Yo! MTV Raps
Encyclopedia
Yo! MTV Raps was a two-hour American
television
music video
program, which ran from August 1988 to August 1995 through its original Yo! MTV Raps name and later by Yo! (until 1999). The program (created by Ted Demme
and Peter Dougherty) was the first hip hop music
show on the network, based on the original MTV Europe
show, aired one year earlier. The U.S. version was hosted by Doctor Dré
(not to be confused with N.W.A.
alumnus Dr. Dre
), Ed Lover
and Fab 5 Freddy
, premiering on MTV
on August 6, 1988.
. Eric B. & Rakim
's video for the title track of the album Follow the Leader
was the first video to be shown on Yo! MTV Raps. The pilot was one of the highest rated
programs to ever air on MTV at that point. Shinehead's "Chain Gang" was the first video to be shown during a regular season episode. Only the Video Music Awards and Live Aid
received greater ratings.
, MTV Asia, and MTV Latino, African-American and Latino style and sound was instantly available to millions of people across the globe. This helped to create a worldwide appreciation and interest in the hip-hop scene, which is something that was celebrated on the Yo! MTV Raps 20th anniversary.
being the first contender, in January 1989, former rival BET
created competition when the network premiered Rap City
(was a two-hour-long program, now an hour-long show as of July 2009). The show was the longest-running hip-hop program because of its 19-year run. It ended that same year.
. When MTV started its Down With MTV advertising campaign in 1992, Naughty by Nature's smash hit "O.P.P.
" was used as the basis.
's "How I Could Just Kill a Man
." It was only after an intervention from Vice President of Music and Artist Development at MTV, Sheri Howell, that MTV changed their minds.
By around 1992-93, MTV aired Yo! MTV Raps only once a week, for two hours, on Fridays after midnight.
session. Salt-N-Pepa
holds the distinction of appearing on the first (technically, the first episode to feature Fab 5 Freddy) and last episodes of Yo! MTV Raps.
From 1996 to 1999, MTV repackaged it as simply Yo! The repackaged version was far more stripped down. Yo! had a weekly slate of special guest hosts. For instance, Angie Martinez
and Fatman Scoop
served as its hosts. By 1998, Yo! had no guest hosts and became a one hour program airing late Friday nights at 1 a.m. or 1:30 a.m. (Eastern Standard Time
).
In 2000, MTV's outlet for hip-hop videos became Direct Effect
, known since 2006 as Sucker Free
. It airs three times a week around 7:00 PM (Eastern Standard Time
). It is one of the few music video outlets for MTV besides its late-night/early-morning music video rotation hours, as MTV continues to focus on non-music video programming, especially reality television
shows.
in February 2008. It had Steve-O
(alongside Sam Maccarone
) promoting his new rap album, doing freestyles, and showing his new music video. The old set was carefully recreated and on that episode, Johnny Knoxville
revealed that Mike Judge
had created a brand new Beavis & Butthead episode with B & B ripping on Steve-O's rap video.
transformed into Yo! MTV Raps and featured classic hip-hop music videos as well as current hip-hop videos. Fab 5 Freddy, Doctor Dré
and Ed Lover contributed to the tribute of the show. At the end of April 2008, MTV aired Yo! countdown shows and featured the top moments from the show during its airing on MTV.
currently has no plans to release the music show on DVD at this time.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
program, which ran from August 1988 to August 1995 through its original Yo! MTV Raps name and later by Yo! (until 1999). The program (created by Ted Demme
Ted Demme
Edward K. "Ted" Demme was an American film director and producer.- Early life and career :Born in New York City, Demme grew up in Rockville Centre on Long Island, New York and attended South Side Senior High School. He graduated from SUNY-Cortland in 1985. His media career likely began with a...
and Peter Dougherty) was the first hip hop music
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
show on the network, based on the original MTV Europe
MTV Europe
MTV Europe is a pan-European 24-hour entertainment cable and digital television network launched on August 1, 1987. Initially, the channel served all regions within Europe being one of the very few channels that targeted the entire European continent...
show, aired one year earlier. The U.S. version was hosted by Doctor Dré
Doctor Dre
André "Doctor Dré" Brown is an African American radio personality and former MTV VJ.-Career:Doctor Dré is best known for being the co-host of MTV's hip hop music specialty program Yo! MTV Raps with partner Ed Lover. The duo also starred in the 1993 film Who's the Man?...
(not to be confused with N.W.A.
N.W.A.
N.W.A was an American hip hop group from Compton, California, widely considered one of the seminal acts of the gangsta rap sub-genre....
alumnus Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
), Ed Lover
Ed Lover
James Roberts , better known as Ed Lover, is an African-American rapper, actor, musician, radio personality, and former MTV VJ.-Biography:...
and Fab 5 Freddy
Fab Five Freddy
Fred Brathwaite , more popularly known as Fab 5 Freddy, is an American Hip hop historian, Hip hop pioneer and former graffiti artist...
, premiering on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
on August 6, 1988.
Pilot episode
Run-DMC hosted the pilot episode. Also featured in the pilot were DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh PrinceDJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince
DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince is a hip hop duo from West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Vocalist Will Smith met Jeff Townes while trying to make a name for himself in West Philadelphia's local hip hop scene. After joining forces with Clarence Holmes the team members became local celebrities...
. Eric B. & Rakim
Eric B. & Rakim
Eric B. & Rakim were a hip-hop duo composed of DJ Eric Barrier and MC Rakim .Hailing from Long Island, New York, the pair are generally considered by hip hop enthusiasts to be one of the most influential and innovative groups in the genre...
's video for the title track of the album Follow the Leader
Follow the Leader (Eric B. & Rakim album)
Follow the Leader is the second studio album by American hip hop duo Eric B. & Rakim, released July 25, 1988 on MCA-subsidiary label Uni Records. It is the follow-up to their debut album Paid in Full...
was the first video to be shown on Yo! MTV Raps. The pilot was one of the highest rated
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
programs to ever air on MTV at that point. Shinehead's "Chain Gang" was the first video to be shown during a regular season episode. Only the Video Music Awards and Live Aid
Live Aid
Live Aid was a dual-venue concert that was held on 13 July 1985. The event was organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for relief of the ongoing Ethiopian famine. Billed as the "global jukebox", the event was held simultaneously in Wembley Stadium in London, England, United Kingdom ...
received greater ratings.
Yo! MTV Raps and the spread of hip-hop
The advent of Yo! MTV Raps in the late 1980s was crucial to the spread of hip-hop around the world. Through MTV EuropeMTV Europe
MTV Europe is a pan-European 24-hour entertainment cable and digital television network launched on August 1, 1987. Initially, the channel served all regions within Europe being one of the very few channels that targeted the entire European continent...
, MTV Asia, and MTV Latino, African-American and Latino style and sound was instantly available to millions of people across the globe. This helped to create a worldwide appreciation and interest in the hip-hop scene, which is something that was celebrated on the Yo! MTV Raps 20th anniversary.
Rivalry
Video Music BoxVideo Music Box
Video Music Box was one of the first television programs ever to feature hip hop videos primarily. Created in 1983 by Ralph McDaniels, it was one of the most influential television shows to give urban artists mainstream exposure. It aired on the New York City-owned public television station WNYC-TV...
being the first contender, in January 1989, former rival BET
Black Entertainment Television
Black Entertainment Television is an American, Viacom-owned cable network based in Washington, D.C.. Currently viewed in more than 90 million homes worldwide, it is the most prominent television network targeting young Black-American audiences. The network was launched on January 25, 1980, by its...
created competition when the network premiered Rap City
Rap City (TV series)
Rap City is a music video television program block aired on the Black Entertainment Television network. The program was an exclusive showcase for hip hop music videos, and features interviews with and freestyles from popular rappers, and often has guest DJs serve as co-hosts.-Conception:The show...
(was a two-hour-long program, now an hour-long show as of July 2009). The show was the longest-running hip-hop program because of its 19-year run. It ended that same year.
"Down With MTV"
One of the most popular artists to be featured on Yo! MTV Raps was Naughty by NatureNaughty by Nature
Naughty by Nature are a Grammy Award-winning American hip hop trio from East Orange, New Jersey that at the time of its formation in 1989 consisted of Treach, Vin Rock, and the DJ Kay Gee...
. When MTV started its Down With MTV advertising campaign in 1992, Naughty by Nature's smash hit "O.P.P.
O.P.P. (song)
"O.P.P." is a 1991 song recorded by rap group Naughty by Nature. The song made it to the U.S. Top Ten , propelling their self titled album Naughty by Nature to platinum status. The song's declaration "Down Wit' OPP" was a popular catchphrase in the U.S. in the early-'90s...
" was used as the basis.
Censorship and declining popularity
The ratings fell after pulling Public Enemy's video "By the Time I Get to Arizona" in 1991, claiming it was too violent. Yo! MTV Raps also came close to refusing to air the video for Cypress HillCypress Hill
Cypress Hill is an American hip hop group from South Gate, California. Cypress Hill was the first Latino hip-hop group to have platinum and multi-platinum albums, selling over 18 million albums worldwide...
's "How I Could Just Kill a Man
How I Could Just Kill a Man
"How I Could Just Kill a Man" is the debut single by hip hop group Cypress Hill from their eponymous debut album, Cypress Hill, and was their first major hit in 1991. It was released as a double A-side to "The Phuncky Feel One" and the music video featured cameos by A Tribe Called Quest's Q-Tip and...
." It was only after an intervention from Vice President of Music and Artist Development at MTV, Sheri Howell, that MTV changed their minds.
By around 1992-93, MTV aired Yo! MTV Raps only once a week, for two hours, on Fridays after midnight.
The end of Yo!
Yo! MTV Raps had its series finale on August 17, 1995. Numerous high-profile names in the world of hip-hop closed the show out with a freestyle rapFreestyle rap
Freestyle rap commonly refers to rap lyrics which are improvised through a acapella or with instrumental beats, i.e. performed with no previously composed lyrics, or "off the top of the head"...
session. Salt-N-Pepa
Salt-N-Pepa
Salt-N-Pepa is an American hip hop trio from Queens and Brooklyn, New York, that was formed in 1985. The group, consisting of Cheryl "Salt" Renee James, Sandra "Pepa" Denton, and Deidra "DJ Spinderella" Roper, was one of the first all-female rap crews....
holds the distinction of appearing on the first (technically, the first episode to feature Fab 5 Freddy) and last episodes of Yo! MTV Raps.
From 1996 to 1999, MTV repackaged it as simply Yo! The repackaged version was far more stripped down. Yo! had a weekly slate of special guest hosts. For instance, Angie Martinez
Angie Martinez
Angela "Angie" Martinez is an American radio personality and occasional rapper.-Radio career:Angie Martinez got her first break in radio at the age of 16 answering hot lines at the urban radio station WQHT . There she met popular DJ Funkmaster Flex, and began working as his protégé...
and Fatman Scoop
Fatman Scoop
Isaac Freeman III, better known by his stage name Fatman Scoop is a hip hop promoter and radio personality famed for his on-stage rough, raw, loud voice....
served as its hosts. By 1998, Yo! had no guest hosts and became a one hour program airing late Friday nights at 1 a.m. or 1:30 a.m. (Eastern Standard Time
North American Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
).
In 2000, MTV's outlet for hip-hop videos became Direct Effect
Direct effect
Direct effect is the principle of European Union law according to which provisions of Union law may, if appropriately framed, confer rights and impose obligations on individuals which the courts of European Union member states are bound to recognise and enforce...
, known since 2006 as Sucker Free
Sucker Free
Sucker Free, known as Sucker Free Daily on weekdays and then Sucker Free Countdown on Sundays, is MTV2's sole hip-hop video block. Previously, Sucker Free aired weekdays for one hour, then eventually sporadically until the week leading to February 28, 2010. Sucker Free Countdown, its 2 hour top 15...
. It airs three times a week around 7:00 PM (Eastern Standard Time
North American Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
). It is one of the few music video outlets for MTV besides its late-night/early-morning music video rotation hours, as MTV continues to focus on non-music video programming, especially reality television
Reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors, sometimes in a contest or other situation where a prize is awarded...
shows.
Revival of sorts
Yo! MTV Raps made a comeback of sorts, after an eight year hiatus during the Jackassworld.com: 24 Hour TakeoverJackassworld.com: 24 Hour Takeover
Jackassworld.com: 24 Hour Takeover was a 24-hour live TV special featuring many stars of the MTV show and movie franchise Jackass from February 23-24, 2008....
in February 2008. It had Steve-O
Steve-O
Steve-O is an American stunt performer and television personality. His entertainment career is mostly centered around his performance stunts on the American TV series Jackass and accompanying movies....
(alongside Sam Maccarone
Sam Maccarone
Sam Maccarone is an actor, film director, and writer. He wrote, directed and stars in National Lampoon's TV: The Movie. In the film, he plays Jeffrey Sutton, Dick Weston Fernandez and Chad .- Personal life :...
) promoting his new rap album, doing freestyles, and showing his new music video. The old set was carefully recreated and on that episode, Johnny Knoxville
Johnny Knoxville
Philip John Clapp , better known by his stage name Johnny Knoxville, is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, stunt performer, best known for being the co-creator and principal star of the MTV reality series Jackass, with the catchphrase "I'm Johnny Knoxville, and welcome to Jackass."-Early...
revealed that Mike Judge
Mike Judge
Michael Craig Judge is an American animator, film director, writer and voice actor, best known as the creator and star of the animated television series Beavis and Butt-head , King of the Hill , and The Goode Family .He also wrote, directed and in some instances produced the films Beavis and...
had created a brand new Beavis & Butthead episode with B & B ripping on Steve-O's rap video.
20th anniversary
In April 2008, Yo! MTV Raps celebrated its 20th anniversary by making a comeback on MTV. MTV's show Sucker FreeSucker Free
Sucker Free, known as Sucker Free Daily on weekdays and then Sucker Free Countdown on Sundays, is MTV2's sole hip-hop video block. Previously, Sucker Free aired weekdays for one hour, then eventually sporadically until the week leading to February 28, 2010. Sucker Free Countdown, its 2 hour top 15...
transformed into Yo! MTV Raps and featured classic hip-hop music videos as well as current hip-hop videos. Fab 5 Freddy, Doctor Dré
Doctor Dre
André "Doctor Dré" Brown is an African American radio personality and former MTV VJ.-Career:Doctor Dré is best known for being the co-host of MTV's hip hop music specialty program Yo! MTV Raps with partner Ed Lover. The duo also starred in the 1993 film Who's the Man?...
and Ed Lover contributed to the tribute of the show. At the end of April 2008, MTV aired Yo! countdown shows and featured the top moments from the show during its airing on MTV.
Noteworthy episodes
- During a 1989 visit from MC HammerMC HammerStanley Kirk Burrell , better known by his stage name MC Hammer , is an American rapper, entertainer, business entrepreneur, dancer and actor. He had his greatest commercial success and popularity from the late 1980s until the mid-1990s...
(who was accompanied by his friend Fab 5 Freddy), one of the dancers whom Hammer was holding auditions for was a then-unknown Jennifer LopezJennifer LopezJennifer Lynn Lopez is an American actress, singer, record producer, dancer, television personality, and fashion designer. Lopez began her career as a dancer on the television comedy program In Living Color. Subsequently venturing into acting, she gained recognition in the 1995 action-thriller...
. - Ed Lover and Doctor Dré on one occasion, "filled-in" for the other Dr. DreDr. DreAndre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
and Snoop Doggy DoggSnoop DoggCalvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. , better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as a rapper in the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of Dr. Dre's most notable protégés. Snoop Dogg was a Crip gang member while in high school...
as live performers. Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg missed their plane which resulted in the two hosts performing "Deep Cover" (which Ed Lover didn't know all of the lyrics to) in their place. - During a 1993 interview with Tupac ShakurTupac ShakurTupac Amaru Shakur , known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor. Shakur has sold over 75 million albums worldwide as of 2007, making him one of the best-selling music artists in the world...
and his Poetic Justice director John Singleton, Shakur boldly acknowledged on camera the fact that he assaulted the Hughes BrothersHughes BrothersAlbert Hughes and Allen Hughes , known together professionally as the Hughes brothers, are American film directors, producers and screenwriters...
, who dismissed Shakur from a role in their movie Menace II SocietyMenace II SocietyMenace II Society is a 1993 urban crime drama and the directorial debut of twin brothers Allen and Albert Hughes. Menace II Society is set in South Central Los Angeles and follows the life of a hoodlum named Caine Lawson and his close friends. The film gained notoriety for its frequent scenes of...
. Ultimately, the interview proved to be enough evidence needed (since there weren't any known witnesses to the assault) to earn Shakur a 15 day jail sentence. During the camera "confession", Ed Lover physically attempted to restrain Shakur, to the point of putting his palm over Shakur's mouth, before he could say anything more considerably outrageous or incriminating. - In 1993, Fab Five Freddy presided over a considerably awkward interview with The Leaders of the New SchoolLeaders of the New SchoolLeaders of the New School was a Long Island, New York-based hip hop crew.-History:The crew was composed of Uniondale, New York, natives Charlie Brown and Dinco D ; North Amityville, New York native Cut Monitor Milo ; and Busta Rhymes , who was originally from Brooklyn, New York but later moved to...
. What made the interview seem awkward was the noticeably despondent demeanor of group member Charlie Brown, who was believed to be growing increasingly annoyed by the growing popularity of co-member Busta RhymesBusta RhymesTrevor Tahiem Smith, Jr., better known by his stage name Busta Rhymes ,Smith is an American rapper, producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the alias Busta Rhymes after NFL wide receiver George "Buster" Rhymes...
. Incidentally, Leaders of the New School (who were caught on camera holding a tense pow-wow) would disband shortly after their 1993 Yo! MTV Raps appearance. - During one 1995 episode (the last year of Yo! MTV Raps), an apparently drunk Ol' Dirty BastardOl' Dirty BastardRussell Tyrone Jones was an American rapper and occasional producer, who went by the stage name Ol' Dirty Bastard or simply ODB...
still managed to come up with a freestyle rap, even after host Ed Lover tried to stop him from continuing. ODB must have ultimately come to his senses since he soon asked Ed Lover about what he had just said.
Other references
- In the popular ABCAmerican Broadcasting CompanyThe American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
sitcom-drama Doogie Howser, M.D.Doogie Howser, M.D.Doogie Howser, M.D. is an American television comedy-drama starring Neil Patrick Harris as a 16-year-old doctor who also faces the problems of being a normal teenager. Created by Steven Bochco and David E. Kelley, ABC aired the show from 1989 to 1993 for four seasons totaling 97 episodes.-Plot:Dr....
from around the same time, Doogie is frequently seen wearing a Yo! MTV Raps white T-shirt, among other colours.
- In the famous sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-AirThe Fresh Prince of Bel-AirThe Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from September 10, 1990 to May 20, 1996. The show stars Will Smith as a fictionalized version of himself, a street-smart teenager from West Philadelphia who is sent to move in with his aunt and uncle in their...
, when the family is annoyed at Ashley's loud drumming, Will says "She will not be on Yo! MTV Raps if you all don't work with me!" This is referenced in the episode "Bang the Drum Ashley".
- In the movie Waiting..., the manager Dan (David KoechnerDavid KoechnerDavid Michael Koechner is an American comedian, musician, and character actor. Koechner began studying improvisational comedy in Chicago at the ImprovOlympic, under the teachings of Del Close, before joining the Second City Northwest...
) tells the bus boys (Max KaschMax KaschJoseph Maxwell "Max" Kasch is an American film and television actor. He is the brother to fellow actors Cody Kasch and Dylan Kasch. Max appeared in the 2003 film, Holes as Zig-zag...
and Andy MilonakisAndy MilonakisAndrew Michael "Andy" Milonakis is an American actor, writer, rapper, and comedian of Greek descent best known for creating and starring in The Andy Milonakis Show on MTV and MTV2.-Life and career:...
) if he catches them slacking again he will fire them faster than they can say Yo! MTV Raps.
- On the Season 2 episode of the TV series Smart GuySmart GuySmart Guy is an American sitcom created by Danny Kallis. The series ran on The WB for three seasons from April 2, 1997 to May 16, 1999.-Premise:The show centers on the misadventures of boy genius T.J...
entitled "Bad Boy", Floyd says "I've been watching Yo! MTV Raps."
- A Magic: The GatheringMagic: The GatheringMagic: The Gathering , also known as Magic, is the first collectible trading card game created by mathematics professor Richard Garfield and introduced in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast. Magic continues to thrive, with approximately twelve million players as of 2011...
podcast is named "Yo! MTG Taps", a reference to the "tapping" mechanic used in the game.
DVD releases
MTV NetworksMTV Networks
MTV Networks is a division of media conglomerate Viacom that oversees the operations of many television channels and Internet brands, including the original MTV channel in the United States...
currently has no plans to release the music show on DVD at this time.