Many rappers back in the day criticized MC Hammer, or as he was later known Hammer, for his use of samples and his simplistic lyrics, but he never pretended to be anything but a Poppy rapper in the first place. “Too Legit To Quit”, was a shout-out to all those rappers who dissed him and told them to back off, because he is just too damn legit.
Nowadays, old pop songs are dusted off and sampled all over the place. Jay Z sampled a freaking Annie song and he was praised for his originality. Ok, Jay Z is an awesome lyricist and the song kicks ass, so that helps too. But I can’t think of one rapper that hasn’t made use of his All-Time Favorite Hits CD to support his rhymes. I’d like to think that MC Hammer opened the door to all those rappers who strive for pop greatness for them. Since the early nineties hip hop in general has gotten a broader audience and now that the emphasis has gone more and more on album sales, you can flip over backwards if you have to to make people run to the stores or even add a loud hot chick to your repertoire (I’m looking at you Black Eyed Peas).
If I was gonna say anything about MC Hammer it’d be about all the darn synchronized dancing in either tight clothes or zoot suits three times his size. At one point in the video he’s getting his groove on in a fiery arena in a skin tight black leotard. Now, that’s not right.
No comments
Comments feed for this article