Episode 60

full
Published on:

27th Mar 2024

The far-reaching impact of Run-DMC on Hip Hop and pop culture (Kings from Queens: The Run-DMC Story)

Today on Hip Hop Movie Club: Kings from Queens: The Run-DMC Story. A new 3-part documentary series on Peacock chronicling the rise and dominance of the Hip Hop powerhouse that we know and love as Run-DMC. We see the origin story, the apex, the struggles, and the undeniable legacy left by this dynamic trio.  

Topics discussed:

  • This documentary shows why Run-DMC is most responsible for introducing hip-hop to the entire world. 
  • The late Jam Master Jay is responsible for the image and the fashion of the group. 
  • DMC battled and overcame personal demons along the journey of being a star. 
  • Run-DMC revived the Adidas brand of footwear and apparel, as well as the career of the rock group Aerosmith. 
  • Run-DMC inspired the likes of Ice Cube, Eminem, LL Cool J, Chuck D, and the Beastie Boys. 

Also check out:

Run-DMC's performance of "King of Rock" at Live Aid

"Whose house? Run's House! from Dogma

A Conversation with Chuck D, April 16 at Northampton Community College.

Credits

Hip Hop Movie Club is produced by your HHMCs JB, BooGie, and DynoWright. Theme music by BooGie. Follow @hiphopmovieclub on Instagram!

Keep up with all things Hip Hop Movie Club with our newsletter. Subscribe today!

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Don't hate...captivate!

Transcript
Speaker:

Welcome to Hip Hop Movie Club, the show

that harmonizes the rhythm of hip hop with

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the magic of movies.

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Today, we're discussing Kings from Queens,

the newly released three -part documentary

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series about the legendary hip hop trio

Run-DMC.

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We're three old heads who put their old

heads together to vibe on these films for

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you.

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I'm Dyno Wright, podcaster, filmmaker,

longtime hip hop fan, and I saw Run-DMC

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with Aerosmith in September of 2002, the

month before Jam Master Jay was killed.

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I'm JB, 80s and 90s nostalgia junkie, long

time hip hop fan, and two years ago, a

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friend of mine who goes by the name of

Dyno Wright asked me and BooGie to join

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his crew.

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HHMC was born just for you.

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So we say the things we're about to say,

the words are def and they go this way.

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Yes!

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we go.

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I'm BooGie, a DJ, long time hip hop fan

and the song that got me hooked on hip hop

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is Sucker MC's by Run-DMC.

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Yes.

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When did I fall in love with hip hop?

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When I heard this song.

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In this episode, we'll answer the

question, how far reaching was Run-DMC's

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impact on hip hop and pop culture?

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And we'll give you five key takeaways to

make you a smarter hip hop movie fan.

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Kings from Queens is a 2024 three -part

documentary series chronicling the rise

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and dominance of the hip hop powerhouse

that we know and love as Run-DMC.

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We see the origin story, the apex, the

struggles, and the undeniable legacy left

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by this dynamic trio.

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This documentary shows why Run-DMC is the

most responsible for introducing hip hop

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to the entire world.

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The late Jam Master Jay is responsible for

the image and the fashion of the group.

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DMC battled and overcame personal demons

along the journey of being a star.

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Run-DMC revived the Adidas brand of

footwear and apparel, as well as the

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career of the rock group Aerosmith.

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And Run-DMC inspired the likes of Ice

Cube, Eminem, LL Cool J, Chuck D, the

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Beastie Boys, and many more.

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All right, let's get right into it.

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Mentioned the takeaways and let's start

with the first takeaway about the

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documentary showing how Run-DMC was most

responsible for introducing hip hop to the

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entire world.

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These were the first rock stars of rap,

the first rap group on MTV, and they

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changed the entire sound of music and hip

hop.

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BooGie, what do you have about, you know,

the powerhouse?

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that Run-DMC was and their international

influence.

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Yeah, so Run-DMC, they grew to prominence

pretty quickly because they look just like

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the guys in the neighborhood.

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I mean, they dress like them, they walk

and spoke just like them.

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Before them, hip hop groups, they wore

costumes.

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You think of Afrika Bambataa and the Zulu

Nation, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious

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Five, those artists, they wore costumes.

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When Run-DMC came to perform, you see them

playing a tracksuit, hat.

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you know, sneakers with the shoelaces out,

looking like everyone around the way.

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So when they started gaining local speed,

you know, their songs were, it became such

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a, so in demand that everybody wanted to

hear them, see who these guys were.

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Like you mentioned, JB, you know, they

went on MTV, they started doing tours.

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One of the big doors that are open for

them was performing at Live Aid.

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And, you know, just that alone put them in

front of the world.

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And then from there, you know, they just

became such an in -demand artists.

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You know, people wanted them on film.

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So we have Krush Groove coming around.

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And then after that, they became

recognizable to the point where they

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couldn't go anywhere without people

knowing who they were.

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They just, you know, they had the

charisma, the style, the flash, the flair,

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but they were just like everyday guys from

around the way, you know?

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So that was probably the biggest thing

that hooked everyone was that, you know,

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anybody can be Run-DMC.

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Like you could look at them and you

would...

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see some of the characteristics or the

movements or the mannerisms within them

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that remind you of somebody that lives on

your block.

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True, relatable.

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DynoWright, what do you have?

Yeah, I'd forgotten that Run-DMC was the

only rap group at Live Aid.

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40 years later, all we hear about really

is Phil Collins doing both shows in London

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and Philly and Freddie Mercury.

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But yeah, Run-DMC was there too.

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Yeah, I had forgotten as well.

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It wasn't really highlighted back then.

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the one reason that I'll always remember

them performing at Live Aid is because

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they mentioned it in My Adidas.

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Yeah, yeah, you know, stepped on the stage

at Live Aid, all the people who gave and

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the poor got paid.

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I'm like, that always sat in the back of

my head.

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So I'll always remember them performing

here.

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But yeah, like you said, it's not really

talked about a lot.

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Yeah.

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you see in this interview, the interviews

really struck me because, and I think it

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was a lot of these British interviews for

some reason, they showed where these guys

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were saying, so what are you guys doing

after this?

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Like this hip hop is a fad.

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Like, what will you guys be doing in two

years?

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Was literally what they said.

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So these guys were like, well, we'll be

doing this, you know, they fought for the

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legitimacy of hip hop.

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They paved the way for so many and they

were loud and bold and courageous.

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I think one of the quotes was like, loud,

courageous pioneers.

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And that's exactly what they were.

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They just stood in the face of any type of

criticism.

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You had folks in R &B and you know,

because they don't really use instruments,

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you know, traditional instruments.

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And so people just pooh -poohed them.

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They're like, you guys aren't real

artists.

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like would you ask the singer if he's

gonna be singing in two years?

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So why would you ask us that same, ask us

that question?

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Yeah.

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were calling it a fad.

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It's crazy.

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Yeah, like most marketing companies at

some point, they got to consider like

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tapping into hip hop in some way, shape or

form to get their point across.

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It's everywhere.

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You know, it's so embedded in our global

existence that they don't even think about

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it.

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They think, oh yeah, you know, we're just

going to do this and that.

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But we know that's hip hop.

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They're just thinking that it's something

everyday life.

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It's everyday life because hip hop is so

ingrained in everyday life now.

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life.

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I think that theme comes up so many in so

many of our episodes is the ubiquity of

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hip hop.

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It's everywhere.

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I think I must have said this on other

episodes, but like you can't put on TV and

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network TV for more than like a few

minutes without seeing some form of hip

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hop, whether it's on a sitcom, on a

commercial, on a sporting event, inside a

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sporting event as they go to commercial,

you know, it's just everywhere.

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It's so beloved.

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These guys were there in the early days,

fighting for legitmacy.

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Yeah.

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they toured, so they introduced it to the

entire world.

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Other folks have toured but

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didn't have the type of impact.

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as much as Run-DMC did.

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Right.

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So BooGie, you hit a little bit on the

image and the fashion of the group because

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they look like the everyday person in

urban centers where these guys are from

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Hollis Queens.

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So in what we learned in the documentary,

this is the second takeaway is that the

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late Jam Master Jay was the one

responsible for that image and the fashion

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of the group.

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He brought that style.

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Do you want to speak a little bit more

about that?

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So yeah, as the group's songs got bigger,

there became a desire for them to be

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performing these songs live.

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So now they need a DJ.

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So they're looking in the neighborhood for

DJs.

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And there was another guy, Darnell Smith,

who's a local DJ.

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He was actually a friend of Jay's, but

there's a story about he got a job at a

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post office.

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He said that he never got a job at a post

office.

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He just got a job in another state, but he

wasn't available.

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So, you know, they bring in Jam Master Jay

and Max.

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Jay who was actually had street

credibility in the neighborhood to be the

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DJ.

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And I know they said they get to their

first show and you know, Jam Master Jay

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pulls up.

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He's got the black Adidas tracksuit on

with the, you know, with the white stripes

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down the side, his Godfather hat, you

know, Adidas with no shoestrings in them.

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And everybody just kind of looked at him

like, yeah, I think, yeah, yeah, that's

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what we're going to do.

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And then from that point on, they think...

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that's what they dressed like.

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They all imitated, you know, whatever Jay

was, you know, his image or whatever he

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thought was cool.

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That's what they wore.

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And it was funny how in the documentary it

shows how they used to dress before and

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had the plaid blazers on.

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They had the plaid blazers.

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I'm like, whoa.

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Thank God for Jam Master Jay, man.

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working at McDowell's.

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-

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They created the b-boy look.

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If you look up b-boy, that's b -boy style.

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This is what it is.

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It's tracksuits.

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It's Adidas with no laces.

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It's funny because I remember as a

youngster, like I had cousins that were

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much older than I was and they wore Adidas

tracksuits.

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So the good thing about being the youngest

one is when they outgrew it.

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So I had the black one with the red

stripes down the side.

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I had another one that was like color

blocked with stripes down the side.

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I was like, yes.

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Couldn't tell me nothing.

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And this was before sneaker culture hit

its peak.

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These were affordable shoes, which was

good.

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People could afford them and they could

dress like Run-DMC.

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else to add about

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the image, the fashion brought in by Jam

Master Jay.

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Only to talk about, just so people know

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A lot of stuff about his murder and the

resolution of the legal process came out

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A lot of stuff about his murder and the

resolution of the legal process came out

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after this was released.

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So if you're looking for a deep dive into

motives and what happened with the murder

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of Jam Master Jay, this isn't the place to

go.

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But this still is good for seeing how

their style evolved and was really...

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you know, taking on a rocket ship when Jay

joined the band or joined the group.

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Yeah, there's mention of his passing and

the mourning and that's really the

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dissolution of the group.

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Like that was pretty much it.

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They stopped touring, Run, went full time

into being a reverend.

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He was already, you know, he had already

become a Reverend and a Rev Run, but it's

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kind of like they didn't really produce

more music.

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They have since kind of reunited for the 50 year hip hop

tours, which we'll talk about a little bit.

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It was like, we're the three of us.

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This is, you know, this is not the same.

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Jam Master Jay was irreplaceable.

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Literally.

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They couldn’t bring in another DJ to replace

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him.

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So the next topic, you know, takeaway is

DMC, Darryl McDaniels.

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It really showcased or highlighted how he

battled and overcame personal demons along

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the journey of becoming a megastar.

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BooGie, you want to talk a little about

that?

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so DMC was known for having that powerful,

booming voice that commanded the stage

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when he rhymed.

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But originally, DMC didn't want to

perform.

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He wanted to just write.

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At first, he just had a book of rhymes

that he would just write because that was

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his outlet.

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He didn't have a therapist or a counselor

or anybody like that that he spoke.

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So anytime he wanted to express himself,

he wrote it in his book.

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Of course, you know, Run in his

charismatic ways, find out that D had this

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gift of gab when it comes to rhyming and

convinced him to tag along down to the

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studio.

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And you know, subsequently convinced him

to start rhyming And once everybody heard

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him, they were like, yo, this guy's

serious.

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We need him.

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Yes, this is what's gonna work.

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So then they start touring and everything.

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And you know, DMC, he almost has to put on

a persona.

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every time he goes out on stage to

perform, you know, he'd rather, you know,

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write rhymes and read comic books and

things like that, you know, typical quote

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unquote nerd stuff, rather than be out on

stage performing.

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And then when it got down to recording, he

said, you know what, I don't mind

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recording, but I don't want to perform.

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But as he goes through these motions, he

has to figure out ways to cope with what

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he's feeling.

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And it all starts to come to a head as

he's getting older and realizing that, you

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know,

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This is something that's not gonna last

forever, but I wanna figure out what to do

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with my life.

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And then unfortunately, Jam Master Jay is

murdered and it really takes him, he takes

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it really hard.

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He becomes alcoholic and suicidal, things

like that.

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And not really sure how to cope with

himself.

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But he starts to realize that, I know I

skipped the part too, is when he was going

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on tour, he would take on a persona of

different comic book characters to get

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through his performances.

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So now at this point in his life, he's

trying to figure out how to deal with

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himself.

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And he's thinking about, there's several

instances where he thinks about taking his

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own life.

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And he comes out of an airport at one

point and he...

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in a cab ride from the airport and the guy

driving the cab recognizes him and says,

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hey, you know, you got me through this,

you got me through that, your rhymes were

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brought me through when I was having a

really hard time in life.

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And he said, can I just have an autograph?

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And he said, yeah, sure.

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He gives him an autograph.

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He said, I could take a picture with you

too.

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And the guy said, hey, do you mind if I

put on the radio?

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And he puts on a radio

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yeah, so he puts on a radio and the song

comes on that changes his life and makes

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him reconsider, you know, those thoughts

that he's having and, you know, he decides

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that he wants to fight.

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And then he puts on the fight and he just

starts revitalizing himself and moving

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forward.

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nothing else, watch this documentary to

find out what song saved his life.

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What unlikely song and artist saved his

life.

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Now a great breakdown there BooGie.

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DMC definitely was the most introspective

of the crew and he battled the bouts of

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depression on and off.

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You said Run had his family life early on,

he was always going back home to be with

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his family and Jam Master Jay was always

out and about socializing, he was kind of

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life of the party.

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Whereas DMC, Darryl McDaniels was kind of

like a bit of a loner.

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He was a rocker but he was very

introspective like I said.

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So he kind of was like left to his own.

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And it took a toll on him putting on that

face.

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And again, I thought it was cool that he

was inspired by the Marvel superheroes.

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And that was back before this whole MCU

and the mega films, Disney and everything

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like that.

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He was down with Marvel.

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It was kind of cool.

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saw a DMC at the airport once.

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This was a few years ago and he was by

himself.

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So like you said about being a loner, like

he was by himself in the airport.

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No one was bothering him, which was kind

of cool.

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Like if he had come to my terminal or my

gate, I would have had to talk to him.

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But like, yeah, he's walking around like a

normal guy, dressed like a normal guy.

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Yeah, it really is him.

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They do show in the documentary that he does get married and I think he has a child.

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So he kind of has that family bond to help

steer him a little bit more.

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But, you know, in the throes of it, he

didn't, you know, he had difficulties, you

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know, like you said, up to the level of

being suicidal, unfortunately.

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at one point he says he wants to, you

know, he creates the comic book and that's

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when his son realized that, oh, dad's a

nerd.

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He's doing the Comic Cons and stuff.

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Wait a minute, I didn't know that.

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Yeah.

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to the beginning documentary of the

childhood, like they grew up in Hollis,

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Queens, and there was crime, you know,

throughout the neighborhood, and he would

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just take refuge in his room and just read

those comic books.

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And that was his outlet.

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And then he said writing became his

outlet.

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And then, you know, he was forced to front

the crew a lot and get out there.

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I just think it's kind of cool though,

because I think when I was growing up, I

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read a lot of comic books too.

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And I used to draw characters and make up

my own characters and things like that.

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So I kind of embraced a lot of what he was

talking about, you know, between, you

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know, drawing the characters and then

subsequently, like I used to do a lot of

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my graffiti and stuff like that.

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But then I found my way to the turntables,

being at my friend's dad down the street.

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And that became my other outlet.

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So it's a clean line.

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That's pretty much the outlet that I use

now.

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Most of the time I rarely draw now.

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But I don't get away from music.

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I don't get too far away from the music.

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But it was cool how he was talking about

the complex.

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And now when you mention this whole MCU

thing, it's like...

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Mind -blowing like, man.

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I couldn't imagine having that as a kid

These kids are lucky You know, I gotta

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jump up and down and like a big kid

jumping up and down.

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They can jump up and down to be a kid

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Yeah, we can relate to the, you know, if

you guys haven't noticed, if you're

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listening, we're kind of nerds, you know,

it was like, we're doing deep dives on

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these things.

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We talked about MCU a little bit in the

past, you know, we did a Spider -Verse

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episode, Transformers, and stuff like

that.

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So yeah, DMC's our guy.

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So another takeaway was

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Run-DMC as a crew, they revived

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the Adidas brand of footwear and apparel.

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Which was really a kind of a low point

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and like for them

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putting them on the map by wearing

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their stuff

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And even doing the song

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called “My Adidas”

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They also revived the career of

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the rock group Aerosmith.

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I mean, Aerosmith was a classic rock

group, you know, popular like in the

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seventies and had a couple of hits here and

there, but they were dormant for quite a

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while.

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And then with that collaboration, with “Walk This Way” - Boom!

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You guys want to talk a little bit more about

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how they did both things.

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Yeah so, I mean, the Adidas, you know, takeaway

was kind of cool because like they weren't

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even setting out to get any kind of

endorsement or deals or anything like

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that.

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that's just what they wore.

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It's like, you know, hey, everybody in the

neighborhood wears their affordable

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sneakers.

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They look cool.

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Everybody wears them.

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So, you know, when they wanted to, you

know, when they embraced the style of

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wearing the track jackets and the track

suits and things like that to go with

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them, that's just what they did.

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And, you know, it was funny because Lyor

Cohen, who now, like most people in hip

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hop know that name, Lyor Cohen.

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I didn't even realize that he started off

as their road manager.

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I was like, wow, that's Lyor Cohen, the

Lyor Cohen.

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It's like, wow.

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:

But he was honest.

362

:

He said, you know, the Adidas deal would

have happened with or without him being

363

:

involved, which was actually, you know,

big of him to say that because you think

364

:

about it, yeah, somebody would have been

like, would have caught wind of it.

365

:

But it just happened.

366

:

He was in the right place at the right

time.

367

:

And he contacted some execs over at Adidas

and said, hey, you know,

368

:

come to this concert down in Madison

Square Garden, I want to show you guys

369

:

something.

370

:

I don't even think he hinted at what they

were going to see, but you know, Run is on

371

:

stage and he just holds up a pair, holds

up one sneaker and he's like, yo, you

372

:

know, everybody in the crowd, you know, do

the same thing.

373

:

And then all you see is a bunch of hands

go with a Adidas sneaker in their hand.

374

:

And before they got off the stage, you

know, it kind of solidified that they were

375

:

making an impact on the sales for Adidas.

376

:

And

377

:

Lyor negotiated the million dollar

contract deal with Adidas.

378

:

And I remember when that happened too,

because they had commercials, billboards,

379

:

posters everywhere.

380

:

I remember they had like the limited

edition Adidas with Run-DMC on one of the

381

:

sneakers.

382

:

The Adidas Forums was, you couldn't buy

those sneakers anywhere.

383

:

You couldn't find them anywhere.

384

:

They were selling out everywhere.

385

:

The Superstars were selling out.

386

:

The Classic Shell Toes were selling out.

387

:

Like...

388

:

they would come in and gone quick.

389

:

I mean, if you had a small foot, you could

probably find them with a guy like me with

390

:

a big foot, couldn't find them.

391

:

I don't even think, I think I had a couple

pairs of Forums but when I was younger, I

392

:

never had a pair of like, I had a pair of

some Stan Smiths, but I never had the

393

:

shell toes.

394

:

I couldn't find them.

395

:

You never get them.

396

:

I could get them now, but couldn't get

them back then.

397

:

Yeah.

398

:

DynoWright, anything to add about the

Adidas connection.

399

:

BooGie covered it quite excellently.

400

:

the challenge, I think.

401

:

Yeah.

402

:

I mean, there was one scene that we talked

about before, before we were recording.

403

:

There was that former executive from

Adidas who was tearful and like so, so

404

:

thankful and, and, uh, grateful for what

Run-DMC did for their brand.

405

:

I think he mentioned that they were kind

of struggling.

406

:

And then when, when they had the song and

everything, like their sales just rocketed

407

:

up and what a boon for the brand.

408

:

I believe what the deal was

409

:

that they gave them

410

:

a million dollars

411

:

and

412

:

anything that they wanted.

413

:

It's like, all right, $1 million and like

whatever shoes you want because they were

414

:

just raking in the dough with all the, it

was free endorsement up until that point.

415

:

And then they had the deal.

416

:

So that was incredible.

417

:

Just an incredible marriage of the brand.

418

:

And then, you know, maybe that's.

419

:

That's kind of responsible for maybe the

sneaker culture and hip hop being tied

420

:

together for.

421

:

Yeah.

422

:

to this day.

423

:

Jordans and Nike and whatever brands that

people want and then you got you know

424

:

hip hop stars having their own lines and

etc of shoes, sneakers.

425

:

Yeah.

426

:

Jay-Z had his S. Carters with Reebok.

427

:

Kanye recently up to fairly recently, you

know, just had his own line with Adidas,

428

:

you know?

429

:

Yeah.

430

:

all paved the way by Run-DMC.

431

:

Travis Scott has some Nike variants that

comes out every so often.

432

:

Those things sell out like hotcakes.

433

:

If you don't put your order in within like

they'll release them at 10 o 'clock by

434

:

like 10:01, if you haven't put your sale

through, you're not getting them.

435

:

You're in line, you're in a digital line

and you won't get them unless you buy, get

436

:

them on resale.

437

:

Right.

438

:

So I want to talk a little bit more about

Run-DMC's connection with Aerosmith, their

439

:

impact on Aerosmith's career.

440

:

So when they collaborated with Walk This

Way in the mid 80s, like that really put

441

:

Aerosmith back on the map.

442

:

A lot of, nobody in our generation had

known who Steven Tyler was probably.

443

:

Unless you're a rock guy, but, but like

Aerosmith could have easily gone the way

444

:

of like

445

:

Super Tramp or Grand Funk Railroad is

like, all right, there's a group there, or

446

:

Kansas or something like that.

447

:

They're a group, they had a couple hits

and then I'll go back and listen to them.

448

:

But after that, Aerosmith's like a hot

commodity.

449

:

And then they were soaring through the

charts through the 90s, mega hits.

450

:

I was just joking that without Run-DMC,

there's probably no rock and roller

451

:

coaster in Disney World.

452

:

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

453

:

You don’t see Steven Tyler and their crew on the

Polar Express and stuff like that.

454

:

Like these guys are like up there in the

upper echelon of rock groups.

455

:

And I really think that, and Ad Rock from

Beastie Boys in an interview mentioned

456

:

that, like they saved Aerosmith's career.

457

:

They put them back on the map.

458

:

And like they, yeah.

459

:

Put it in perspective, Walk This Way, the original came out in

:

460

:

And so 11 years later, Run-DMC uses it for

their version and just brings them back

461

:

and then Aerosmith's next

462

:

album goes like multi -platinum.

463

:

And so yeah, thanks to hip hop.

464

:

Rock gets a new life.

465

:

Yeah.

466

:

When they were talking about how they

wanted to do Walk This Way, Rick, the genius

467

:

Rick Rubin had, um, you know, I think they

were going to do a totally different

468

:

version, version of it and, and, and whole

different lyrics.

469

:

And then Rick Rubin is like, if you listen

to the way that Aerosmith did it back in

470

:

‘75, it has a hip hop adjacent flow.

471

:

Like it's fast, it rhymes and it can work.

472

:

Just put the beats in and, and dub it that

way and make it your own in a hip hop.

473

:

format and it was brilliant.

474

:

Yeah.

475

:

A direct cover of the song, not even a

remake or not even an interpretation.

476

:

It's like a direct cover.

477

:

That was genius.

478

:

I remember when I first heard the song, it

took me years before I realized that that

479

:

wasn't even their lyrics.

480

:

As a kid, I always thought that that was

their lyrics.

481

:

And then I got older, I was like, wait a

minute.

482

:

And I heard the original, I'm like, wait a

minute.

483

:

Run-DMC was just saying the same stuff

that they said the whole time.

484

:

It was like my mind just went.

485

:

And he filled the room and I was like

done.

486

:

I couldn't believe it.

487

:

I mean, think about it, Aerosmith was

ahead of their time because yeah, it's

488

:

kind of rap adjacent Like, hey, diddle

diddle, kitty in the middle, and like, it

489

:

just don't care.

490

:

You know, so it's like, all right.

491

:

That totally lends itself to hip hop.

492

:

Yeah, definitely.

493

:

Mega hit, mega hit.

494

:

And I liked the video too, where they're,

cause it's a meshing of the two genre.

495

:

It's kind of like, Run-DMC is working in

their little studio and then Steven Tyler

496

:

and crew are working theirs.

497

:

And it's like, they're pounding on the

wall, like, hey, and all of a sudden it

498

:

just breaks through and it's like, all

right, let's do this.

499

:

All right.

500

:

All right.

501

:

That Rock and Roller Coaster is a fun ride too.

502

:

ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

503

:

That’s the one that goes like 0 to 60, whatever, in like no

time and you're upside down.

504

:

Yeah.

505

:

Oh, yeah.

506

:

That's...

507

:

I've rode that in the very front and in

very back.

508

:

my family loves that one too.

509

:

Um, awesome.

510

:

One other takeaway that we wanted to talk

about, you know, the way that Run-DMC

511

:

One other takeaway that we wanted to talk

about, you know, the way that Run-DMC

512

:

inspired so many other hip hop artists.

513

:

You see Ice Cube, Eminem, LL Cool J, Chuck

D, obviously the Beastie Boys.

514

:

You can see the admiration.

515

:

Um, you want to talk a little bit about

that BooGie?

516

:

How we see the influence.

517

:

I mean, like you look at guys like Ice

Cube and Eminem, just talking about the

518

:

I mean, like you look at guys like Ice

Cube and Eminem, just talking about the

519

:

very first record, the very first time

they listened to a Run-DMC record, LL Cool

520

:

J signing with Def Jam and being taken

under Russell's wing and almost having a

521

:

J signing with Def Jam and being taken

under Russell's wing and almost having a

522

:

bit of a sibling rivalry with Run-DMC.

523

:

Like they pushed one another, like, cause

they looked at LL, it was like, yo, he's

524

:

the...

525

:

You know, they said they would always

tease Run and say, yo, L's coming for your

526

:

crown.

527

:

He's coming for your crown.

528

:

He's coming for your crown.

529

:

And that will push Run harder.

530

:

But at the same time, LL Cool J is not

having the same obstacles to deal with as

531

:

Run-DMC did.

532

:

So he has more of a cleaner lane, but he's

trying to aspire to be like them because

533

:

he sees all of the success and the

accolades that they're achieving.

534

:

So he wants to be like them, you know?

535

:

And then you look at, I mean, same thing

with the Beastie Boys.

536

:

And there was a joke that said,

537

:

the Beastie Boys or what would happen to

Run-DMC if they were white.

538

:

And they had a great camaraderie as well.

539

:

They were going on tours together.

540

:

And I'm sure there's so many stories that

they can't even talk about of the antics

541

:

that went on tours with those guys.

542

:

And then Chuck D's retrospective on being

a...

543

:

up in Adelphi University working at the

radio station.

544

:

And the very first time he received that

white label Sucker MCs record and he

545

:

listened to it.

546

:

He said, oh man, we got to throw this on.

547

:

And at a time where, and he put it on at a

time where a lot of radio stations were

548

:

not playing hip hop at all, you know, and

they definitely weren't playing Sucker MCs

549

:

because Sucker MCs as Russell Simmons, you

know, relayed.

550

:

That song was for the streets.

551

:

That was for the locals.

552

:

That was for the hood.

553

:

That wasn't even supposed to be the hit.

554

:

You know, that was just something that was

raw that they wanted to put out for the

555

:

people in the neighborhood to listen to.

556

:

But when Chuck D heard it, you know, he

put it on his radio show and it just kept

557

:

playing.

558

:

And then, you know, everybody's playing

the song over and over again.

559

:

But you could definitely see in all of

these legends in the game, you know, Ice

560

:

Cube, Eminem, LL Cool J, Chuck D.

561

:

the Beastie Boys, et cetera.

562

:

They're all legends.

563

:

And again, even they had Salt from Salt

and Pepa talked a bit, you know, one of

564

:

the great, you know, lyrics, female

lyricists, lyricists period, but

565

:

definitely one of the biggest hip hop

female artists of all time.

566

:

And they all, you can see the deep

admiration that all of them had for

567

:

Run-DMC and how Run-DMC kicked down doors,

knocked down walls.

568

:

Run-DMC and how Run-DMC kicked down doors,

knocked down walls.

569

:

and made a way, paved a way for them to

become the artists that they were and how

570

:

they all would listen to the songs as they

were writing their own and have that

571

:

admiration, hey, listen, they're making it

big, I wanna make it like them.

572

:

So we're gonna write harder, we're gonna

work harder, we're gonna aspire harder to

573

:

be like them.

574

:

Definitely.

575

:

DynoWright, anything to add on that?

576

:

Yeah, you can tell just how influential

they are when you have all of these stars

577

:

appear in the documentary and just talk

about the profound impact they had.

578

:

It wasn't just these rappers, it's also

Tom Morello from Rage Against the Machine

579

:

and not just other rappers, but other

musicians too.

580

:

Right.

581

:

They were bold.

582

:

I mean, that's one of the biggest

adjectives that I took away.

583

:

It's like they were just so bold,

courageous and the content too was fun.

584

:

And I think that we should touch on this a

little bit too is that they're, they were

585

:

not about any negativity whatsoever.

586

:

They were about having a good time and

partying and talking about the person–...

587

:

They revealed some of their personalities

and what happened though, like where they

588

:

kind of lost some steam, so to speak.

589

:

was like in the late eighties, whereas the

rise of the West Coast gangster rap and

590

:

was like in the late eighties, whereas the

rise of the West Coast gangster rap and

591

:

NWA becomes popular.

592

:

And these are more or less hip hop with a

message, a political message or social

593

:

message.

594

:

And the young urban youth were listening

to that and even suburban youth, you know,

595

:

listened to this and they fell in love

with it.

596

:

listened to this and they fell in love

with it.

597

:

And now they wanted something with a more

deeper meaning.

598

:

And so Run-DMC wasn't really about that.

599

:

So they kind of lost some popularity, lost

some steam.

600

:

And there was that one scene where,

remember when they went out to the West

601

:

coast and there was a guy, he was from the

Crips, I guess, right?

602

:

Riding up on the bike, because he was

wearing the blue.

603

:

And he yeah, yeah, it's going down

tonight, it's going down tonight.

604

:

And DMC was like, yeah, we're going to

rock the show.

605

:

He had no idea that there was going to be

some act of violence or some craziness,

606

:

right?

607

:

And...

608

:

threw them for loop and then there was

violence in the crowd.

609

:

Brawls. Yeah.

610

:

But it was still a bad smear.

611

:

And then Run-DMC had to deal with a lot of

negative press because of that and they

612

:

had nothing at all to do with it.

613

:

And that was, I think that kind of, you

know, left a sour taste in a lot of

614

:

people's mouth about hip hop in general.

615

:

And then Run-DMC was kind of...

616

:

had a stain on them in terms of like, are

they promoting violence or like, you know,

617

:

associated with it, you know, guilty by

association.

618

:

Yeah.

619

:

was an early clip from, I know there was a

clip in there from with Jam Master Jay

620

:

talking and he said, hey, listen, like we

realized that we have an influence on

621

:

people.

622

:

So while we have this platform and this

voice, we wanna be positive.

623

:

We wanna spread positivity.

624

:

We wanna be good role models for the kids.

625

:

And they always strive for that.

626

:

which was cool.

627

:

I always thought that was cool to them

that they weren't really talking about,

628

:

you know, shooting people and robbing

people and things like that.

629

:

They just kind of rhymed, hey, I'm the

best there is.

630

:

And if that's what it is, you know, so be

it, you know, their rhymes were always

631

:

focused on their rap lyricism and how

great they were as an MC, not, you know,

632

:

necessarily taking anyone out.

633

:

Yeah, I don't think there's any type of

diss tracks or anything in their history

634

:

that I can think of.

635

:

Oh yeah, there's the other, when they were

trying to do that whole new jack swing

636

:

thing too, but we don't talk about that.

637

:

So they experiment with that.

638

:

Was that before Pete Rock got engaged with

them, involved with them?

639

:

And yeah, so they do really thank Pete

Rock for reviving their career after they

640

:

hit that downturn when they came out with

Down with the King, which was...

641

:

Down with the King is just a great song.

642

:

It uses the Sucker MC refrain a little

bit, you know, and it evokes that and it

643

:

works so well.

644

:

Yeah.

645

:

that became a smash hit, put them back on

the map and everybody, if you loved that,

646

:

allowed them to tour the world again.

647

:

Like that was like a second life for them.

648

:

there was that Down with the King and then

Run's House.

649

:

Woof.

650

:

They're back.

651

:

Yeah.

652

:

for sure.

653

:

So I think, you know, we were

talking about this as a crew here.

654

:

It's so hard to narrow down to like our

favorite songs.

655

:

And we'll kick it to you, Dyno Wright,

first here.

656

:

What would you say are your five favorite

Run-DMC songs of all time?

657

:

Boy, this is so tough.

658

:

This is so tough.

659

:

But I've settled on Sucker MC's, My

Adidas, King of Rock, Me Myself on My

660

:

But I've settled on Sucker MC's, My

Adidas, King of Rock, Me Myself on My

661

:

Microphone, which they did with Living

Colour for the Judgement Night soundtrack,

662

:

and Walk This Way.

663

:

Man, it was hard to make that list.

664

:

You leave out such good ones, too.

665

:

I couldn't do it.

666

:

I tried, I tried.

667

:

Like it was funny because my initial list

was Sucker MCs, Rock Box, Beats to Rhymes,

668

:

King of Rock, Peter Piper.

669

:

They were like, wait a minute, My Adidas

isn't on there.

670

:

Mary Mary's not on there.

671

:

Here We Go's not on there.

672

:

Run's House not on there.

673

:

I was like oh my God, I can't do it.

674

:

it's tough.

675

:

It's like...

676

:

I couldn't do it.

677

:

favorite children.

678

:

We love them all, so.

679

:

If I had to go top five, I go with Peter

Piper, King of Rock, Rock Box, Down with

680

:

the King, and You Be Illin'.

681

:

And just because it's so hilarious, like I

used to sing that all the time.

682

:

I had to be like fifth, sixth grade or

something like that.

683

:

Me and my friends, we would just sing it

because it was so goofy.

684

:

It was so funny.

685

:

But again, I'm leaving off Sucker MCs.

686

:

Like how can I leave off sucker MCs?

687

:

How can I leave off, you know, I left off

Walk This Way and I just think it was

688

:

because it was played so much that it's,

you know, I become a little bit

689

:

desensitized to the greatness of it.

690

:

This documentary really reminded me just

how good Sucker MCs was and you know when

691

:

they play it and you hear how DMC's flow

goes with the beat it's like wow it's so

692

:

good it's so powerful.

693

:

This is the song that got me hooked, man.

694

:

I remember it.

695

:

Like, man.

696

:

Because I got to tell people all the time,

like, the songs before it, like, you know,

697

:

Newcleus, Jam On It and, you know,

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five,

698

:

and, you know, and Afrika Bambaataa and the

Zulu Nation.

699

:

And even, you know, Sugarhill Gang, you

know, all of those songs had that disco

700

:

type flow to it.

701

:

It was like a sample of a song or a sample

of a disco song or was disco adjacent.

702

:

And here comes this boom, cat, cat, cat,

cat, cat, cat, cat, cat, cat, cat, cat,

703

:

cat, cat, cat, cat,

704

:

What is that song? What is that?

705

:

Everybody went nuts.

706

:

The whole ‘hood went nuts around here.

707

:

Unbelievable, like we were

708

:

on the bus, trying to figure out what they were saying, and

709

:

see who could come up with the rest of the

rhyme until we could finally get the first

710

:

verse.

711

:

And it was like a big success story when

everybody finally was able to say the

712

:

first verse in unison.

713

:

Like the whole bus was rocking.

714

:

Yeah, man.

715

:

And Run and DMC, like they still have it.

716

:

Like I was fortunate to see them perform

at the Rock the Bells Festival last summer

717

:

in August.

718

:

Man, oh man, they put on a show and they

are still like in perfect harmony with

719

:

each other, picking up where each other

left off.

720

:

And they have the energy.

721

:

And I'm like, man, they did a great set.

722

:

All as many of the classics as they could

fit.

723

:

And...

724

:

Man, it was great to see them live.

725

:

I think Jam Master Jay's son may have been

out there as well, like helping.

726

:

I don't know if he was actually DJing, but

he was part of the crew.

727

:

Yeah, it's just legendary stuff.

728

:

Mm -hmm.

729

:

I can't say enough great things about the

group and the documentary is amazing.

730

:

Like I said, you have to see this for all

the reasons we mentioned here.

731

:

Absolutely.

732

:

Any other parting words on kings from

queens?

733

:

Just be careful how you Google it.

734

:

You might end up with Kevin James coming

up and Leah Remini.

735

:

Kings from Queens, not Kings of Queens.

736

:

Yeah.

737

:

It's like, what's that documentary again?

738

:

Kings of Queens?

739

:

No, no, no.

740

:

That was taken.

741

:

Yep.

742

:

was one thing that the very, it was almost

at the very end where Rev.

743

:

Run is going, you know, he’s sitting in the car,

he's talking about how he'd go out to the

744

:

beach every day.

745

:

And he said there was one quote regarding

Jam Master Jay.

746

:

He said like, all fairy tales end, you'll

see Jay again, my friend.

747

:

And I was like, huh, yeah.

That was deep.

748

:

It was, yeah.

749

:

Yeah.

750

:

You can see how Run, Joseph Simmons was

leaning more towards a pious life when

751

:

he...

752

:

and in Down with the King when he has a

line of the G-O-D be in me then the king I

753

:

be.

754

:

And he's kind of ...

755

:

that kind of like stuck with him.

756

:

He's like, yeah, you know, I want to have

that type of impact on people and that

757

:

connection with the higher authority.

758

:

Yeah, he's been, he was, he's always been

hinting at it his whole life.

759

:

Even if you look at, you know, we were

gonna talk about, you know, Krush Groove

760

:

is, and Krush Groove's father was in the

church and the minister in the church.

761

:

And, you know, I don't think it was his

father.

762

:

I didn't realize the actual minister.

763

:

I'm not sure, but that was actually his

dad that played him in the movie.

764

:

Funny.

765

:

But yeah, he's always kind of walked that

line of like, I, you know, am I gonna do

766

:

it?

767

:

Am I not gonna?

768

:

So when he did it, it wasn't.

769

:

Like nobody was really surprised, you

know?

770

:

Did you guys watch any of his reality

show?

771

:

I didn't really catch much of it.

772

:

Mm-hmm.

773

:

I didn’t.

774

:

Yeah.

775

:

Or was it called Run's House?

776

:

Or...

777

:

Run's House, yeah.

778

:

House.

779

:

There's a great reference to Run's House

in Dogma with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck.

780

:

It sticks with me still.

781

:

Definitely a good one.

782

:

Definitely a good one.

783

:

Yeah, it's one you can rewatch too.

784

:

This is on the Peacock network or Peacock

streaming service.

785

:

Do we want to bring this funky flick back?

786

:

We don't even need to.

787

:

Yeah.

788

:

-brainer.

789

:

Yeah.

790

:

that's a no-brainer right here.

791

:

If you can't figure out that we're

bringing this funky flick back then.

792

:

Hahaha!

793

:

Yeah, you weren't listening.

794

:

yeah, exactly.

795

:

Yeah.

796

:

Sharpen your comprehension skills a little

bit.

797

:

you had any doubt, you'd be illin'.

798

:

You'd be illin', man.

799

:

Hip Hop Movie Club is produced by your

HHMC's JB, BooGie and DynoWright.

800

:

Theme music by BooGie.

801

:

Come on out to A Conversation with Chuck D

th,:

802

:

of the Bethlehem campus of Northampton

Community College.

803

:

Our man DJ ARM 18, Andrew McIntosh will be

in conversation with the legend himself.

804

:

We'll be there.

805

:

Come out and hang with us.

806

:

Get your free tickets for A Conversation

with Chuck D.

807

:

at Northampton .edu.

808

:

And whether you're listening to the

podcast or watching us on YouTube, we

809

:

appreciate you.

810

:

Thanks for tuning in.

811

:

And remember, don't hate, captivate.

812

:

Ooooo

813

:

Just like Run DMC did.

814

:

Captivate the world.

815

:

Absolutely.

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About the Podcast

Hip Hop Movie Club
Harmonizing the rhythm of hip hop with the magic of movies
Upcoming Hip Hop Movie Club events:

Feb 5 - Breakin' screening
https://www.steelstacks.org/event/16710/breakin/

HHMC is brought to you by a trio of longtime hip hop fans: JB, an 80s and 90s nostalgia junkie, BooGie, a veteran DJ and graffiti artist, and DynoWright, podcaster and filmmaker.

Buy some merch: https://meteorwright.one/shop

More events to be announced! Subscribe to our newsletter and get updated on events: https://hiphopmovieclub.substack.com/