become the first hip-hop group to ever perform at the Grammy Awards. And tonight, as a fan, as a friend, from way back in Philly, let’s welcome to the Grammy stage, the incomparable, the amazing, the legendary, DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince!”
With Jazzy Jeff poised behind the turntables on an elevated podium, Smith kicks issues off with “Brand New Funk,” a reduce off their 1988 sophomore album “He’s the DJ, I’m the Rapper.” Decked in an all-red ensemble with a Philly’s cap to match, Smith offers a quick tour of his discography, flanked by backup dancers for “Gettin’ Jiggy With It” and “Miami.” As he performs, his spouse Jada Pinkett-Smith and youngsters Willow and Jaden watch from the viewers. It wouldn’t be a replete retrospective with no rendition of the theme track to his TV present “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” and the duo retains it temporary with a concluding efficiency of “Summertime,” their highest-charting single, which earned them their second Grammy in 1992 for greatest rap efficiency by a duo or group.
But the particular packs extra than simply its marquee finisher. Flowers are given to the early queens of hip-hop, who kick off the present with a who’s who of veterans and newcomers. Latifah, who seems quite a few occasions all through the published, joins Monie Love for his or her 1989 single “Ladies First.” What follows is one thing of a historical past lesson: Sha-Rock’s verse from Funky 4+1’s “That’s the Joint,” J.J. Fad’s “Supersonic,” Roxanne Shante’s “Roxanne’s Revenge” and MC Lyte’s “Cha Cha Cha.” They sprinkle a bit of extra fashionable fare into the combo, with Remy Ma ripping by “All the Way Up” and Latto delivering “Put It on Da Floor.” To the track title’s credit score, all of the rappers come out on the finish to be part of Latifah for “U.N.I.T.Y.,” an empowerment anthem addressing the inequity of and disrespect in the direction of ladies in on a regular basis society.
The consideration quickly turns to the south. “Fifty years ago, when hip-hop started, it was all about the East Coast and West Coast,” says presenter Chloe Bailey. “But then, the dirty South entered the chat.” Curated by Jermaine Dupri, whom Bailey referred to as “the forever mayor of the ATL,” the efficiency swings the highlight across the rappers who helped outline and propel Southern hip-hop into the mainstream. Jeezy, T.I. and Three 6 Mafia all run by verses from some of their largest hits, whereas UGK’s Bun B shout out the late Pimp C throughout “Int’l Players Anthem.” GloRilla and Boosie Badazz take part earlier than 2 Live Crew’s Uncle Luke shut it out with “Scarred” and “I Wanna Rock.”
Public Enemy has its personal second, deservedly so, with an introduction from host LL Cool J. The Grammy Lifetime Achievement nominees are joined by Questlove on the turntables throughout some of their largest hits, together with “Fight the Power,” “Bring the Noise” and “Don’t Believe the Hype.” Flavor Flav and Chuck D deliver the identical impassioned hearth that they’ve had since debuting within the mid-Nineteen Eighties.
The medleys carry on coming. Seth Rogen introduces a West Coast phase, which options essentially the most strong lineup of the night. With DJ Battlecat on the decks, Warren G kicks it off along with his traditional “Regulator” earlier than passing the mic to Luniz for “I Got 5 on It.” The hits parade on, with Lady of Rage, YG, Tyga, Rody Ricch, DJ Quik, Yo-Yo and Cypress Hill performing some of their largest songs. The medley ends within the Bay, with Too Short’s “Blow the Whistle” and E-40’s “Tell Me When to Go.”
The particular, which additionally options vignettes of Lin Manuel-Miranda and Jelly Roll speaking about after they first fell in love with hip-hop, pays homage to the Native Tongues, a free collective of artists within the Nineteen Eighties and ‘90s that leaned on progressive ideology and jazz-inflected beats. Against the backdrop of a library, the performers sit at tables awaiting their turn to take the lead. What follows is a highlight reel of the movement’s touchstones: Common’s “I Used to Love H.E.R.,” Arrested People’s “People Everyday,” Digable Planets’ “Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like That),” Black Sheep’s “The Choice Is Yours,” Talib Kweli’s “Get By,” Latifah’s “Wrath of My Madness,” the Pharcyde’s “Runnin’” and De La Soul’s (*50*) with Common.
Actress Regina Hall tees up a efficiency from Big Daddy Kane, Black Thought and Rakim, whereas Akon leads the cost for a global phase with renditions of “Locked Up” with Styles P and “Soul Survivor” with Jeezy. Blaqbonez makes an look midway by for “Like Ice Spice,” surrounded by dancers who dressed like Variety cowl star Spice with a pink afro, inexperienced tube prime and cutoff jean shorts, simply as she wears within the video for “Munch (Feelin’ U).”
Doug E. Fresh beatboxes his method by a celebration of the lives of those who hip-hop tradition has misplaced, naming DMX, Nipsey Hussle, Tupac Shakur, Mark the 45 King and De La Soul’s Trugoy the Dove. Machine Gun Kelly introduces the next slate of artists with a private anecdote. “The greatest thing to happen to me besides me becoming a father is hip-hop,” he says. “It was there for me when I was sad, when I was mad at the world, and most importantly, in the seventh grade when a girl decided to dance on me to ‘Hot in Herre’ by Nelly. Thank you. To me, hip-hop has always been the life of the party, and the party is just getting started.”
And the get together continues, with yet one more medley, this time led by 2 Chainz for “Birthday Song,” little doubt a reference to the anniversary at hand. Gunna, Coi Leroy, Nelly and Rick Ross share the stage earlier than Chance the Rapper brings again out 2 Chainz for the ebullient “No Problem,” with the aforementioned rappers reemerging on stage.
The evening ends on a optimistic be aware from Harvey Mason Jr., who seems to be again on the occasion to contextualize it within the framework of the tradition that introduced them right here. “Now it’s no coincidence that we’re all here at this time with so much stress and so much division and pain in the world, but this music is the antidote,” he says. “This music is the medicine. This music is the universal language that even the most divided of us can understand. But it also has the power to disrupt and change. It has the power to break through even the loudest noise and unify. And so let’s acknowledge that there is no music without hip-hop right now. The music business isn’t what it is without hip-hop. Tonight, we’ve celebrated, but more importantly, we’ve permanently cemented the legacy, the impact and the contributions of this music, of our music, to the culture and to the world forever.”
Discussion about this post