VH1's 5th annual Hip Hop Honors went down Oct. 2nd at Hammerstein Ballroom in NYC, celebrating the music of Cypress Hill, Naughty By Nature, Too Short, Slick Rick and De La Soul. I was all amped to go, but then as the night drew closer, I realized ... I would miss the Biden-Palin debate!!! Not only that, I started recalling the hot ghetto mess that precedes going to the Hip Hop Honors _ long lines, surly security guards, and crazy crowds. By the time I got to my seat, I was pretty annoyed, and ready to bounce.
But the great thing about the show is that it reminds you of everything you love about hip-hop _ how you grooved to Slick Rick in high school, partied with De La Soul's "Buddy" in college, identified with Cypress Hill when they talked about how they could "Just Kill a Man," and felt a surge of pride for the hip-hop nation every time "Hip Hop Hooray" came on. (I can't really say anything remotely positive about any Too $hort song, so I'm gonna just shut my mouth on that one). The show was amazing, as usual, with the surprise highlight being a tribute to Isaac Hayes, who was one of the more sampled musicians in hip-hop. When Chuck D and Flavor Flav came out and performed "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos," I knew I had made the right decision to stay _ after all, you can catch Palin-Biden on YouTube, but you can't capture the magic that is classic hip-hop in a live setting (though VH1 will try _ the show airs a few times this month).
The show was great, and the afterparty at Opera continued the fun, with Q-Tip on the turntables. We saw Melle Mel, Luke, Kid Rock, Joy Bryant, Biz Markie, De La Soul, and Isaac Hayes son in the mix. Check out the pics!
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