Rappers Don't Dance...Anymore...

Kane, Scoob & Scrap, Heav & The Boyz, Chubb Rock and Hot Dog, remember when it was cool to know how to shake your ass? Not this forced, "how to" finger snapping, let's name a dance after food or a cartoon character garbage but that good old Kid n' Play kind of kick step shit. Call me nostalgic but damn, it seems like everything was better back then when dudes were worried about mackin' chicks and looking cool doing it than how many bodies they caught. Then again rappers don't dance anymore.


I remember back in high school when me and my boys would watch Video Music Box and try to catch all the steps and learn them before we went to the clubs or parties. From Redhead Kingpin's leg catching trick to anyone of MC Serch's nonsensical moves, we wanted to do that. We never thought dancing was corny or soft (...OK, Kid n' Play would present a strong argument to the contrary but y'all all loved House Party! DON'T FRONT!). LL danced in Jingling Baby and even when Kane did Arsenio Hall, we knew when he finished rhyming, he was gonna get busy with moves...and he did and everyone talked about it the next day.

I think dancing got a bad rap when everyone and their mother wanted to be Nino Brown . Gangsta-ism pretty much put a stranglehold on the creativity and originality in Hip-Hop. Like I said before, it even had Cool J talking about "puttin slugs in domes". Dudes even stopped smiling unless they had a woman's ass in their face. One interview in particular always stuck in my mind: Fat Joe was asked about Hammer during his Pumps And A Bump phase and he said: "He all dancing around in a bathing suit, with a waterfall and girls, THAT'S NOT Hip-Hop." Fast forward to the last six years and any Terror Squad video and you can see the silly posturing and hypocrisy behind that.

All I'm saying is: It's ENTERTAINMENT, man! Entertain me. I don't care how many of your childhood friends you can fit on stage with white towels in their hand ice-grillin', do something! And not these cats who make songs about dancing. That's gimmicky and all they talk about is how to do the dance. Unless you're gonna actually start shooting people in your videos, smile a little. Move a little. If you really got skills, no one will think you're a cornball. Look at the "Hip-Hop honors" from last year, Common was break dancing and Kane did his thing. IT WAS THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE WHOLE DAMN SHOW! 'NUFF SAID!

Ahhhh, I'm taking it back to the early 90's. Older heads watch these vids and remember how good it was.