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Eric B and Rakim jacked the whole record a couple years later, right? Outside the Lines With Rap Genius (Ft. Dante Ross & SameOldShawn) – Dante Ross Excerpt #1: Uptown's "Dope on Plastic"
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Ross is likely referring to “Don’t Sweat The Technique”, which uses the same “Give It Up” drum loop as “Dope on Plastic”

X-Clan, on the other hand, went nuts with the “Dope On Plastic” instrumental for their DJ cut/Blackwatch manifesto “Shaft’s Big Score”

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Ladies and gentleman
We got MC Shan and Marley Marl in the house tonight
They just came from off tour
They wanna tell you a little story about where they come from MC Shan – The Bridge
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This is Marley Marl imitating the intro from “Impeach The President” by The Honey Drippers. Marley chopped up the “Impeach” drums to make this beat, inventing a technique that became a staple of Hip Hop production.

The original intro is:

Ladies and gentlemen
We have The Honey Drippers in the house tonight
They just got back from Washington DC
I think they got something they want to say

The “Impeach” kick and snare were Marley’s go-to drums for a while. He reused them on “Eric B Is President” and “Make The Music With Your Mouth”. It’s also rumoured that BDP used them for “The Bridge Is Over” after finding Marley’s tape reel in the studio.

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gay
6 years

not be gay

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Into danger zone, he should arrange his own
Face it, it's basic, erase it, change your tone Eric B. & Rakim – Follow the Leader
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This is a continuation of the EPMD rebuttal, implying that their flows are monotonous and lack dynamism. Ra turns E-Double’s lyrics from “It’s My Thing” back on the group:

I’m dangerous, I need a cross and bones
Lounge homeboy you in the danger zone

It’s also worth mentioning these lines' similarity to Big Daddy Kane’s lyrics in “Set It Off”:

Save the bass for the pipe and rearrange your tone
Or take a loss and be forced in the danger zone

Some of Ra’s rhymes were misconstrued as jabs at Kane – including these.

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40a55d39776602e603835719bf21df68

1,627

4 years

Notice the three multisyllabic near-rhymes, “danger zone”, “arrange his own”, and “change your tone” and the Face it/basic pair.

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The rap soloist, you don't want none of this Big Daddy Kane – Set it Off
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This simple braggadocio line kicked off a subliminal war of words between Kane and his main rival at the time, Rakim. Kane was calling himself a rap soloist and warning the competition, but the line could also be read as a warning to a particular rap soloist.

Rakim – who declared himself the soloist on “Eric B Is President” and “I Know You Got Soul” – assumed the latter. His next album contained lines seemingly aimed at Kane and his fast rap style, like this from “Follow The Leader”:

No need to speed, slow down and let the leader lead
Word to daddy… indeed

and this from “No Competition”:

No one in my path can withstand
Under pressure the wrath of a swift man

Much like Rakim’s imaginary beef with EPMD it was all cleared up with a phone call. The rivalry kept 80s Hip Hop heads entertained for a while though. To this day people still debate who would have won a Kane vs Rakim battle.

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That I get plenty of tail, well, I even get white A Tribe Called Quest – God Lives Through
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Tip humorously brags about how many women he gets by impersonating a character from the Blaxploitation flick Coffy. A drug dealer named Sugarman makes this same claim at the start of the film.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ct_gBPFDB_E&t=67

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I never been tooken out, I keep MC's looking out Ol' Dirty Bastard – Brooklyn Zoo
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Ol' Dirty’s never been defeated, taken out of the picture. He has other rappers nervous because of it.

Note the similarity to Big Daddy Kane’s lyrics in “Raw”:

And in my lifetime, believe I’ve never been
Beaten, or eaten and just tooken out
You know come to think about it, I keep MCs looking out

Some thought this was a dis to Kane but given their Brooklyn backgrounds and Dirty’s appearance on Kane’s “Show And Prove” a year earlier, it’s more likely to be a salute if anything.

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How I Could Just Kill a Man Cypress Hill – How I Could Just Kill a Man
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Cypress Hill’s debut single and first big hit. “How I Could Just Kill A Man” was actually the b-side of the single but it quickly overshadowed its a-side, “The Phuncky Feel One”.

The video, featuring the group strolling around New York City, was released after the song had become a hit (presumably with a much lower budget than the cool, arty video for “Phuncky Feel One”). It has cameos from Ice Cube and Q-Tip.

In 1999, Cypress released a Spanish version of the song, “No Entiendes La Onda”.

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99d916d99da0b62a2766c1119ac0742f

547

2 years

Tim Dog is also in the video.

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1 year

gta san andreas

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Release Yo' Delf Method Man (Ft. Blue Raspberry) – Release Yo' Delf
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The title of this track is a play on the electro classic “Release Yourself” by Aleem.

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Like shooting Cee-lo, and always hitting head cracks A Tribe Called Quest – Vibes and Stuff
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Cee-lo is a dice game played for money, popular on the East Coast. Also known as “4-5-6”, the “dice game” or just “dice”, it’s been referenced in countless Hip Hop songs and videos.

A “head crack” (rolling a 6 on the odd die) is considered an automatic win. A player that always hit head cracks would be very lucky indeed.

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At the end of the week, I'm buyin' you a L
Lexus, nigga, I ain't talkin' 'bout Hancock Raekwon – Spot Rusherz
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Rae expects to make so much money from this heist that he’ll buy a car for his man afterwards as thanks. That’s L for Lexus, not the L’s that Nas hits while he’s sleeping – those are much cheaper.

Rae uses Hancock as slang for weed here – probably a reference to the musician Herbie Hancock.

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Joe
5 years

Hancock was a a popular weed spot in Brooklyn NY, you only got one blunt out of a dub, which is why he says “ at the end of the week I’m buying you an L (Lexus) I ain’t talking about Hancock, no time for weed…

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C8c56c41d099edf907a069eb3c06fcf2

3,741

9 years

And wow. I just read that excerpt. Definitely never gonna try crack.

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C8c56c41d099edf907a069eb3c06fcf2

3,741

9 years

OH, duh – I missed the emphasis on “herb.” It’s hard to see there.

Thanks for the link about Herbie’s crack addiction. I had no idea. I think I was maybe also confusing him with Ron Carter, who I’m pretty sure actually did stay away from drugs.

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1358288297_15733_justice

82,343

9 years

Herbie Hancock was actually addicted to crack in the 90s.

In any case, Hancock as slang for weed has nothing to do with Herbie’s own drug use. It’s because “herb” is slang for weed. It’s an odd choice of words, but given that Rae specifically mentions “L’s” and “weed” in these lines, I think it’s more likely than Hancock meaning signature.

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C8c56c41d099edf907a069eb3c06fcf2

3,741

9 years

Agree with Hudd, no way “Hancock” is supposed to be slang for weed. And if it is, it definitely isn’t referring to Herbie, who basically stayed away from drugs his whole life.

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Default_avatar_100

7

10 years

Rae is actually saying that he will be paying cash for the Lexus, not signing for it. Signature = hancock, as in John Hancock.

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