As hip-hop’s 50th anniversary comes to a close, the Recording Academy has one last trick up its sleeve to honor the culture’s pillars.
The Academy joins forces with CBS for “A Grammy Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop,” an auditory spectacle that is as much an ode to the culture as it is a documentation of it. Over the course of the two-hour special (airing Sunday night from 8:30-10:30pm ET/PT, streaming live and on-demand on Paramount+), rappers and DJs from all walks of life come together to celebrate what started in Bronx in the 1970s and spread across the world, mapping its impact through a strong lineup of rappers, beatboxers, dancers, DJs and presenters.
The special, filmed at Inglewood’s YouTube Theater on November 8, features a long list of artists spanning decades and regions. 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 take turns at the microphone, delivering a verse or two during medley performances that convey rap music’s breadth of style and substance.
One of the most notable moments comes towards the end, when Will Smith – aka the Fresh Prince – reunites with DJ Jazzy Jeff for a medley of solo and collaborative hits. Questlove, best known as the drummer for the Roots, gives a brilliant introduction to the duo, who were the first hip-hop band to win a hip-hop Grammy Award in 1989 with “Parents Just Don’t Understand.”
“In a year and 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 receive a hip-hop Grammy Award. At that time, they were not invited to perform or receive their award on camera, which caused the hip-hop community to sit out that year. But luckily, a year later, the hip-hop call came and they became the first hip-hop group to perform at the Grammy Awards. And tonight, as a fan, as a friend, from Philadelphia, let’s welcome to the Grammy stage the incomparable, the incredible, the legendary DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince!”
With Jazzy Jeff positioned behind the turntables on a raised podium, Smith kicks things off with “Brand New Funk,” a cut from his 1988 sophomore album, “He’s the DJ, I’m the Rapper.” Dressed in an all-red ensemble and matching Philadelphia cap, Smith briefly tours his discography, accompanied by backup dancers on “Gettin’ Jiggy With It” and “Miami.” As he performs, his wife Jada Pinkett-Smith and children Willow and Jaden watch from the audience. It wouldn’t be a complete retrospective without a version of the theme song from their TV show “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” and the duo keep it brief with a final performance of “Summertime,” their most successful single, which earned them their second Grammy in 1992 for best rap performance by a duo or group.
But the special brings more than just its striking finish. Flowers are given to hip-hop’s first queens, who kick off the show with a who’s who of veterans and newcomers. Latifah, who appears numerous times during the broadcast, joins Monie Love on the 1989 single “Ladies First.” What follows is a history lesson of sorts: Sha-Rock’s verse from “That’s the Joint.” by Funky 4+1, “Supersonic” by JJ Fad, “Roxanne’s Revenge” by Roxanne Shante and “Cha Cha Cha” by MC Lyte. They add a little more modernity to the mix, with Remy Ma singing “All the Way Up” and Latto delivering “Put It on Da Floor.” To the credit of the song title, all of the rappers appear at the end to join Latifah on “UNITY,” an empowerment anthem that addresses inequality and disrespect for women in everyday society.
Attention soon turns to the south. “Fifty years ago, when hip-hop started, it was all about the East Coast and the West Coast,” says host Chloe Bailey. “But then the dirty South entered the conversation.” Curated by Jermaine Dupri, whom Bailey referred to as “the eternal mayor of ATL,” the performance shines a spotlight on the rappers who helped define and propel Southern hip-hop into the mainstream. Jeezy, TI and Three 6 Mafia recite lines from some of their biggest hits, while UGK’s Bun B shouts out the late Pimp C during “Int’l Players Anthem.” GloRilla and Boosie Badazz join in before 2 Live Crew’s Uncle Luke closes with “Scarred” and “I Wanna Rock.”
Public Enemy gets its own moment, deservedly so, with an introduction from host LL Cool J. The Grammy Lifetime Achievement nominees are joined by Questlove on the turntables during some of their biggest hits, including “Fight the Power,” “Bring the Noise” and “Don’t believe the hype.” Flavor Flav and Chuck D bring the same passionate fire they have since debuting in the mid-1980s.
The medleys keep coming. Seth Rogen hosts a West Coast segment, which features the night’s most robust programming. With DJ Battlecat on the decks, Warren G kicks things off with his classic “Regulator” before passing the mic to Luniz for “I Got 5 on It.” The hits continue, with Lady of Rage, YG, Tyga, Rody Ricch, DJ Quik, Yo-Yo and Cypress Hill singing some of their biggest songs. The medley ends in the bay, with “Blow the Whistle” by Too Short and “Tell Me When to Go” by E-40.
The special, which also features vignettes of Lin Manuel-Miranda and Jelly Roll talking about when they fell in love with hip-hop, pays homage to Native Tongues, a collective of artists from the 1980s and 1990s who leaned on progressivism. ideology and jazz-inflected beats. Against the backdrop of a library, the performers sit at tables waiting for their turn to take the lead. The following is a highlight of the movement’s milestones: “I Used to Love HER” by Common, “People Everyday” by Arrested People, “Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like That)” by Digable Planets, “The Choice Is Yours” by Black Sheep, “Get By” by Talib Kweli, “Wrath of My Madness” by Latifah, “Runnin’” by Pharcyde and “The Bizness” by De La Soul featuring Common.
Actress Regina Hall delivers a performance from Big Daddy Kane, Black Thought and Rakim, while Akon leads the international segment with renditions of “Locked Up” with Styles P and “Soul Survivor” with Jeezy. Blaqbonez appears midway through “Like Ice Spice,” surrounded by dancers dressed as Variety cover star Spice in a red afro, green top and cut-off denim shorts, just like she wears in the “Munch (Feelin’ U)” video.
Doug E. Fresh beatboxes in a celebration of the lives of those hip-hop culture has lost, naming De La Soul’s DMX, Nipsey Hussle, Tupac Shakur, Mark the 45 King and Trugoy the Dove. Machine Gun Kelly presents the following list of artists with a personal anecdote. “The best thing that happened to me, besides becoming a father, was hip-hop,” he says. “It was there for me when I was sad, when I was mad at the world, and most importantly, in seventh grade when a girl decided to dance with me to ‘Hot in Herre’ by Nelly. Thanks. For me, hip-hop has always been the life of the party, and the party is just beginning.”
And the party continues, with another medley, this time led by 2 Chainz for “Birthday Song”, undoubtedly a reference to the upcoming birthday. Gunna, Coi Leroy, Nelly and Rick Ross share the stage before Chance the Rapper brings back 2 Chainz for the effervescent “No Problem,” with the aforementioned rappers resurfacing on stage.
The night ends on a positive note from Harvey Mason Jr., who recalls the event to contextualize it within the framework of the culture that brought them here. “Now it’s no coincidence that we’re all here right now with so much stress and so much division and pain in the world, but this song is the antidote,” he says. “This song is the medicine. This music is the universal language that even the most divided among 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 recognize that there is no music without hip-hop at this point. The music world isn’t what it is without hip-hop. Tonight we celebrated, but more importantly, we permanently cemented the legacy, impact and contributions of this music, our music, to culture and the world forever.”
