Hype man
A hype man in hip hop music and rapping is a “backup rapper/singer who is also responsible for increasing an audience's excitement with call-and-response chants”[1] according to The Hilltop and author Grant Barrett.[2]
Music writer Mickey Hess expands the term as follows: "a hype man is a figure who plays a central but supporting role within a group, making his or her own interventions, generally aimed at hyping up the crowd while also drawing attention to the words of the MC".[3]
Discussing the role of the hype man in the book How to Rap, Royce da 5'9" describes how a hype man can contribute to a live performance: "a lot of my verses be so constant with the flow [that] I'd need somebody to help me do the hype man thing - I got a good hype man, so it always works,"[4] and Lateef adds that a hype man is needed in order to perform certain words or phrases so that the main MC has time to catch his breath - "you're gonna have to have somebody say something somewhere to give you a breath... usually it's just a matter of getting somebody to hit some line or some word in a line - that's all you really need."[4]
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[edit] Origins
[edit] Pioneering hype men
Early hip hop hype men included Cowboy and Creole of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.[1][3] Kool Moe Dee calls Creole “the original hype man”.[5]
The book Icons of Hip Hop says Public Enemy's hype man Flavor Flav's "most significant impact on hip hop was undoubtedly his popularization of this role".[3] The Hilltop also notes, “Flavor Flav is credited with developing the humorous aspect of the hype man character”.[1]
Jay-Z began his career as a hype man for Jaz-O[6][7] and was later the hype man for Big Daddy Kane.[8] Tupac Shakur began his career as a hype man for Digital Underground.[9] Bryan Williams Jr.
[edit] Notable hype men
- Denaun Porter of D12, Eminem's current hype man
- Proof of D12 ("who played Eminem's onstage hype man for many of his world tours")[3]
- Freaky Tah of The Lost Boyz[3]
- Bushwick Bill of The Geto Boys[3]
- Memphis Bleek for Jay-Z[3]
- Spliff Star (Busta Rhymes' hype man)[1]
- Flula Borg
- Waka Flocka Flame for Gucci Mane
- TreeJay for Mac Miller
- 2 Bigg MC for MC Hammer
- Dap for Das Racist
Icons of Hip Hop also notes that some producers, such as Diddy, Lil Jon, Swizz Beatz, and Jermaine Dupri, "have transitioned from a hype man role to become rappers and stars in their own right".[3]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d "The Hilltop - The Role of The 'Hype Man' In Hip-Hop". Thehilltoponline.com. http://www.thehilltoponline.com/life-style/the-role-of-the-hype-man-in-hip-hop-1.464291. Retrieved 2010-08-12.
- ^ Barrett, Grant, 2006, The Official Dictionary of Unofficial English, McGraw-Hill Professional, p. 182.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Hess, Mickey, 2007, Icons of Hip Hop: An Encyclopedia of the Movement, Music, and Culture, Greenwood Publishing Group, p. 176.
- ^ a b Edwards, Paul, 2009, How to Rap: The Art & Science of the Hip-Hop MC, Chicago Review Press, p. 304.
- ^ "Kool Moe Dee". Thafoundation.com. http://www.thafoundation.com/moedee.htm. Retrieved 2010-08-12.
- ^ "Record Executives Thought Jay-Z Was No Good » MTV Newsroom". Newsroom.mtv.com. 2009-08-26. http://newsroom.mtv.com/2009/08/26/jay-z-record-executives/. Retrieved 2010-08-12.
- ^ Vibe magazine, Jan 2004, Vol. 12, No. 1, published by Vibe Media Group, p. 75.
- ^ Jonathan Cunningham (2007-03-15). "Kane's Domain - Page 1 - Music - Broward/Palm Beach - Broward-Palm Beach New Times". Broward/Palm Beach. http://www.browardpalmbeach.com/2007-03-15/music/kane-s-domain. Retrieved 2010-08-12.
- ^ Harris, Ashley Rae, 2010, Tupac Shakur: Multi-Platinum Rapper, ABDO Publishing Company, p. 35.
