Last month, a book about secretly gay rappers came out. Terrance Dean’s book “Hiding In Hip-Hop: On The Down Low In The Entertainment Industry- From Music To Hollywood” allegedly sent shockwaves through the hip-hop community, as it heavily insinuated that many beloved rappers and actors are secretly gay. From what I can gleam from the excerpts I’ve read, it seems pretty clear that Will Smith and Cuba Gooding Jr. are being described. Possibly 50 Cent.
What I don’t get is why people are surprised. Mainstream Hip Hop has had a gay undercurrent for a long time. You need look no further than this picture, if you need evidence.
Recognize that guy in red? It’s none other than ace producer Dr. Dre. This single “Rapped in Romance” came out in 1986, which coincidently was the year that N.W.A. got together. Also, coincidently, The Cru put out another single that year called “Mission Possible,” the cover of which featured a familiar picture.
Two years after these two singles came out, Straight Outta Compton came out.
First of all, there is nothing gayer than this picture. No thug from the streets of Compton would ever be caught dead in those shiny clothes. Add to that how Ice Cube went on to star in such hardcore films as “Are We There Yet?” and “Are We Done Yet?,” and you start to get a bizarre picture of the authenticity of classic hip-hop.
Dre wasn’t the only N.W.A. member in the World Class Wreckin’ Cru. DJ Yella was also in the soulful crooning group. I would come down on him, but he now directs hardcore porn and is the creator of such classic series as “West Side Stories” and “Str8 Outta Compton.” He may or may not have been a poser back in ’88, but I have to give a man who directs porn a pass.
I would say that in the distant future, people looking back will have difficulty telling who was gay or not in the Mid 80’s – Early 90’s regardless of their actually preference. Why did everything on earth have to sparkle or be the most garish combinations of the entire neon rainbow?
Also, would Cuba Gooding Jr. and Will Smith being gay surprise you? There are few less-threatening young black men to middle-America, especially since they came to ‘power’ during the peak of the crack epidemic.
That poster doesn’t do a good job of saying “This is a movie about two dudes getting stuck on a gay cruise”
You’ll recall I saw this movie twice in the theatres in Malta and rented once upon return home. Some great scenes in that movie, you’d like it Dan, honestly.
If you believe in alternate worlds, there’s a planet where instead of veering in the thug/gangsta/clubs direction, hip hop is concerned with ornate boudoirs, candelabra, and shiny suits. And jheri curls.