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 is partnering with CBS for “A Grammy Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop,” an audio extravaganza that is both an ode to the culture and a documentation of it. During the two-hour special (airing Sunday nights from 8:30-10:30 p.m. ET/PT, with live and on-demand streaming on Paramount+), rappers and DJs from all walks of life come together to celebrate what follows Bronx began in the 1970s and spread across the world, making its impact through a strong lineup of rappers, beatboxers, dancers, DJs and emcees.
The special, filmed Nov. 8 at the YouTube Theater in Inglewood, features a long list of artists from both decades and regions. Just a selection of 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 rocking the mic and dropping a verse or two in medley performances that convey the range of style and content in rap music.
One of the more notable moments comes at 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 Roots' drummer, makes “Parents Just Don't Understand,” an enthusiastic introduction to the pair, who in 1989 became the first hip-hop act to win a hip-hop Grammy.
“In a year and a night full of hip-hop moments, this is a big one,” says Questlove. “I grew up with these two from my hometown of Illadelpho and idolized them. You were the first artist to ever win a Grammy for hip-hop. At the time, they were not invited to appear on camera or accept their award, leading to the hip-hop community holding out that year. But luckily, their hip-hop invitation showed up a year later and they became the first hip-hop group to ever perform at the Grammy Awards. And tonight, as a fan, as a friend from back in Philadelphia, we welcome to the Grammy stage the incomparable, the amazing, the legendary, DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince!”
As Jazzy Jeff stands on a raised podium behind the turntables, Smith launches into “Brand New Funk,” a cut from her second album, 1988's “He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper.” Smith wears an all-red ensemble and a matching Philly's hat and gives a brief tour of his discography, accompanied by backup dancers for “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 comprehensive retrospective without a rendition of the theme song to his TV show “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” and the duo keeps it short with a closing performance of “Summertime,” their highest-charting single. which earned them their second Grammy in 1992 for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group.
But the special model offers more than just its great finish. Flowers are presented to hip-hop's early queens, who open the show with a who's who of veterans and newcomers. Latifah, who appears several times throughout the show, accompanies Monie Love on her 1989 single “Ladies First.” What follows is something of a history lesson: Sha-Rock's verse from Funky 4+1's “That's the Joint.” , “Supersonic” by JJ Fad, “Roxanne's Revenge” by Roxanne Shante and “Cha Cha Cha” by MC Lyte. They sprinkle some more modern fare into the mix, with Remy Ma performing “All the Way Up” and Latto delivering “Put It on Da Floor.” Living up to the song title, all the rappers come out at the end to join Latifah for “UNITY,” an empowerment anthem that addresses the inequality and disrespect towards women in everyday society.
Attention soon turns south. “Fifty years ago, when hip-hop started, it was all about the East Coast and West Coast,” says host Chloe Bailey. “But then the dirty south came into the chat.” Curated by Jermaine Dupri, whom Bailey described as “the eternal mayor of ATL,” the performance shines a spotlight on the rappers who helped define and inhabit Southern hip hop to bring it mainstream. Jeezy, TI and Three 6 Mafia each run through verses from some of their biggest hits, while UGK's Bun B shouts out the late Pimp C on “Int'l Players Anthem.” GloRilla and Boosie Badazz join in before Uncle Luke from 2 Live Crew closes out with “Scarred” and “I Wanna Rock.”
Public Enemy rightly has its own moment with an introduction from host LL Cool J. The Grammy Lifetime Achievement nominees are joined by Questlove at the turntables for 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 had since their debut in the mid-1980s.
The medleys keep coming. Seth Rogen introduces a West Coast leg that features the strongest lineup of the night. With DJ Battlecat on the decks, Warren G launches into his classic “Regulator” before passing the mic to Luniz for “I Got 5 on It.” The hits keep coming: Lady of Rage, YG, Tyga, Rody Ricch, DJ Quik, Yo-Yo and Cypress Hill play 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 discussing how they first fell in love with hip-hop, pays homage to the Native Tongues, a loose artist collective in the 1980s and 1990s, which focused on progressive ideology and jazz-influenced beats. Against the backdrop of a library, the actors sit at tables and wait their turn to take the lead. What follows is a highlight reel of the movement's touchstones: Common's “I Used to Love HER,” Arrested People's “People Everyday,” Digable Planets' “Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like That),” 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 with Common.
Actress Regina Hall brings in performances from Big Daddy Kane, Black Thought and Rakim, while Akon leads an 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 like Variety cover star Spice, with a red afro, green tube top and cut-off jean shorts, just like she did in the video for “Munch (Feelin' U.)“ wears ).“
Doug E. Fresh beatboxes to celebrate the lives of those lost to hip-hop culture, mentioning DMX, Nipsey Hussle, Tupac Shakur, Mark the 45 King and De La Soul's Trugoy the Dove. Machine Gun Kelly introduces the following artist list with a personal anecdote. “The greatest thing that has happened to me besides fatherhood is hip-hop,” he says. “It was there for me when I was sad, when I was angry at the world, and especially in seventh grade when a girl decided to dance on me to “Hot in Herre” by Nelly. Thank you very much. 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,” no doubt a nod to the upcoming anniversary. Gunna, Coi Leroy, Nelly and Rick Ross share the stage before Chance the Rapper brings 2 Chainz back for the exuberant “No Problem” and the aforementioned rappers return to the stage.
The evening ends on a positive note from Harvey Mason Jr., who looks back on the event to contextualize it within the context of the culture that brought them here. “It's no coincidence that we're all living with so much stress and so much division and pain in the world at this time, but this music is the antidote,” he says. “This music is 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 transform. It has the power to cut through and unite even the loudest noise. And so let's acknowledge that there is currently no music without hip-hop. The music business 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.”