The Mount Rushmore Of--Hip Hop

[mister_b1LL]

This is the 3rd installment in the Mount Rushmore Series.

One of the posters on my first thread (The Mount Rushmore Of-Music) claimed that it seemed much harder to choose without breaking up music into its seperate genres. So this installment is created to help with that.

If there was a Mount Rushmore dedicated to Hip Hop, who would be the 4 faces represented on it? Please keep in mind that if you are placing a group, represent it with only one member of the group.

This is mine:

In George Washington's spot: Joseph Simmons (Representing Run-D.M.C.)- Forgive me for this, but I'm gonna let Wikipedia do all the talking cause I've been typing all day: Run-D.M.C. was an influential hip hop group from Hollis, in the Queens borough of New York City. Founded by Joseph "DJ Run" Simmons, Darryl "D.M.C." McDaniels, and Jason "Jam-Master Jay" Mizell, the group is arguably one of the most influential acts in the history of hip hop. They were the biggest act in hip-hop throughout the 1980s and are credited with breaking hip hop into mainstream music. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked them number 48 in their list of the greatest musical artists of all time. In 2007, the trio was named Greatest Hip Hop Group of All Time by MTV.com. They were also named Greatest Hip Hop Artist of All Time by VH1. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 4, 2009, the second hip-hop group to be inducted.

In Thomas Jefferson's spot: Jay-Z. Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), better known by his stage name, Jay-Z, is an American hip hop artist and businessman. He is the former CEO of Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records. He co-owns The 40/40 Club and the New Jersey Nets. He is one of the most financially successful hip hop artists and entrepreneurs in America, having sold over 26 million units in the United States and receiving several Grammy Awards for his musical work.

In Teddy Roosevelt's spot: Dr. Dre-Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, and actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records, also having produced albums for and overseeing the careers of many rappers signed to those record labels, such as Snoop Dogg and Eminem. As a producer he is credited as a key figure in the popularization of West Coast G-funk, a style of rap music characterized as synthesizer-based with slow, heavy beats.

In Abraham Lincoln's spot (and I might get bashed for this): Eminem-Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known by his primary stage name Eminem, or by his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer and actor who has sold over 75 million albums worldwide. Eminem quickly gained popularity in 1999 with his major-label debut album The Slim Shady LP, which won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. The following album, The Marshall Mathers LP, became the fastest-selling hip hop album in history. It brought Eminem increased popularity, including his own record label, Shady Records, and brought his group project D12 to mainstream recognition. The Marshall Mathers LP and his third album, The Eminem Show, also won Grammy Awards, and in 2002, he won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for a song in the film 8 Mile, in which he also played the lead. Eminem then went on hiatus after touring in 2005. He released his first album since 2004, Relapse, on May 15, 2009. Eminem had sold more than 77+ million albums worldwide and is the best selling music act of the decade.
(NOTE: I would have put Eminem in Roosevelt's spot because he's newer, but just like Lincoln, his coming to the rap game was a very groundbreaking moment in the young genre's history.)

So those are my choices. Again, I apologize for using Wiki to explain myself. But what are your choices for The Mount Rushmore Of Hip-Hop?

 

[IrishCanadian25]

I am actualy thrilled to be the first one to post in this thread. I don't pretend to know the world about Hip-Hop and Rap, but I can hold my own. Plus, I'd really like to see what guys like Ty Burna and others think of my choices.

Indy wrestling fans call Steve Corino "The King of Old School." Well, in hip-hop terms, Grandmaster Flash was Old School before there even was an old school. Words like cutting, backspinning, and phasing exist only because Flash made it so. There's a damn good reason Flash and the Furious Five were the first rap group inducted into the rock and roll Hall of Fame, which Run DMC now also enjoys.

In addition to basically prototyping rap and hip hop for years to come with record scratching sounds and other techniques, Flash and his team also became the first artists referred to as "MC's." Furious Five member Keith Wiggins is also often credited with inventing the term "Hip Hop."

The best part of Public Enemy and Chuck D's music was, simply put, their cultural relevance to Urban America. Chuck D, along with flamboyant sidekick Flava Flav, picked up the black community and spat the lyrics right at them in an almost inciteful and revolutionary manner.

Albums such as "It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back," and "Fear of a Black Planet," along with tracks like "Bring the Noise," and "Rebel Without a Pause" marked some of the most socially critical music ever released in the main stream, through label Def Jam records. Chuck D remains a noted lecturer and scholar on the plight of the African American and Native African people in North America and Europe.

Dubbed "The CEO of Hip Hop," Russel Simmons was the rap industry's first true Entrepreneur, long before Sean Combs or Jay-Z. Not only did Simmons co-found Def Jam records, which was the major launching pad of rap and hip hop music, but he also was among the first to market hip hop fashion in the main stream, with the creation of the Sean John line.

Though his brother, Joseph Simmons (Run of Run DMC) is the more noted artist, it can certainly be argued that without Russel creating the medium through which rap and hip-hop would be distributed, we would not look upon Run DMC or any rap group with the reverence or respect we do today.

Unlike many other of the hip-hop entrepreneurs, Simmons maintains a very substantive political lifestyle, opting to become vegan 11 years ago for health and animal rights reasons. Simmons' charitable contributions are extremely noteworthy.

Tempting though it may be to place Eminem up here for his controversy and for breaking down an unexpected color barrier by being possibly the greatest white rapper of all time, Tupac's talent and mark on the industry is indisputable. Shakur was one of the originators of gangsta rap, taking the political and social relevance of Public Enemy and adding conflict, sexuality, and a borderline glorification of the violent lifestyle.

Shakur was a convicted sex offender and one of the men at the epicentre of the East Coast / West Coast rap conflict. His mother was a Black Panther, which helped shape his political outlooks on race and class systems. For all you John Cena fans out there, Shakur is often associated with the start of the "Thug Life" movement in rap, viewing more as a philosophy.

Shakur has dated Madonna, been to jail multiple times, be shot multiple times, and died a victim of the violence he often depicted in his raps. With his bail once set by Suge Knight, Tupac started releasing music on Death Row Records, and then started the famed feud with B.I.G. It is said that after dying, Shakur was creamated and a portion of his ashes were mixed with pot and smoked by his friends.


Honorable Mention: Dr. Dre, Eminem, B.I.G., Joseph Simmons, Snoop Dogg, Jay-Z, Sean Combs, Suge Knight, David Hobbs, Wonder Mike.

 

[Ty Burna]

Alright let me throw my 2 cents and a nickel into this discussion. This is in no particular order just to let you know.

Eazy E

Eazy-E? Really? It's very simple let me explain. Without Eazy E, most of the popular gangsta rappers from the 90's, at least from the west coast and Midwest is concerned, wouldn't have ever made it, or at least as big as they did. It's sort of like that seven degrees game, you can take angles all back to Eazy. Let me show you:

Eazy started the group NWA, consisting of members Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, MC Ren, and DJ Yella. Now Ice Cube went off and did his own thing after a contract dispute, but without Eazy starting NWA, I don't think Cube would have ever made it big as a solo artist. It was because of his affiliation with NWA that made him popular to begin with. He also started the Westside Connection, and has done countless movies now.

Now take a look at Dr. Dre. Without Eazy, Dre would have still been dressing up in tight leather and make up on and never would have become the world class producer that he is today. Eazy gave Dre that launching pad in NWA to the success he has now. But look at it now, without Eazy there's no Dre, without Dre there's no Death Row Records, there's no Snoop Dogg, no Warren G, no Nate Dogg, no Kurupt, no Tupac as the inspiring artist, later on there's no Eminem, which means no 50 Cent or G-Unit, no D12, no Obie Trice, and also there would be no Game without Dre amongst countless other artists he has influenced. Without Eazy we would never have Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, so the Midwest fast flowing style would never got popular, so no Twista, and other Midwest groups as well.

This could go on and on, but when you get down to it, Eazy was the one that started all this shit. He wasn't the best rapper, but he was the business man that put gangsta rap on the map, and started it for everyone else. Without Eazy's influence, hip hop would have never reached the heights that it has.

Tupac Shakur

Well what else needs to be said about 2pac, some consider him the greatest rapper to have ever lived, while others saw him more as a walking controversy. Whatever your thoughts on 2pac, he also had the spotlight, and the rhymes and the emotion he put into his music, can never be topped. Now some may say that he gets this spot because of this death, I happen to disagree. Even before he died he was rising up the ranks as one of the best to ever throw fire on the mic.

He was complex, and even though he lived the Thug Life, he also was very adamant about children going and receiving an education, and doing something positive with their lives. He looked up to leaders like Malcolm X, and Dr. King, and in many songs he tried to spread a similar message to his fans, that life is good, always keep ya head up, and never give up. He is an inspiration, to me at least, so he deserves this spot, no matter what anyone says.

DJ Kool Herc

DJ Kool Herc, he is known to have begun the breakout of hip hop revolution down in the Bronx. While he is not credited for creating hip hop, he was the man that got it all started. He did however originate the scratching technique used today, and was influential in the break dancing aspect of hip hop. I would consider him a founding father of hip hop, as he helped perfect and revolutionize the DJ, as well as doing some MC work as well. He's a legend in the Bronx, and because of the music that he revolutionized, he actually helped bring the crime rates down in his neighborhood, and began the essential block party aspect that hip hop started on.

Grandmaster Flash

If DJ Kool Herc was the innovator of the DJ booth, Grandmaster Flash was the perfector of the art. Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five were the first hip hop artists to ever be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. To me Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five was the first hip hop act to start spreading the music that I have come to love, to the masses. The ironic thing is back then when Grandmaster Flash was spreading music in the late 70's and early 80's, it was all about the DJ, and not so much the MC, even if they have great MC's such as Melle Mel, and Raheim rockin the mic. Compared to today's hip hop, where the DJ is typically just a background person, the MC is the one that does all the work. Isn't it strange that we've come full circle?

To conclude, it all started with DJ Kool Merc, it was built up by Grandmaster Flash, Eazy kicked off the gangsta rap boom, which lead to one of the greatest rappers ever in 2pac. Hope y'all like the list.