For one night only, MTV2 is bringing back “Yo! MTV Raps!,” the show that turned on a generation of MTV viewers to a mysterious new musical form called hip-hop.
The show, which originally aired from August 1988 through 1995, helped bring once little-known acts like Ice-T, N.W.A., A Tribe Called Quest and Public Enemy to households across America as hip-hop exploded in popularity. The return comes after the revival of such MTV shows as “Beavis and Butt-head” and “120 Minutes.”
The show will return as a 30-minute retrospective called “Yo! MTV Raps Classic Cuts,” and will on MTV2 immediately after the first-ever “Sucker Free Awards” on Sunday, Dec. 4.
The awards will air at 11 p.m., followed by the “Yo!” special at midnight. The special will feature the artists behind three hip-hop classics: A Tribe Called Quest’s “Scenario,” Geto Boys’ “My Mind’s Playing Tricks on Me,” and Ice Cube’s “It Was a Good Day.” (“Good Day” just happens to mention “Yo! MTV Raps” by name.)
The special will feature former hosts Fab 5 Freddy, Ed Lover and Dr. Dre, and hip-hop stars from the past and present. They include A Tribe Called Quest’s Q-Tip, Geto Boys’ Scarface, and Ice Cube, in addition to well Wiz Khalifa, DJ Khaled, Questlove, Busta Rhymes, Mac Miller, Machine Gun Kelly, Young Jeezy, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Phife, Fat Joe, Common, Mike Epps, Ice T, Meek Mill, Tyga, and Naughty By Nature.
DJ Premier will remix the iconic “Yo! MTV Raps” theme song for the special.
“It’s a great moment to be re-connected with Yo! and examine the music that had a role in introducing hip-hop to music lovers globally,” Ed Lover said. “By looking back at these classic songs in hip-hop it becomes clear that hip-hop would inevitably transcend distance and generations.”
“In this Classic Cuts special, people will go back to a seminal time in hip-hop which many have called the ‘Golden Era’ – resulting in records that are as meaningful today as they were back then,” said Fab 5 Freddy, the original host of the show. “In order to appreciate how far hip-hop has come, you have to pay respect to the songs and artists that helped catapult the genre from a small community of fans to world domination.”
WE HAVE TO STOP GIVING A FUCKKKK! WHAT MTV DOES!
They don’t control hip-hop WE do…fuck em!
Wiz Khalifa, Mac Miller, Machine Gun Kelly, Young Jeezy, Meek Mill, Tyga???? what a disgrace and fuck MTV.
“In order to appreciate how far hip-hop has come, you have to pay respect to the songs and artists that helped catapult the genre from a small community of fans to world domination.”
world domination….hahahahahahahha…..silence….hahahahahahaha…
where are the black eye peas then ? they are the world domination.
vive la Résistance !!!!!
My take, bring the show back with those same elements as then. Showcase the underground hip hop movement going on NOW! As Fakemcsniper posted with those names mentioned, I don’t think so! Make the show make a contrast between hip hop now & then. The hip hop now has its own element on tv & radio. Yo MTV Raps needs to be solely for the “golden era” that is STILL GOING ON! Big names across seas, things Premo, Pete Rock, Large Pro, Show, Diamond, Buckwild, Kev Brown, 9th Wonder, & many others are doing presently in hip hop need to be brought out to show the REAL foundation of hip hop that is still being preserved! There needs to be a balance in hip hop right now. This would be an outlet to do it! This would bring the golden era back into the forefront!
MTV was all about money…judy mccgrath, redstone, all can eat a fucking dick.
They used hip hop in its infancy when it had to, then when puffy, jay-z grew large they didn’t need hip hop..the payola got larger..hip hop artists couldn’t compete…thats why PETE ROCK AND CL’S main ingredient and INI’s record didn’t get radio play…because Sylvia Rhone couldn’t put up the payola for clear channel…same with gangstarr and virgin records after the producer fuckhead from matchbox 20 took over Atlantic.
Now the industry is crumbling AND MTV IS RUNNING BACK TO HISTORY AS THOUGH IT ACTUALLY GAVE A FUCK!! PLEASE GET THE FUCCCKKKK OUT OF HERE!..
Don’t get me twisted though! I agree with what you other poster’s are saying about MTV cause they basically USED hip hop for their benefit. I guess I’m caught up about just getting the hip hop WE love back into the mainstream to suck up all this BS we see & hear that’s out now. My previous post was pretty much wishful thinking, but if someone would come up with a current show such as Yo Raps, it would be dope!